The attempt to capture the American dream is central to

many novels. This dream is different for different people, but

in The Great Gatsby, for Jay, the dream is that through

wealth and power, one can acquire happiness. This

happiness is something for which he must reach into the past

to have and for which he must revive an old dream.



Jay Gatsby, the central figure of the story, is one character

who longs for the past. Surprisingly he devotes most of his

adult life trying to recapture and, finally, dies in its pursuit.



In the past, Jay had a love affair with the affluent Daisy.

Knowing he could not marry her because of the difference in

their social status, he leaves her to amass wealth to reach her

economic standards. Once he acquires this wealth, he

moves near to Daisy and throws extravagant parties, hoping

by chance she might show up at one of them. He, himself,

does not attend his parties but watches them from a

distance. When this dream doesn’t happen, he asks around

casually if anyone knows her. Soon he meets Nick

Carraway, a cousin of Daisy, who agrees to set up a

meeting. Gatsby’s personal dream symbolizes the larger

American dream where all have the opportunity to get what

they want.



Later, as we see in the Plaza Hotel, Jay still believes that

Daisy loves him. He is convinced of this as is shown when

he takes the blame for Myrtle’s death and then watches and

protects Daisy as she returns home. Jay cannot accept that

the past is gone and done with. Jay is sure that he can

capture his dream with his wealth and influence. He believes

that he acted for a good beyond his personal interest and

that should guarantee success.



Nick attempts to show Jay the folly of his dream, but Jay

innocently replies to Nick’s assertion that the past cannot be

relived by saying, ""Yes you can, old sport." One critic said

of The Great Gatsby that the American dream is either in the

past or in the future but never in the present.