The topic of social class is surfaced as Gatsby’s true past is revealed: he grew up on a farm to “shiftless and unsuccessful” parents, causing him to be dissatisfied with the life he is living and goes on to attend college at St. Olaf’s, but shortly after drops out as he is humiliated of having to pay for his tuition through janitorial duties. Gatsby places a high reverence on social status, and his humiliation if apparent of having to work as a janitor, and later as a fisherman to make ends meet by fishing for salmon and digging for clams, but when he runs into Dan Cody by chance to inform him of an oncoming storm, everything changes. The wealthy yachtsman invites Gatsby aboard to travel with him and pays him to join him on his travels to work the ship and watch over himself when he runs into one of his frequently occurring drunken spells. When Dan Cody helps him change his name from James Gatz to Jay Gatsby, he ultimately reinvents him and represents a clean slate for Gatsby to begin a new life as the wealthy man he has always aspired to be.
Gatsby is so infatuated with Daisy because she represents everything that he has ever wanted, but it came with such ease to her, whereas with him he had to work so fervently to achieve it. Gatsby’s gift is his ability to make his dreams come true through acquiring wealth, building up his social status, and owning a lavish mansion to house extravagant events. His biggest dream, however, is of his own self, his identity, for he has dreamed of such abundant wealth since living on a farm when he was a child and he continues to try to add things to his life so as to try to play into the wealthy lifestyle, for he does not know what it is like naturally and is constantly trying to fit in and accommodate what he perceives a wealthy lifestyle to be like. Such is symbolic of the 1920’s atmosphere as people were able to gain a great deal of wealth and aspire to further their social status, but once they achieved such it was a turbulent time as people were reckless with their money for they thought that was just how the lifestyle was and put on a façade by doing so- just as Gatsby is for he is only trying to win over the love of Daisy with all of the money his is spending, but also to boost his credibility is his social class that he is not frugal with his money. However, there always remains a strain between the naturally wealthy and those who were previously were not as financially sound but were able to attain success in wealth, as Tom, an East Egger who was born into money, finds it incredibly hard to relate to Gatsby, a self-made man from West Egger. Even though Gatsby seems to have as much money as the other side of town, he lacks their sense of ease in social settings and events and as a result he is ridiculed for having been a “new money” man.
Gatsby is so infatuated with Daisy because she represents everything that he has ever wanted, but it came with such ease to her, whereas with him he had to work so fervently to achieve it. Gatsby’s gift is his ability to make his dreams come true through acquiring wealth, building up his social status, and owning a lavish mansion to house extravagant events. His biggest dream, however, is of his own self, his identity, for he has dreamed of such abundant wealth since living on a farm when he was a child and he continues to try to add things to his life so as to try to play into the wealthy lifestyle, for he does not know what it is like naturally and is constantly trying to fit in and accommodate what he perceives a wealthy lifestyle to be like. Such is symbolic of the 1920’s atmosphere as people were able to gain a great deal of wealth and aspire to further their social status, but once they achieved such it was a turbulent time as people were reckless with their money for they thought that was just how the lifestyle was and put on a façade by doing so- just as Gatsby is for he is only trying to win over the love of Daisy with all of the money his is spending, but also to boost his credibility is his social class that he is not frugal with his money. However, there always remains a strain between the naturally wealthy and those who were previously were not as financially sound but were able to attain success in wealth, as Tom, an East Egger who was born into money, finds it incredibly hard to relate to Gatsby, a self-made man from West Egger. Even though Gatsby seems to have as much money as the other side of town, he lacks their sense of ease in social settings and events and as a result he is ridiculed for having been a “new money” man.