What is the "American Dream?" It is most commonly thought of as the conventional rags to riches story, starting from nothing and making it big in the land of opportunity. Yet, in a modern context many have tried to manipulate the idea of the american dream to make it more nationalistic, and completely contrasting the ideals it originated from. These are the same people who consider starting from nothing to be only starting with "a small loan of a million dollars," but I digress. In the context of the 1920s, the american dream was all about the accumulation of wealth in a time of prosperity after the first World War. But even then, new money was frowned upon.
I would describe wealth, not in terms of money, but in quality of life. Whether or not you are satisfied with your relationships with those around you, and whether or not you are making a living doing something you love. However, I understand that my definition of wealth reveals an underlying truth about myself, I have not had a difficult life. Nothing has just been given to me, but I have never worried about where my next meal would come from, or if I could afford the basic necessities of life. And therefore, I will redefine wealth to help eliminate my personal bias; to be wealthy is to live comfortably. To be able to provide for yourself, and family if applicable, without making large sacrifices is something to be thankful for, and anyone who fits this description is wealthy.
In the context of the 1920s, American's idolize the rich, and look down upon the poor. The Great Gatsby was set in a materialistic time where monetary value was the only measure for quality. Therefore, those with excess things were seen as superior to those with less. As for the poor, they had little money to their name, and therefore their lives held less value. This is seen in the portrayal of Mr. Wilson, who is a clueless mechanic married to a cheating wife. If he were not of such a low class, then he would be more intelligent, and his wife would be faithful to him.
My attitude towards wealth and poverty is very fluid. On the one hand, there are the wealthy people who prey on the middle and lower class to grow their wealth. But there are also wealthy people like J.K. Rowling who dropped off the Forbes list because of all of her charitable donations. The same is true for the impoverished. Some poor people will live off the system and are involved in questionable activities (street pharmaceuticals and what not). I do not condone these people for their way of life, because for many people it is their only option to earn money; however, I cannot approve of their activities because they are illegal. I firmly believe in creating opportunities for the poor because social mobility is a necessary aspect of successful society, and it just so happens to be the main idea behind the "American Dream."
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