Chapter+2

=Chapter II: The American Dream as a Worthy Cause/Quest= =Is It Something to Actually Work For?=

M Kunert C O'Toole S Ulrich



//One of the main themes of The Great Gatsby is the American Dream and the pursuit of wealth. However, it is seen that obtaining wealth might not be the most desirable of all goals. It also could be seen that this "quest" is not the most admirable of paths to take. In the novel, Gatsby died on his quest to win Daisy's love by impressing her with his wealth. Because of this it may be seen that, instead, it may be more rewarding to pursue happiness by means of morality, self-content, and helping others.

To fully understand the thesis, here is some background information.//

[|The American Dream]:
"...that through hard work, courage and determination one could achieve prosperity." //(Wikipedia, The Online Encyclopedia)//

[|The Archetypal Hero] basic characteristics:
The hero usually displays these characteristics: unusual circumstances of birth, leaves family or land, an event leads to a quest, hero has a special weapon only he can use, hero always has supernatural help, hero must prove himself several times, the journey and unhealable wound, experiences atonement with the father, and when the hero dies, he is rewarded spiritually.

[|Chapter II Text]
The text of the second chapter of //The Great Gatsby.//

Questions
Notes and thoughts on this topic.