The Equity of the American Dream

The characters in the novels are all involved in their own personal quest for happiness and the American dream, whether through pure longing and determination, making good choices, or deceiving themselves. The different pursuits of the American dream are shown in The Great Gatsby, East of Eden, and A Farewell to Arms.

In The Great Gatsby the main character, Jay Gatsby, has a dream that very closely mirrors the American dream so when his dream is broken it puts the entire American dream in question. When we read, “He [Gatsby] stretched his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, …I could have sworn he was trembling” (Fitzgerald 20) we can see the amount of desire he has for his dream, which is Daisy who is across the dark water. Surely someone who desired something as much as Gatsby did could attain it, but Gatsby is not able to. The end to Gatsby’s quest for happiness is so disastrous that we wonder how we ever thought it was possible. Is Gatsby an example for all Americans? This question is left open ended by Fitzgerald and allows readers to come to their own conclusion. Gatsby speaks the following after his dream has been broken,  “’I want to wait here till Daisy goes to bed. Good night, old sport‘” (Fitzgerald 145). When Gatsby says this he is waiting outside the house of Daisy even after he has been denied by her. This action by Gatsby makes one wonder if the author, F. Scott Fitzgerald,  is trying to show that Americans are holding on to the idea of the American dream even though it may be an outdated concept that shut the door on its promises long ago. This is a sorrowful conclusion but it may be a true one. In the final sentence of the novel, “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past” (Fitzgerald 180) it seems Fitzgerald is making an argument that the American dream will not work because the past will always hinder us. Gatsby’s dream was much like a boat, large and grand, that was fighting what was actually possible. Gatsby’s dream was created out of past events, and his dream only remained in the past. Gatsby did not realize but he was living in the past because that was where he dream existed and not in the present.

East of Eden is a modern allegory for the story of Cain and Abel in the book of Genesis, and it is also a story that looks closely at how choices, not destiny, aides in the quest for happiness and makes someone good or evil. When we hear that, “Adam looked at his brother as the condemned look at the executioner” (Steinbeck 30) Adam is facing his brother as he tries to kill him. This conflict mirrors that of Cain and Abel, but more importantly Charles’s decision to give into jealousy and try to kill Adam makes him evil. If Charles was able to choose not to give into jealousy, he would have become a noble character, but by giving into temptation he became a vile one. Charles’s bad choices, in the end, lead to an unhappy life.

Cathy’s evil is revealed when “She [Cathy] carefully squeezed a few drops of clear liquid into the glass, a tincture of nux vomica” (Steinbeck 248). Cathy is said to be a monster but the choices she makes are her own. Cathy chooses not to overcome her evil nature but instead to immerse herself in it. By repaying all kindness she receives with pain she is able to use people for her own advantages. Deciding to good would have been a harder choice, but it would have been more rewarding in the end. Cathy takes a path that is easier and she dies enveloped by the misery she has wrought. It seems that Steinbeck is trying to show that making evil and unjust choices will lead to misery in the end. The final action of our main character is given to us in these words “His whispered word seemed to hang in the air: ‘Timshel!’” (Steinbeck 602). The word Timshel is a blessing from Adam to his son Cal, which means “Thou mayest”. This means that Adam, before he dies, is telling his son that he has the power to make the choices to be good. He is telling his son that he controls his destiny, which is one of the themes of the novel. Cal, throughout the novel, is a character that defines himself by his choices. He does not act like we expect him to, like Cain, but surprises us when he feels grief for his bad choices and tries to be the best person he can be. Cal’s good choices make him happy and fulfilled like we would expect them to because Steinbeck is trying to show that good choices will fulfill a person.

Frederic Henry, the main character, in  A Farewell to Arms pursues a relationship this gives him happiness but it also seems hopeless and it eventually ends in death. When Frederic says, “I thought she [Catherine] was probably a little crazy. It was all right if she was, I did not care what I was getting into” (Hemingway 30) we can see that the relationship is doomed because we would assume that it would be very challenging to have a relationship with someone that is crazy. Despite this Frederic continues to pursue it. Frederick chooses to be in a hollow relationship that leaves him unfulfilled. It seems that Frederic does not see the point in a fulfilled relationship and is willing to settle with one that is easier. It maybe that Frederic’s idea of happiness might be the relationship that is easy and one in which he does not have to give it his full effort. This seems unlikely though because Hemingway ends the relationship in death. If Hemingway thought that Frederic had made the right choice we would assume he would end his story in a good way, not in death and despair. At one point Frederic says “God knows I had not wanted to fall in love with her. I had not wanted to fall in love with anyone” (Hemingway 93). This quote makes it seems like Frederic had no choice in the matter of loving Catherine. If this is true it is surprising that he does not realize the relationship is empty when it is apparent to the reader. It does not seem like Frederic truly loves Catherine at sometimes. Frederick seems to stay with Catherine because it is a sure thing and he does not have to risk a life without a relationship with someone. We hear of the death of Frederick’s idea of happiness when he says “I went into the room and stayed with Catherine until she died” (Hemingway 331). Much like Gatsby, Frederick’s dream ends in disaster, leaving the American dream in question again. If even a simple dream like Frederic’s fails can anyone achieve the American dream? Not only is Frederic cut off from him dream, but also he is worse off than when he started his quest. This makes it seem like the possibility of achieving the American dream very unlikely, maybe more unlikely than the tale of Gatsby. While Gatsby’s dream was large and grand, the dream of Frederic was simple and even it ended in failure.

In the novels the American dream is put to hard scrutiny and in some cases seems to be exposed as an outdated concept that cannot be achieved in al cases. We can see that Gatsby believed in the American dream when Fitzgerald says “Gatsby believed in the Green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us” (Fitzgerald 180).  This quote above shows that even though Gatsby believed in the American dream it was unattainable by him. When Fitzgerald uses “us” in the sentence above it seems to imply that no one can achieve the American dream as pictured but the question is left for the reader to interpret. In East of Eden the word “Timshel’” (Steinbeck 309) translates to “Thou Mayest”. This quote gives people the power to do as they choose. In East of Eden it seems the American dream is fulfilled because people are able to choose to be good and happy. Throughout the novel, the characters that do not make the right choices are made miserable. When the characters make good choices they are made happy and fulfill the idea of the American dream. It seems that the American dream hinges on people having the ability to do as they choose. Frederic’s dream, in A Farewell to Arms, ends in disaster. Frederic says “After a while I went out and left the hospital and walked back to the hotel in the rain” (Hemingway 332), when his dream ends. This novel like The Great Gatsby seems to put the American dream in doubt. Frederic wanted a simple dream but could not achieve it. What was it that made Frederic’s dream fail? Was it the fact that he chose to follow a false hope? If this is the truth it would seem to compliment the idea of the American dream posed in East of Eden. Like in The Great Gatsby the possibility of the American dream is left open for readers to interpret.