Text Connections

The Great Gatsby, having been written in the twenties, draws inspiration from a number of things to create the final product that F. Scott Fitzgerald wished for. For instance, Fitzgerald constantly remarks upon a number of things that the high-class, rich society around him does, usually pointing out the foibles. In the 1920’s and the general time period around them, corruption and indulgence among the high society members escalated to levels beyond that of previous time period, due in large part to the large gap between social classes that had resulted from industrialization. A bootlegger, in the form of the eponymous Gatsby, is also present, while the time did tend to have a high demand for the services of a bootlegger, or one who could work in the shadow of the law. In another sort of connection, the way in which Daisy, Gatsby’s idolized ideal for his love, behaves could very easily repeal any rational reason for him to really wish to pursue her, as she is lacking depth as a character, going so far as to collapse in a pile of shirts because she’d never seen so many beautiful ones: this calls to mind one other female love interest in a book written in the 1920’s, namely Lena from Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley, in which she behaves in an altogether apathetic and materialistic way. Perhaps not so coincidentally, both stories chastise the relentless pursuit of material wealth as a basis for happiness.