The American Dream is originally about the discovery of happiness, but by the 1920s, this dream has become perverted into this desire for wealth by whatever means; mistaken that money will bring happiness. F. Scott Fitzgerald does not us the words “American Dream” in the novel, The Great Gatsby, but it is evident that he shows the impossibility of achieving happiness through the American Dream. Fitzgerald demonstrates through symbols and motifs the impossibility of the American Dream.

Sport (Motif)


Describes the time period 1920; people had a lot of leisure time. The rich who have already achieved the American Dream play a variety of sports to satisfy their boredom. Through sports we are able to see the characters’ true natures. Although sports are meant for leisure and fair play there is still cheating and corruption involved. For example, Jordan cheats during her golf tournament, and Meyer Wolfsheim fixes the world championship, both purely for their own selfish gain.
“When we were on a house-party together up in Warwick, she left a borrowed car out in the rain with the top down , and then lied about it – and suddenly I remembered the story about her that had eluded me that night at Daisy’s. At her first big gold tournament there was a row that nearly reached the newspapers – a suggestion that she had moved her ball from a bad lie in the semi-final round.” This quote describes how Jordan cheated in her golf tournament, and thus illustrating the dishonesty of the rich.