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The American Dream has played a pivotal role in the aspirations of many Americans. Although the American Dream has been traditionally represented by the idealistic symbol of the “white picket fence”, the dream is perceived differently by different people. For many, this dream resides in the acquisition of money. However, for the characters in literary works such as A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the American Dream encompasses the love and support that comes from loved ones. In A Raisin in the Sun, Ruth Younger, a strong, devoted mother and wife, desperately tries to rekindle the love of her marriage and provide a comfortable life for her family. Similarly, Jay Gatsby, from The Great Gatsby, attempts to rekindle love by charming Daisy Buchanan, a previous girlfriend, to leave her current husband and marry him. The authors of A Raisin in the Sun and The Great Gatsby use the characters Ruth Younger and Jay Gatsby to portray the idea that the American dream is not solely about the accumulation of wealth but rather success as a result of hard work and support from family; Ruth’s ability to achieve her dream and Gatsby’s failure to achieve his dream highlights the need for the support of loved ones to achieve the American Dream.
Ruth Younger, despite falling victim to the shackles of poverty, achieves her American Dream of a financially stable and unified family unit through constant hard work and sacrifice for her family’s benefit. Throughout the play, readers see the rift in Ruth and Walter’s marriage as Ruth feels alone in her struggles to maintain the household and her marriage. Ruth works meticulously to support Walter and his sister, Beneatha, in their toils to achieve their dreams but is frustrated that she does not get as much help as she gives. She tells Walter, “There ain’t so much between us, Walter … Not when you come to me and try to talk to me. Try to be with me … a little even” (Hansberry 88). Frustrated by the lack of support she receives, Ruth lashes out at Walter. She simply wants Walter to “be with [her]” and support her which she feels is something so “little” compared to everything she does for the family. At this point in the play, Ruth is unable to achieve her American Dream. However, it is not her financial situation that prevents her from achieving her dream, but rather the lack of support she receives from Walter and the rest of her family. Despite this, Ruth continues to work harder herself for the benefit of her loved ones. Throughout the book, Ruth’s hardworking and sacrificial attitude is apparent, perhaps no more than when she heatedly says, “Lena — I’ll work … I’ll work twenty hours a day in all the kitchens in Chicago… I’ll strap my baby on my back if I have to and scrub all the floors in America and wash all the sheets in America if I have to – but we got to MOVE! We got to get OUT OF HERE!!” (Hansberry 140). By the end of the play, Ruth is so close to achieving her Dream, provided that they move into a nicer house in a nicer area. Ruth is willing to work for “twenty hours a day” or potentially “strap [her] baby on [her] back” because she is so committed to having her family achieve the American Dream. Her devotion to her family allows everyone, including herself, to have the opportunity to achieve their dreams. She ultimately achieves this Dream as they can move to a better neighborhood with better opportunities for the family. Ultimately, it is because of this familial support that Ruth and her family can achieve the American Dream.
Despite his immense fortune, Jay Gatsby fails to achieve his American Dream of a life with Daisy Buchanan, his inamorata, as exemplified by his inability to charm Daisy; this inability to achieve his dream is significant, demonstrating the idea that power and economic status does not solely allow one to achieve the American Dream. Throughout the novel, Gatsby desperately tries to win over Daisy, who he knows is the one thing he needs to achieve his American Dream. Nick narrates this when he says, “[Gatsby] knew that when he kissed [Daisy], and forever wed his unutterable visions to her perishable breath, his mind would never romp again like the mind of God. So he waited, listening for a moment longer to the tuning fork that had been struck upon a star. Then he kissed her. At his lips’ touch, she blossomed for him like a flower and the incarnation was complete.” (Fitzgerald 110). When Daisy and Gatsby finally kiss after Gatsby’s numerous attempts to draw Daisy into one of his parties, Gatsby is overwhelmed by “unutterable” feelings as he feels that he is about to achieve his dream, “incarnated” by Daisy. He sees his future “blossom[ing] like a flower” with Daisy as he believes he can win over Daisy. In the end, however, Gatsby does not win over Daisy and subsequently fails to achieve his American Dream. This is important because Gatsby desperately uses his wealth and social status in the hopes of winning over Daisy. This fails though, and readers see that the American dream is not just achieved through the acquisition of money or high social status. Towards the end of the novel, after Daisy kills her husband’s mistress and Daisy chooses to stay faithful to her husband once and for all, Gatsby goes to Louisville to relive old memories. Nick narrates that “[Gatsby] stayed there a week, walking the streets where their footsteps had clicked together through the November night and revisiting the out-of-the-way places to which they had driven in her white car […] so his idea of the city itself, even though she was gone from it, was pervaded with a melancholy beauty” (Fitzgerald 152). After failing to achieve his dream, Gatsby decides to revisit the place where he and Daisy first fell in love. However, he quickly becomes detached from reality and focuses on “revisiting” and reliving the past, something he so desperately clings on to. Gatsby continually goes “out-of-the-way” to impress Daisy by gaining wealth and high social status. This was not enough though and Gatsby was ultimately alone in his “melancholy” without any loved ones. Because he has never had loved ones to support him, Gatsby fails to realize that the dream is not just about social or economic status. His dream dies with him, unachieved due to the lack of loved ones to help and support him.
Despite not being wealthy, with the help and support of her family, Ruth Younger achieves her American Dream, while the wealthy Jay Gatsby fails to achieve his American Dream. This demonstrates the idea that power and wealth do not solely enable one to reach the American Dream. But what does that truly mean in the world today? For many, family provides the stability and love that allows one to have the courage to chase the American Dream. The difference in characters in both books highlights the disparity in people today working towards achieving the American Dream. Perhaps the authors of these books were hinting at the fact that the American Dream is achieved through sacrifice and hard work, with the continued support of loved ones, and not just through the acquisition of money.
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