Questions I Have for Jay Gatsby

Prompt: If you could interview Jay Gatsby as a student in this class, what questions would you ask him about his understanding of the American Dream and why (what would be your reasons for asking/wanting to know this information)? What keyterms might these questions include? What readings, themes, ideas, etc. from other units would inform your interview questions?

I would ask Jay Gatsby if he agreed with Peter Lupsha’s assertions and values in American Values and Organized Crime: Suckers and Wiseguys considering he is an organized criminal himself. Likewise, I would ask his opinion on the success of Black Wall Street, considering the book takes place within two years of the peak of the Greenwood District and the subsequent massacre. These questions would include the keyterms: American Dream, organized crime, values, materialism, and success. I would reference Suckers and Wiseguys, as well as Black Wall Street by Hannibal Johnson.  

1b: Other than questions relating to the content of THIS COURSE, what other questions might you ask (that are not already answered/necessarily answered in The Great Gatsby? 

If I could ask Gatsby a couple of personal questions, I would ask “How did going to war impact your idea of what the American Dream is?” and “Do you wonder if Nick’s intentions with you are more than friendly?” 

2: Gatsby’s answer to my questions. 

1. “I became grateful for my life and what it has to offer. While I lost a great deal, my youth and love for example, I found pleasure for the finer things in life. Living in excess is the American Dream” 
2. “Nick is strictly a confidant and I find his intentions to be nothing more than familial at most.”

3: In what ways can we understand The Great Gatsby as an American Dream novel? (be creative in your interpretation here). We can interpret The Great Gatsby as an American Dream novel for the use of wealth as an attempt to reach happiness and comfortability in oneself. Not to mention, it is extremely American to gain your fortune through organized crime and lies, as displayed by Lupsha. Truly, Jay Gatsby represents the superficiality of the American Dream as he is still unable to attain love from Daisy (representing class and everything elite) despite reinventing himself from humble beginnings.