Term Paper examples on - Fiction Analysis

Excerpts from a fiction comparison

How Issues of Wealth Affected
Jay Gatsby and Holden Caulfield

In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the primary theme is that wealth corrupts. Similarly, in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, the main character of Holden Caulfield views the world as a place where valuable human qualities such as love and kindness have been overridden by the middle class version of “success”, which is based chiefly on money and power. However, while Jay Gatsby believes that money can solve any problem and make any dream come true, Holden Caulfield is an idealist clinging desperately to the notion that basic human kindness is far more vital to a happy existence than material wealth. Salinger continuously portrays Holden as a cynical character, particularly in regard to issues surrounding wealth and corruption, as can be seen in the following passage which describes the character’s opinion of lawyers like his father:

“Lawyers are all right, I guess - but it doesn’t appeal to me,” I said. “I mean they’re all right if they go around saving innocent guys’ lives all the time, and like that, but you don’t do that kind of stuff if you’re a lawyer. All you do is make a lot of dough and play golf and play bridge and buy cars and drink Martinis and look like a hot-shot. How would you know you weren’t being a phony? The trouble is, you wouldn’t.” (p. 172)

Yet Holden is also in many ways, an optimist in that he believes he will eventually find the meaning in life that he is seeking. Of course, while Holden’s idealism causes others to view him as naïve and immature, Gatsby’s materialism is highly respected by those around him. This is exactly the type of reversal of values that Salinger is trying to depict. Holden is alienated due to his inability or unwillingness to conform to the acquisitive attitudes of post-war America. He desperately seeks a human connection that will make him feel whole, while Gatsby seeks to fill the hole within his heart by achieving financial success. Though he does also strive to win back the affections of his true love, Daisy, he views his wealth as the most dynamic lure that will draw her to him, which implies that his perceptions of love are based largely on superficial elements. When Gatsby's dream is destroyed by Daisy's refusal to forget the past or deny that she has ever loved Tom, the frailty of the American dream is exemplified. Fitzgerald is attempting to demonstrate that when a dream is built on a weak or crooked foundation, it will not endure.

Gatsby’s acquisition of wealth is based on his grand plan to move near Daisy in hopes that she will attend one of his parties and re-ignite her passion for him. “Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay” (p. 83). Throughout the novel, the protagonist throws numerous lavish parties, which are essentially a trademark defining factor of the upper class. Gatsby himself, does not attend his parties but watches them from a distance. Yet it is important to note that Gatsby's illustrious and ostentatious bashes were not only a means of attracting the elusive Daisy, but were also his way of beautifying the ugliness of corruption that prevailed in the Roaring Twenties.

Jay Gatsby, like Holden Caulfield feels like a misfit in this corrupt environment, but unlike Holden, Gatsby tries to conform to society’s morally bankrupt standards rather than questioning or disputing them. Gatsby purposely creates an air of mystery around himself, with few of his party guests even knowing who he is. As gossip continues to circulate about Gatsby’s background...

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