Is Gatsby great? Or is he a flawed tragic hero? If Gatsby is great, What makes him so?
Published in 1925, The Great Gatsby is the story of the rise and fall of Jay Gatsby, which is complementary to the rise and decline of the Great American Dream. The story is set in the post-IWW world of the 1920s, in Long Island, shifting between the two towns of East Egg and West Egg. Nick Carraway, the narrator of the story, rents a small house in West Egg. In the Est Egg, he reconnects with his cousin Daisy, her husband Tom Buchanan, and their friend Jordan Baker. In West Egg, Nick meets Gatsby, his mysterious neighbor, who owns a giant mansion and throws parties for people whom he barely knows. Everybody knows that Gatsby is rich, but nobody really knows his story. Nick learns from Jordan about Gatsby's relationship with Daisy, and how they were in love 5 years ago. While Gatsby was away at work, making money in the hope of having a future with Daisy, Daisy who is already super rich, is tired of waiting and marries an even richer and reckless Tom Buchanan.
The novel explores the universal themes of love, loss, and betrayal, but chiefly focuses on the corruption of the ideals of the American Dream, which went from a symbol of hope, success and equal opportunities for everyone into a symbol of getting rich through whatsoever means. Jay Gatsby is an embodiment of the elements of the American Dream. Coming from a poor background, and working hard but also getting involved in illegal trades, he has somehow amassed wealth and earned a status in the racist, classist American society. Everyone has a goal here, and those trapped in the ideal of the American Dream like Gatsby work hard in whatever way possible to move up the social ladder of class and status. For Gatsby, the fulfillment of his great Dream lies in recapturing his old love, Daisy, despite all the wealth he has amassed. We are also introduced to George and Myrtle Wilson, working-class people who strive to improve their quality of life; George through his work, and Myrtle through her affair with Tom Buchanan. At a point in time, it looks like Gatsby really makes his dream of winning back Daisy come true, through their relationship revived. But in the end, everything comes crashing down. Daisy accidentally kills Myrtle while driving Gatsby's car, Gatsby covers up for her, but she refuses to leave Tom, George breaks into Gatsby's home and kills Gatsby and then himself.
We feel the helplessness and bewilderment that Nick feels as he goes through all of these mishaps all alone. Nobody even bothers to attend Gatsby's funeral, neither Daisy nor his friends. People are just reduced to heartless, selfish animals indulged in their extravagant lives. These lines sum up the dread and horror of living in a world of people being and becoming into nothing more than careless, thoughtless and inhuman creatures, "They were careless people, Tom and Daisy—they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made. . . ."
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