The American Dream F. Scott Fitzgerald s The Great Gatsby

An American Illusion After the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was implemented in America, many immigrants from China, Japan, and India were stripped of their pursuit of the American Dream at Angel Island. The immigration station’s detainment of these rejected dreamers destroyed stories before they could happen. These stories of opportunity and the fulfillment of the American Dream make America what it is today. For instance, many immigrants today who are lucky enough to settle into America enter with little money in their pockets. However, through hard labor and persistence, they are able to grasp onto the four elements that construct the American Dream: fame, fortune, family and a future. The Great American Novel must document the†¦show more content†¦Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby can not be considered â€Å"the Great American Novel† because it lacks a rags-to-riches story, an important component of the American Dream. In the beginning of the novel the narrator, Nick Carraway, introduces himself to the readers as a wealthy man. Before the narrator embarks on a journey to the East in order to pursue a career in the bond business, he discusses the prestige of the Carraway name. He states, â€Å"My family have been prominent, well-to-do people in this Middle Western city for three generations. The Carraways are something of a clan, and we have a tradition that we’re descended from the Dukes of Buccleuch,† (Fitzgerald 3). Although the Carraway family’s riches provide the narrator with financial security, he finds it necessary to attain his own fortune through the bond business. His pursuit of fortune in the East however, can not be compared to the pursuit of the American Dream. In order to truly pursue the American Dream, an individual must begin his journey from rags to riches. Carraway’s wealth separates him from those who started from the bottom and labored to attain fortune. For instance, in the early 1900s many Italians escaped persecution in fascist Italy to immigrate to America with hardly any money. They were fueled with the desire to take advantage of the opportunities America had in store for them, and pursued their own