The Death of America's Ideal The 1920's, although often represented as a time of irresponsibility, was more accurately a decade of bingeing on hopes, dreams, and aspirations. The illusionary ambitions of Americans, however, led them to many a downfall. The American Dream varied from person to person, but ultimately, its quest resulted in a personal dissolution. The fallacies of the American Dream are evident throughout F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. Jay Gatsby, the novel's …showed first 75 words of 446 total…

…showed last 75 words of 446 total…even his name changed. But his dream remained the same: an easy, wealthy life with Daisy. This dream brought him to his doom, thus depicting the "withering of the American Dream." Because he had known the feeling of both wealth and poverty, he strived to be "safe and proud above the hot struggles of the poor." However, he sank, and his doom came because of "...what foul dust floated in the wake of his dreams..."