Abstract: F. Scott. Fitzgerald (1896-1940), as the most famous chronicler and laureate of the Jazz Age, is one of the most representative American novelists of the 1920s. He was not only a leading participant in the typically frivolous, carefree, moneymaking life of the decade but also a detached observer of it. Owing to its extraordinary literary merits, Fitzgerald’s the Great Gatsby is listed among the most notable twentieth-century American novels.

The thesis discusses the roots of the disillusionment of Gatsby’s dream from the social, historical and authorial perspectives. By exploring the origins and essential nature of Gatsby’s dream, the naivety and innocence in his personality and the cruelty of the Jazz Age society epitomized by the ruthless, this paper draw a conclusion that a combination of these elements defines Gatsby’s failure and destruction in the end. Theme discussion in this paper is basically done through history and character analysis, which aims for better understanding of the connotation of the novel. 

Key words: the Great Gatsby, American Dream, Disillusionment.

Contents

Abstract

摘要

Introduction-2

Chapter one Literature Review-3

1.1 Definition of American Dream-3

1.2American Dream in Different Historical Background-3

1.3 Studies on The Great Gatsby in China And Abroad-5

Chapter Two Analysis of American Dream in The Great Gatsby-5

2.1 Origin of American Dream in The Great Gatsby-6

2.2 Reflection of American Dream in The Great Gatsby-6

2.3 The Disillusion of Gatsby’s American Dream-7

Chapter Three Causes of the Disillusion of Gatsby’s American Dream-10

Conclusion-13

Bibliography-15

Acknowledgments-15