What are three scenarious (Specific events or experiences) from The Great Gatsby protray how some imagine and live out the dream? What does this say about the character's underlying belief and motivation about "getting ahead" or having a "better life", in connection with the greater insight of the novel.
The American Dream is an illusive if not illusionary ideal. The societies of East and West Egg are deeply divided by the difference between the noveau riche and the older moneyed families. Gatsby is aware of the existence of a class structure in America, because a true meritocracy would put him in touch with some of the finest people, but, as things stand, he is held at arm's length. Gatsby tries desperately to fake status, even buying British shirts and claiming to have attended Oxford in an attempt to justify his position in society. Ultimately, however, it is a class gulf that seperates Gatsby and Daisy, and cements the latter in her relationship to her husbad, who is from the same class as she is.
