The Great Gatsby novel Question.

Question

Consider: Jay Gatsby is a dreamer character on a quest. Is his pursuit heroic, or is he a morally corrupt figure?

 Choose some of the symbols, character types, their archetypes and quests from the novel. Through an Archetypal Lens explain what they represent and the significance to the major ideas of the work.

Answer 1

About the questioned pinned to be considered about if Jay Gatsby is a morally corrupt figure. The answer to that is yes. His dream was to love Daisy and he died by it. He died never enjoying his wealth, his friendships and just his life in general. He counted on her for his happiness when no one should ever depend on someone for their own happiness. The 'great' in the title of "The Great Gatsby" is ironic. His dream is corrupted. His life is filled with lies and gossip in order to hold high status and does overly lavishing things to show off he is wealthy in hopes that Daisy will come to him but doesn't know in his desire for her he's seeking out his own death. He did whatever it would take to get Daisy, doing so by living dishonestly and achieving wealth through criminal activity. He used wealth in the pursuit of happiness therefore, allowing his acquirement of money to taint his dream of being with Daisy. His journey was his fake past, the lies he put out and his wealth ruined his destination which is Daisy.

Contrast to Jay, Tom's character symbolizes the worst attributes of the really rich people in society. He is old money. He's bigger compared to Jay, wealthier, has Daisy, a child, cars and a beautiful estate; he is the achievement. His attributes are his use of violence he uses to get his way and he does every time as well as cheating with Myrtle. Like the super rich, their money is power and it allows them to do what they want. The only thing that Jay and Tom share is that they are rich and greedy. Jay's greed grows in money and Tom cheats on Daisy. It seems that neither of them seem to be pleased with what they already have.

Answer 2

While I can’t do the assignment for you, I suggest looking at a few things.

Think of the character of Gatsby. At the beginning of the novel, he’s the man: money, women, a mansion, parties, and power. By the end of the story, he is rejected by the woman he loves and is killed. No one even comes to his funeral.

From an archetypal lens, Gatsby could be seen as the Hero—or more aptly—the Tragic Hero; Gatsby is ultimately destroyed by his own doing.

Here is a link to a source with different archetypes. How might Gatsby and others fit into any one of them?

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/writing-101-the-12-literary-archetypes#12-archetypal-characters-to-use-in-your-writing

Are Gatsby’s actions noble, venerated, and justified?

Are Gatsby’s actions deceitful, dishonest, and plain wrong?

Think about these questions as you construct your initial argument.

In the words of the question, he’s a dreamer character on a quest. So, what is he dreaming about? What is he searching for? How do Daisy, Tom, Jordan, Nick, Myrtle, etc., fit into different archetypes? What is the story saying?

As far as symbols, what is up with that green light across the bay? What about all those fake war medals? A library of untouched books? The T.J. Eckleburg billboard?

Once you make a claim, support it with evidence from the text and your own analysis.

Hope this helps. Good luck!