ABSTRACT:The Great Gatsby reveals the social features of the United States in 1920s. It was a short and special period in American history and was called “Tumultuous Age” which referred to the time between the end of the First World War in 1919 and the Great Depressions of the 1930s. At that time, American capitalism flourished and America quickly entered into the industrial era. The rapid economic growth made wealth become the scale of success. Gatsby tried to get love and respect through the success in the material world, but his distorted values would be destined to disillusion with his dreams eventually. By comparison, Forrest Gump was set in the period from 1950s to the early 1980s after the Second World War, which represents the political turmoil, the decadence of the economy and the lost generation. It also includes many famous history events such as Viet Nam War, Ping Pong Diplomacy, Watergate Scandal, etc. The movie tells the experience of a businessman with low IQ, intending to show Gump’s optimism, independence, persistence and love to achieve life goals, to awaken the hearts to pursue dreams pragmatically. Both two movies are under the background of critical period in America, but the final consequences of their American Dreams are distinct. This thesis aims to integrate the factors that lead to different results of American dreams in The Great Gatsby and Forrest Gump to enlighten people to pursue their dreams effectively. Based on the previous research, a detailed analysis will probe into the reasons from different backgrounds, characters, essences of dreams and pursuing ways according to the protagonists’ different endings.

Keywords: American dream; disillusion; pursuit

Table of Contents

ABSTRACT

中文摘要

1 Introduction-1

1.1 An Introduction to The Great Gatsby-1

1.2 An Introduction to Forrest Gump-2

1.3 An Introduction to American Dream-3

2 Literature Review-4

3 Backgrounds for the Story of Films-6

3.1 Backgrounds for The Great Gatsby-6

3.2 Backgrounds for Forrest Gump-7

3.3 The Influences of Backgrounds-8

4 Causes Leading to Different Results-9

4.1 The Influence of Personal Characters on the Attitudes towards Life-9

4.1.1 Gatsby’s Initial Social Values and Subsequent Changes-9

4.1.2 Gump’s Eternal Belief-10

4.2 Different Kinds of Dreams They are Pursuing-11

4.2.1 Pursuing Love with Money-11

4.2.2 Pursuing Love with Purity-11

4.3 Different Ways of Pursuit-12

4.3.1 Making a Fortune to Preserve Gatsby’s Love-12

4.3.2 Keep Running to Achieve Gump’s Success-13

5 Conclusion-13

References-15