Mariam Meskhidze – What is a major theme of The Great Gatsby?

In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald offers up commentary on a variety of themes. For example, justice, power, greed, betrayal, the “American dream”, and so on. I think that none of the themes is explained as deeply as social stratification. Fitzgerald carefully divides the characters in his book into different social classes, but in the end, each class must deal with its own issues. 

This book is serving as a reminder of how cruel this world is. Fitzgerald makes an excellent point about the inequality reaching every level of society by creating three separate social classes: old money, new money, and no money. America faced extensive post-war economic development throughout the 1920s, and Fitzgerald did a good job in capturing the dangers of society. Despite the fact that Fitzgerald had no way of predicting the 1929 stock market crash, the world he creates in his novel seems fatal. The characters in the book have confused values and incorrectly think that social inequality and maintaining social borders are the only ways to survive. 

They fail to develop the empathy and sensitivity that, in reality, separates people from animals, instead believing in fragile things like money and materialism. The characters in The Great Gatsby are the wealthiest people in 1920s New York society. They are not represented as being very inspiring despite their wealth. Instead, the wealthy people’s wastefulness, egoism, and irresponsibility are revealed. “The Great Gatsby” is about the flaws found within high society, and how a lifestyle based on money will never be meaningful. 

Gatsby is the most obsessed with his wealth, because he really wants to win the materialistic Daisy’s “heart”. Many people think that Gatsby’s novel is just as important today as it was when it was written, even if it is set in a different time and features a different set of characters. It considers topics that are general in nature, such as human mistakes, man’s fight with time and so on. What is The Great Gatsby’s main message? Well, in my opinion, the novel’s major theme is that the “American dream” is a fantasy and that nobody can truly have everything. The main message may also be that anyone who gains wealth becomes obsessed with the power they have in their hands.  

Author: Mariam Meskhidze