In the eyes of society, was Jay Gatsby a successful man? What about in your eyes? If you've finished reading the book, you know that Gatsby re-invented himself according to a pre-conceived image. Was he successful? Explain and explore this idea.
(Were there any other characters in the novel that you'd describe as successful?)
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In the eyes of society Jay Gatsby was perceived as a naturally wealthy person. Meaning he came from a wealthy family. So, the society probably didn't believe Jay to be a successful man, only someone who simply inherited his wealth from family. Only a select few knew that Jay Gatsby really came from poverty and worked his way up in the world. In my eyes Jay Gatsby was a very successful man. It amazes me that he came from nothing to one of the richest men in West Egg.He succeeded in proving one of the major themes in the novel which is: reinventing ones self and finding your true identity.
ReplyDeleteI would not describe any other characters in this novel to be successful. This is because all of the other characters that the reader is introduced to has either come from great wealth or is poor. Daisy and Tom are characters who have inherited all of their money and come from great wealth. Myrtle and George are two characters who are very poor and struggling to get by.
Jenny Maneatis
Honors English 11
I think that in the eyes of society Jay Gatsby was considered successful. Even though he did come from poverty, not many people knew about his previous struggles. Despite many people thinking that gatsby inherited all of his money, i don't think that society looked down upon this fact because nobody really cared about Jay Gatsby the man, but only Jay Gatsby the "entertainer" or "man who threw elaborate parties." In my eyes Jay Gatbsy was successful man; a man who worked hard to get what he had. In societies eyes he was a rich man with fancy parties, but successful none the less.
ReplyDeleteTatum Jungsten
I think that Jay Gatsby was successful in reinventing himself. He came from a lower class and was able to make it to the upper class and able to be successful. He became the talk of all the people that went to his parties because he was elusive and never really showed himself, but they didn't care because they enjoyed his parties because he was the ever elusive entertainer. But, he also was not successful. He did die unhappy. He did not have Daisy and he was paranoid about being arrested for the murder of Meryl Wilson. So in the end, Jay Gatsby was successful but was also unsuccessful.
ReplyDeleteKaitlin Dailey
English 11 Honors
I believe that Jay Gatsby was successful in reinventing his image due to the fact that he totally was able to hide his background from everyone. Later on in the book it is revealed that Gatsby did in fact come from a lower class family and that he somehow came to a large sum of money from a friend. However on the outside to the rest of society he appeared as an Oxford man who was very wealthy and sophisticated. He was an wealthy entertainer who had his own heartbreak like every other person in society, but because of his image he just appeared successful. Also, people didn't care where he came from but just how his parties were and when they were because that's all society knew of him which in the end could make him physically and financially successful but not emotionally successful.
ReplyDeleteHannah Dailey
In the eyes of society, Gatsby was viewed as a man who was born into a wealthy family and mooched off his family's wealth. In my eyes I do believe he was a successful man because although he earned some of his money illegally its still money. Plus, I do believe he was successful in re-inventing himself because he went from poor James Gatz to wealthy Jay Gatsby. I do not think anyone else in the book was successful.
ReplyDeleteSean Tadlock
According to the american public, Jay Gatsby seems to be successful. Everyone comes to his parties, everyone knows him, he can buy whatever he wants, and in my eyes is living half the american dream.
ReplyDeleteHowever there is another aspect of the American Dream, I believe that family and real friends are part of the Dream also. I mean you can't really be successful unless you have people to celebrate and share with. Gatspy may have friends, but they are interested in him for his money and parties.
In my eyes, he's half way there.
Tom Buchanan was a very successful man in both aspects, but he went and ruined his success by cheating on his wife.
Alexus Munn
Honors english 11
I believe Jay Gatsby was a successful man because of his ability to focus on and achieve his dreams. Although he lived a life of poverty, he dreamed of someday living a wealthy life in high society. To the public he was considered a wealthy man, but really he created himself and his success out of nothing. He never gave up on his American dream, and by doing so he was able to get where he wanted to be in life.
ReplyDeleteEmily Mucher
Honors English 11
In society, Jay Gatsby was probably viewed in different ways by different people. Some may have thought that he was successful because he had wealth and great parties, regardless of where the money came from. Others might have disagreed and thought that he wasn't successful, but lucky instead to inherit his money from his parents. I disagree with both. As far as wealth is concerned, he successfully made his money on his own with his American Dream in mind. That dream mainly revolved around Daisy. All he wanted was to get her back. I believe that his success with money was only the beginning of what he intended to do. Maybe he really wanted to prove to Daisy that he could give her anything she wanted, and is why he lived so close to her. He didn't throw parties to draw attention to himself, but only with the hope that maybe Daisy would turn up at one of them. Gatsby was on his way to all around success, but died before he had the chance to win his prize, Daisy.
ReplyDeleteCaitlynn Curtis
Honors English 11
Personally, I think that the most successful time in Jay Gatsby's life was right before he was murdered. He worked his way from having nothing to becoming the richest man in West Egg and in the eyes of society, that is considered a HUGE success. However, from a social standpoint, he wasn't very successful. He spent his whole life wishing that he could be with Daisy and he didn't do anything about it until he met Nick. He was also mysterious because even though he would always throw parties, nobody really knew anything about him. When Nick came along, he seized the opportunity to meet Daisy again and then his life started to become, what I consider, successful. The irony is, as soon as he and Daisy were able to be together, Daisy accidentally killed Mrs. Wilson which lead to Gatsby's murder by Mr. Wilson.
ReplyDeleteAJ Newby
English 11 honors
I believe that Jay Gatsby was extremely successful in re-inventing himself. He had money but spent it and came back fom nothing to be one of the richest men in West Egg. He was able to live extravagantly and afford many luxuries. The people in the story believed he just inherited his money even though he made it all through hard work. This rumor probably changed people's perspetive a little, but in society's eyes he was a typical successful man. He had money, a mansion, and the resources to throw extravagant parties for many people, but he didn't have family. He was lonely and he desired to be with Daisy. So in my opinion he had success, but he was missing something because the only woman he ever loved was with someone else. He was a generally successful man but he was missing something that was very important and though he had so much she seemed to be the only thing he truely wanted.
ReplyDeleteJay Gatsby had pretty much everything. He was very wealthy, he had extravagant parties with extravagant people, and he had a spectacular mansion. Therefore in the eyes of society he was very successful because he had money and thats what determines your class in those days. I think Jay was successful at reinventing himself because he went from Jay Gatz, a nobody to, Jay Gatsby, one of the wealthiest men in New York.
ReplyDeleteHowever I don't believe Jay was entirely successful. I say this because even though he had the splendors of a king he ultimately he had no one to enjoy it with. My view of success is something that you achieve out of hard work and you enjoy sharing it with the ones you love. Gatsby did work hard for his wealth but he had it all to himself and he was very lonely man. Sure lots of people came to his parties but they weren't truly his friends because none of them came to his funeral. Even Daisy, the woman that he loved so much abandons him in the end to die alone.
Society says that Gatsby was a successful man and he appeared to have everything that success entails: money, parties, a large house, people knew his name, and a mysterious past. That was their vision of success, and if that was the true definition, then yes, he had all he needed. But I don’t think that Jay Gatsby was a successful man. While he was able to re-invent himself he still wanted something more, something that would bring him true happiness, and something that he could not have. Until he found that happiness and could reconcile with his old self and be satisfied with where life had taken him, he would never be successful.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Jordan Baker or Nick Carroway were the most successful characters in the novel. They knew what they wanted, where they were going, and who they were. They were content, not always truly happy, but satisfied with where their lives had taken them. I believe that this is true success; something that makes you happy. Whether you are wealthy or poor, success is being content with you are.
Society during Gatsby's period defined success by the money in your wallet and how extravagant your last party was. I believe that through society's eyes, Jay Gatsby was not only successful, but a legend and arguably a myth in the his aloof ways of attaining all his money. Yet, this only made Gatsby even grander adding to his rich image.
ReplyDeleteHowever, through my eyes I would not consider Gatsby "successful." Not to sound cliché, but I don't believe all the money in the world could make a man successful - the fact that he did not have (for lack of a better word) an honorable "career" and no one to share his wealth with... Could it really be considered success? On the other hand, Gatsby managed to create a brand new image of himself that was built up from virtually nothing into an admired man. I suppose it comes down to your definition of success.
When it comes down to it, none of the characters appear successful to me. Except for Gatsby, the characters did not fluctuate in their societal status, and every single character became progressively sadder or angrier. I have a hard time believing any character was successful based on the emotions of the character.
I believe that in the eyes of society, Jay Gatsby was very successful. He held grand parties where everyone who was there had a great time. He was very discreet and didn't show his face much at parties, so it created a celebrity image of himself because if you met Gatsby, you were now the coolest person at the party. On the contrary, it also worked against him. It hurt him because people lost interest in him and didn't care if he was there or not. He was used for his money and belongings, but that is partly why he is seen as successful because he had so much wealth.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe Gatsby was very successful because he never did what made him happy. He held the parties, but it seemed that he didn't care whether he had them or not. He always saw the fame and fortune over true happiness. For example, when Jay left Daisy when they were very young for the military, he lost his chance with the girl of his dreams which he later regretted. He saw how successful he could be in the military and deemed that more important than his love for Daisy.
In a way, Gatsby was successful at reinventing himself because he tried very hard to get Daisy back. He put a great deal of effort, but he came up short and the consequences of his choices bore down on him. He at least tried to get her back, but he never did and he payed the ultimate price to try for happiness.
Max Fefer
English 11 Honors
In the society’s eyes Jay Gatsby was a successful man since he had a big house, money and hosted many extravagant parties. Even though they thought he inherited all of his money, I do not believe that the society thought that Gatsby was not successful. In my opinion, he was successful and unsuccessful. He was successful since he did reinvent himself from being poor to rich. However, I also think he was unsuccessful since he did not achieve his dream of being with Daisy, therefore he was not happy.
ReplyDeleteElaina Torres
In the eyes of society Gatsby was a big sucess. He was rich, generous, and hosted some of the biggest parties. I do believe though that if they were to find out Gatsby was not born rich it would be a totally different story. For me Gatsby was not a sucess. He held on to the wrong girl for too long, and it ended up killing him. He also mangaed to come out with no friends but Nick. No one even showed up to his funeral.
ReplyDeleteAs a matter of fact none of the characters in the book were a sucess. Diasy and Tom were both unfaithful, JOrdan was a liar, and Nick, well Nick didn't do much of anything.
Shelby Gruber
In the eyes of society, Jay was percieved as a successful man. Many of his partygoers believed that he was part of a family with old money. There were always whirlwind roumours about his true, possibly corrupt, idenity, but they were only used as entertainment and not treated as real facts. If society knew the man he really was, and where his money came from, I belive that he would not be viewed as successful in the traditional terms. However, he could have eaisly have been viewd as a successful criminal. In my eyes Jay was not successful. He is the perfect example of the saying "money can't buy happiness". Jay failed in obtaining the only thing he ever truly wanted, Daisy. Therefore, I do not view him as successful in his life.
ReplyDeleteI belive that Gatsby was quite successful in reinventing himself to his pre-concieved image, his american dream. He made himself into everything that he thought Daisy wanted him to be; which was his ultimate goal. He may have not used the most honest means to get himslef to his desired ends, but he was very successful in getting there.
Out of all the other characters I belive that Nick was successful individual. Nick worked like an honest man and was happy in living his humble lifestyle.
Phoebe Neuman
In the eyes of society, Jay Gatsby was successful because to many of the characters he was rich and known for his luxurious parties. When people heard Gatsby they immediately thought of his mansion and his wealth. He has come a long way from working as a janitor, but he did it by lying and cheating. Jay became successful by participating in organized crime and trading stolen goods. Thus, proving to me he really isn’t very successful. I believe that if the only way he could become rich is by stealing and lying then he really isn’t truly thriving, but rather failing in life. I believe the only true successful person was Nick because he didn’t ever lie or steal or cheat.
ReplyDeleteIt depends what "success" means. I think there are two very different types of success: one is shallow and is reached by becoming very wealthy and well-known, and the other kind of success has to do with character and family. To me, success means the latter. When looking at someone's life, it doesn't matter how much money he or she had or how many people know his or her name. What matters is the honest relationships the person had and the virtues the person lived by.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that Gatsby was a successful man. He built himself a lavish and wealthy life, but even after all of his hard work acquiring such material things, the girl he loved still didn't love him back and he died unhappy. Almost all of New York knew Gatsby, yet there were only a handful of people at his funeral. No one really cared about him as a human-being, they only cared about his money and his over-the-top parties. Although Gatsby was successful at re-inventing himself, he was not successful once he had become who he wanted to be.
With that said, I think many of the outsiders (people who knew of him and went to his parties) considered Gatsby to be successful. They knew him as a ridiculously wealthy man who seemed to have everything he could ever want. His parties were full of famous people and lavish things. If they knew about his failed attempt at winning the heart of the girl of his dreams and the fact that Gatsby had almost no close friends and/or family except Nick, their view of him would have been totally different.
In a worldly sense, Jay Gastby was indeed very successful. Most of the people that would go to his parties and events didnt see behind his big house, fancy clothes, and money. I do not think that Gatsby was successful because he failed in trying to win back the love of his life, had no real friends, and never was truly happy, no matter what material things he had. Additionally, Jay made most of his money by trading stolen goods. He didn't work hard for his money, there is no sense of accomplishment there. Therefore, I would say that he was not a successful individual.
ReplyDeleteAnnie Mishler
Honors English 11
Jay Gatsby was a successful man in some ways more than others. Yes, in the eyes of society, he was definitely a man to be looked up to. Born into a wealthy ancestry, he was well-known, lived an extravagant lifestyle, and had a beautiful house that would put anyone into awe. Not only that, but he threw lavish parties for every occasion, making his life just seem that much more first-class. One would say that he was extremely successful in the material world. However, that opinion would definitely come from the perspective of an outsider, such as those who attend his parties.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the novel, I’ve drawn the conclusion that he wasn’t successful in the ways that really matter in life. Sure, he was stocked with money, but as the old expression goes, “money can’t buy happiness,” or love for that matter. When Daisy first sees Gatsby’s house after they’re reunited she says, “I love it, but I don’t see how you live there all alone.” To me, this quote captures the essence of how it’s easy for Jay Gatsby to have such a rich lifestyle, but it isn’t even important if he doesn’t have true friends or a loved one to share it with and have pure happiness. One thing that really underlined this theme was the idea of how he could have hundreds of people attending his parties—and just a few at his funeral. This goes to show that you can’t “buy” your friends, either. After taking these things into consideration, Gatsby wasn’t as successful as he was made out to be in the end.
Amanda Burri
English 11 Honors 2010
Society saw Gatsby as a successful man, but they do not actually know him. Sure, he may have thrown the best parties that everyone talked about and his house was huge, but he did not have any real friends. He failed at getting the love of his life, and he cheated when he gained his wealth. Money can not buy you everything, it can give you a good time right now, but who's actually going to stick with you until the end? For Gatsby, it showed not many stuck with him because hardly anyone showed up to his funeral. In my opinion, Gatsby was successful at tricking people into thinking he's something that he's not, but unsuccessful for living a fake, unhappy life.
ReplyDeleteIn the eyes of society, Jay Gatsby was indeed an extremely successful man. He had a beautiful home, an endless supply of money, and hundreds of people coming to his parties every weekend. Everybody new Gatsby's name, and in that time period, that is all that mattered to society. For example, in the movie "Chicago", set in the 1920s, a woman who had murdered a man and was living her life in jail was the most successful woman in the city because her name was on the front page of every newspaper. To people in that era, only two things mattered to be successful; riches beyond imagination, and fame: both of which Gatsby had.
ReplyDeleteHowever, to James Gatz, 'Jay Gatsby' was not a successful man. While he did earn all of his money and notoriety after being penniless, there was one thing Gatsby was never able to obtain. To Gatsby, he wasn't a success because he never got the one thing that was most important to him; Daisy. Gatsby could've had all of the money, friends, and novelties he could ever dream of, but he still wouldnt have been happy because he didnt have Daisy.
I can't quite say if I beieve Jay Gatsby was successful or not. One one hand, he did have all the makings of a "cliché success story"...he worked from the ground up and is now rich, famous, and has all he could ever want. On the other hand, Gatsby never had the one thing he wanted most, and that means he never reached 'success' in his mind. In the end, I would have to say i don't believe Gatsby was a success. Why? Gatsby never had what truly made him happy (Daisy), and in my eyes you cannot have success without happiness.
Ben Kaiser
A theme that I found to come in play with this question is "Rich vs. Poor (what constitutes success in America)". Like Amanda said, Jay Gatsby was perceived by his peers as successful because of his extravagant life style. His mansion and lavish parties made outsiders seem to believe that because he had lots of money, he was successful. He inherited most of his money from his deceased ancestors, but in retrospect he did make much money on his own. This lifestlye however, doesnt seem to really have the means of being successful to me. Jay Gatsby had lots of money but that doesnt constitute success. He needed someone to share his happiness with, and being a poor host at his parties (he said it himself) he never got the chance to meet someone who he could share his success and happiness with. He didnt have many true, close friends and frienship to me one of the true meanings of success. No one showed up at his funeral which means in the end, he wasnt very successul in finding someone to share his life with. Happiness is also a huge part of success and to me, Gatsby wasnt all that happy. Chris McCandles from Into the Wild said "Happiness is only real when shared" and Gatsby had no one to share his happiness with.
ReplyDelete-Erin Becker
Jay Gatsby was a succesful man in the eyes of society but not to himself. He became wealthy, but in secret ways that society would have frowned upon. He built himself up to become very wealthy so that daisy would leave Tom for him. In the end he was not succesful in getting Daisy and he was killed. And, he had no one to come to his funeral besides his father, Nick, and Owl Eyes. This shows that he never really had good friends because he wanted all of the wrong things. If he had taken time to get to know people, instead of having acquaintances who used him for his wealth, he would've had a much happier life and his funeral would've had a way bigger turnout. I feel he wasn't succesful because he died an unhappy person and never got to marry the love of his life.
ReplyDeleteMaryann Good
Honors English 11
I believe in the eyes of society they perceived Jay Gatsby as a successful man only because of his wealth and elaborate parties. Even though they dint know much about him and made assumptions about him for instance at one of his parties " The two girls and Jordan leaned together confidentially somebody told me that they thought he killed a man” these assumptions are pretty common by society when someone doesn't know something about someone they make assumptions not really believing it.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe that Jay Gatsby was a successful man only because in my opinion success is the desires of your heart lived out that is when you are found to be the happiest. And jay Gatsby dint desire wealth but only used it to attract his true desire Daisy and as far as i can see he spent most of his life in misery trying to find happiness.
I do not believe that in the eyes of society he was perceived as a successful man. They all thought poorly of him. No body actually knew his past, that he did actually come from poverty, they all simply thought he had inherited his money. However in my eyes he was incredibly successful in the sense of wealth to be able to reinvent himself as he did. However I don't believe his intentions were quite a successful route. He had reinvented himself for Daisy who all in all made him miserable instead of happy. So is it really success if you are not happy with what you have. In that sense I don't believe anyone in exception to Gatsby's father, who was prouder of his son than ever, was particularly successful.
ReplyDeleteIn one way, Jay Gatsby was extremely successful. His house and material possessions made it seem to society that he was. In reality, though, the things he possessed were not a viable source to determine how successful he was; they were an illusion. Gatsby did not really succeed because he did not succeed in what he truly wanted. He was successful in the fact that he was wealthy, which is what society saw. They saw his elegant parties and magnificent house, and they drew an idea that he was successful.
ReplyDeleteBut Gatsby’s true happiness relied on whether or not he could get Daisy back. Gatsby died without winning Daisy over, so he died unhappy. His funeral showed he never had true friends; only his father, Nick, and Owl Eyes showed. He died with everything he could ever want, but no one to share it with, so in the end, he wasn't successful at all.
I believe that he was both successful and unsuccessful. In the eyes of society he waa successful because he had lots of money, a bid hosue, and threw huge parties. He came from a wealthy family and many veiwed him as a very successful man. However in my eyes he was not successful because he died alone and unhappy. Fearful of arrest he led a worried end of his life. He reinvented himself into what society wanted and so was not true to himself. You cant be successful unless you are true to yourself.
ReplyDeleteRicky Walther
I believe that he was perceived as a man with a large inheritance from everyone that attended his parties and others that had just heard his name, but the few that really knew him recognized that he was incredibly successful and that he earned all of his money by himself. He grew up in poverty and worked his way up to become the richest man in West Egg. Now in a different respect he was not successful at all. He tried to buy Daisy back and at his parties he knew almost none of his guests. He was distraught and in the end only 3 people showed up to his funeral. So i think that he was both successful and unsuccessful but in both entirely different ways.
ReplyDeleteDon Bollard
In today's society, most would say Gatsby was very successful. He had money, a nice car, a nice house, and people to wait on him hand-over-heel. While he had every material possession that he desired, I don't see him as a very successful man. Gatsby had a strong desire to be around people, but felt like he had to buy his friends. Most of his friends were either "bought" or were more like work accomplices (as proof by the turn out at his funeral). In my opinion Gatsby had a lot of what it took to be a successful man, he just didnt apply it. Instead of having many friends, he lived a life in misery over an already married woman.
ReplyDeleteIn the eyes of society, Jay Gatsby had it all. Fame, fortune, popularity. Everything materialistic and superficial is socially approved, and Gatsby had it all. However, in my eyes, true success comes from true and honest relationships with people and being loyal to yourself and your beliefs. Material excess are only obstacles placed in our path on our way to finding true and lasting joy. When you are caught up in impressing others and outdoing your peers with material things as your basis, then your motives are completely wacked. A successful person is someone who sets out for their day and accomplishes what they desire to do and has the confidence of standing for their personal beliefs and accomplishments. Although in society's eyes, Jay Gatsby had it all, once we dig a little deeper we learn that Gatsby was left terribly alone, without the comfort of a loving relationship of another.
ReplyDeleteOut of all the characters introduced in the book, i think that Nick was the most in contrast to the others, but the closest to success. Not talking about money, or fame, or fortune, but i feel that Nick understood. He got it. Nick was continuously loyal to Gatsby as a friend, even until death. He noticed that some relationships he experienced as a third person, for example, the parties he attended at Gatsby's, were all meaningless and superficial. I think Nick was the only sane character in the novel, and as a result, he seemed to have a firmer grip on life and the real necessities to happiness.
Brie Simmons
In a superficial world, Jay Gastby had it all, and could be considered a highly successful man. However very few people actually respected and cared for him. He was the man who threw elaborate parties in a magnificent house. He was the man who people assumed everything about and never felt he was entitled to share how he became who he was. He did not seek that level of respect from anyone. He allowed people to think he was a murderer. He spent all of his energy trying to provoke the attention of Daisy, a girl who had forgotten him, and in the end did not even choose him. He lost his life because of Daisy and she did not call or attend his funeral. Gatsby had two people loyal to him, His estranged father, and Nick a man he used to get to daisy.
ReplyDeleteI feel that out of all of the characters in the novel that Nick Carraway was the most successful. He was happy, and he did not have to seek it by buying things, or creating a false sense of reality. He had feelings for Jordan and pursued them, and when they were gone he accepted it, unlike Gatsby who obsessed about it. He was able to remain loyal and honest. Even though Carraway was not wealthy like Gatsby in a monetary standing, he had more than Gatsby ever did.
Macie Burkett
Jay Gatsby was a very succesful man, materialistically, and a love-striken boy, emotionally. Society never knew anything of him and spread false rumor of him. Gatsby believed he had to re-invent himself after the war beacuase he saw how much Daisy loved Tom andhis wealth. In Gatsby's mind, mony and fame would draw the love of his life to him, however he was wrong. Daisy loved Gatsby when he was poor before the war, she chose Tom over him because she knew all his wealth was fake. I believe Nick was the most successfull character because instead of being sucked into the 20's fever he simply left for home.
ReplyDeleteJai Ghotra
Please escuse the errors my keypad is workin well.
ReplyDeleteJai Ghotra
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ReplyDeleteJai Ghotra
To me Jay Gatsby was a superficial, shallow, lonely person. He thought that by gaining fortune and fame he could win over the hearts of his peers. Being succesful is something acheived through honest intensions. Though he intended to do well, you can not buy one's love. Jay used his money and popularity to overcome the fact that he lost his chance with Daisy to Tom many years ago. He was trying to lure and entice Daisy with the thought of being with a rich powerful man. After all the things jay had accomplished, the girl he loved still did not love him back. So he did not acheive what he had set out to do.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Jay reinvented himself by being succesful, he didnt reinvent things in his life that were not superficial. In other words he reinvented everything surrounding him but not his core values. He should not have used wealth as a safety net, he became wealthy because he was insecure and didnt know another way to reach the girl of his dreams. Jay reinvented himself, but in the wrong way.
Throughout the book you realize that Nick is the most succesful charecter because he is naturally happy and content with where he is in life. though he did not make the money that some of the other charecters made, he lived a well respected life. This is my idea of a succesful person.
Tanner Huber
Sorry, I changed my mind. Although I still think in the eyes of society Gatsby was considered successful, I have changed my reason for believing Gatsby wasn't successful. I looked up the definition for 'success' and one of the meanings I found was along the lines of"the achievement of one's desires." Now the one thing Gatsby wanted more then anything in life was Daisy - he went to great, huge lengths for the one thing he truly desired, and at the end of his life, it was the one thing he couldn't get. At the end of the day, Gatsby was unsuccessful because the one thing he wanted most slipped through his fingers without a backward glance.
ReplyDeleteIn the eyes of society, Jay Gatsby was successful in terms of money, throwing parties, and property. However, in my eyes, he wasn’t successful, because he got all his money in a dishonorable way, if he had earned his money rightfully through hard work, then he might seem successful with money to me. Also, he wasn’t doing so well with his relationships either. He had a twisted relationship with Daisy and in the end, it talks about his funeral, and how there was barely anyone there. So, even though the society may look at what he has and think he is successful, when you look a little deeper you can see that Gatsby actually has a pretty messed up, lonely life.
ReplyDeleteApril Wulbern
In the Eyes of society, Jay Gatsby was a successful man. This was because their definition of success was being wealthy, and while that is a way of being successful, it is not the only way. a man is only successful if he thinks that he himself is successful, be it in wealth or in love or in a different affair entirely. Because Gatsby devoted his life entirely to his love, Daisy, and failed to live his life with her and be happy doing so, it is in my opinion that he was entirely unsuccessful.
ReplyDeleteAnd, honestly, i can't truly describe anyone else in the novel who was truly successful either. Tom and Daisy are both left married to the person they tried to escape from. Their Lovers, Gatsby and Myrtle are both dead, and Jordan and Nick ended up deciding to not be together. But if i had to describe one person as the closest to success i would say that it was Nick, because he wasn't harmed too much by the way things turned out with Jordan and he was taught many things by his experiences with Gatsby.
-Bryce Collins
I believe society saw him as a very successful man and everyone aspired to be like him. He had all the money you could dream of, a gigantic house in the prestigious west egg, and he threw the greatest parties in New York. Everyone dreamed of having his lifestyle so yes I do believe that the public saw him as a very successful man. However, in my eyes I do not see him as a successful person. Yes he did have all the money but he did not have any real friends, he had to buy them with his possesions and he couldn't even talk to the one girl that he loved. He had to use other people in order to reach out to her. He also created way too much drama which lead to the death of himself and two others. Yeah in my eyes he wasn't successful at all because he didn't seem happy on the inside with his lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteWere there any other successful characters?? In my opinion no, Nick was the only one close to being successful because he followed his dreams of going east but he got caught up in all the high tension drama and I don't think he intended on being a part of that. So no, no one else in my opinion was successful at all.
-Gareth Lee
In the eyes of society i think Jay Gatsby was viewed as a man who had been wealthy throughout his whole life; however, this was not the case. He had worked his way from nothing to earn his wealth. I think individuals viewed Gatsby as a more powerful person because of the way he flaunted his wealth with extravagant parties. He was a successful man in the way of money but he was unsuccessful in finding happiness. Lonliness was a great part of Gatsby's life. The love of his life was married to someone else, he had not one true friend, and he was not close to any family members. So I believe he was unsuccessful in living a happy and fulfilling life.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe there were any other characters in this novel that i could describe as successful. Their lives were based on materialistic ideals and they lived a selfish lifestyle. Nick could have been close to being successful if he hadnt been so enthrauled in Gatsbys life.
Allison Turner
2. To the public, Jay Gatsby was a successful man. From what the party attendees could see he had all the materialistic things someone could ask for. What the public didn’t know was Jay Gatsby’s burning desire to get back what he lost. As Mr. Gatsby explains when he is talking to Daisy about living alone in such a large house, “I keep it always full of interesting people, night and day.” (90) This gives me the feeling that Gatsby, though pleased with his possessions, wishes for someone to share them with. In the end of the story, especially, I would not consider Jay Gatsby to be successful with portraying his best “image”. After Gatsby’s death, Nick had a terrible time finding guests to attend the funeral. Mr. Gatsby’s funeral had, in fact, no more than a few guests. This is not the image of a successful man, with a life to aspire to.
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned, I agree that Tom was a successful man. He had money and love, but unfortunately he was self-destructive in the end. Cheating on his wife and having his mistress killed.
Haylee Hodgkins
In the eyes of society I think ay Gatsby was perceived as a successful man. He was very wealthy and proudly flaunted his money. He often threw lavish parties and drove around in flashy new cars. Most of the people he socialized with associated money and material things with success. In my eyes Gatsby was partially successful. He managed to leave his old life behind and become one of the richest men in the west egg, however he never managed to get Daisy, which is what he really wanted all along.
ReplyDeleteaustin fleming
In the eyes of society, Jay Gatsby was almost the epitome of success. He had it all: money, a marvelous house, power, and popularity. His nightly parties never ceased to be packed; people came just to bask in his presence.\
ReplyDeleteHowever, in my eyes, Gatsby had close to no success, minus his wealth. This was proven by the fact that Gatsby's father, Nick and the man with the owl-eyed glasses were the only people who willingly went to his funeral. To say that there were only 3 people who in your life cared about you enough to even show up to your funeral is not success at all. It is close to failure as a person. Gatsby did not die happy either. He never got the one thing he truly desired, Daisy. He died an unsatisfied man.
Gatsby did embark on a long journey of self discovery however. His struggle to find a true identity for himself was extremely riveting, although it was in vain. His identity he longed for was one with Daisy, and he never fully realized it. He may have seemed a happy rich man from the outside, but by truly knowing Gatsby, one finds a troubled man who died searching.
As far as other characters' success, there is not much to celebrate about. Tom and Daisy ended up with a perpetually ruined marriage, Wilson lost his wife, and Jordan saw no change in her life. Nick is an interesting subject. He did not find "success", per se, but he did not fail at anything. He did not possess a clearly defined vision of what he determined would be success for him. Albeit, he survived his life in West Egg much to the best of his abilities, so he can be regarded as at least marginally successful.
Taylor Cummings
2nd Block Mrs. Somers
I believe that society veiwed Gatsby as a very sucessful. He had a lavish mansion, power, people liked him, and his image among the people of the area was a wealthy one. Also, Gatsby shaped his image by having big parties and having people come to them. I believe that Gatsby was very sucessful in his time.
ReplyDeleteKevin Love said...
ReplyDeleteI believe that Jay Gatsby was portrayed as a very successful person because of his riches and the amount of people he knew. Though money and fame aren't everything. i believe that he had a lot of money but because he was not happy, he wasn't a very successful person. Money isn't everything, which is a concept that many people have a hard time wrapping their heads around. It also seemed that he changed himself for Daisey and i have the belief that you shouldn't have to change yourself for anyone else, so him being that obsessed with her made me lose some respect for him. The other person in the book that i remember thinking seemed like a successful person was Jordan Baker. She was the professional golfer. For some reason i always think of professional sports players as successful people so when i read that, it kinda stuck with me.
I think in the eyes of society Jay was a very successful man, he had all the material object one could ask for. He was almost like a celebrity in the fact that he had all this money, and he was always surrounded with a lot of people he didnt necesarily know. I dont think he was a successfull person though. He didnt have the best relationships with people, and wasted a lot of time obtaining wealth. Too much time. I think Nick was successful because he was close to finding that balance in life. He wasnt to engulfed by money, but he knew he must have some to support himself.
ReplyDeleteI think that society considered Jay Gatsby to be a very successful man. Despite their mixed feelings about him, nobody could deny that he was richer and more well-known than they would ever be. People would come from close and far to be at his lavish parties, whether they were invited or not. By the public's definition of success as wealthiness, he was right at the top.
ReplyDeleteBut the few who were close to him knew otherwise. Despite his achievements, he never got the one thing that he set out to get. From the beginning, he was after Daisy. He wasn't happy with his money. He just wanted to impress her with it. And without her, all the riches and fame in the world were pointless to him. Unfortunately, years focusing on nothing but her had caused his perception of reality to become very off from everyone else's. And with some dumb decisions, he was dead.
You could say that society saw him as successful while he really wasn't. But after he died, only his one friend and a bespectacled man of questionable mental health came to his funeral. He had left no legacy behind. Society had stopped thinking about him. In the end, he was unsuccessful in every way.
I believe society considered Gatsby to be a very successful man because he was an extremely wealthy man, but also because he was social and had other friendships. To many friendship along with money, constitutes success, and I think society saw this and believed Gatsby to be successful. Most of society didn't know that Gatsby was originally poor, and worked his way up the ranks to be a wealthy man. In my eyes, Gatsby is very successful for not inheriting his fortune, but earning it himself. Also I see him as successful because he had strong friendships and relationships, and I view such relationships as success.
ReplyDelete-Brett Bacharach
In the eyes of society to be "successful" mainly means you are wealthy so I think from the eyes of societ Jay Gatsby would be considered wealthy. He was always surrounded but a lot of people and looked up to. But my idea of successful is someone who lives the life they want with the people they love and money isnt a factor in that. I personally think that even though Gatsby was always with people the fact that he didnt really know any of the made him seem unsuccessful to me.
ReplyDeleteMegan Hentschke
I believe in the eyes of society Jay Gatsby was a very successful man. He had everthing that society deemed necessary to be successful. He had a mansion, wealth, and parties but, in my eyes Jay Gatsby was not completely successful. To be completely successful I believe one must have somone to share it with which Jay Gatsby did not have. Jay Gatsby was successful in reinventing himself because even though he started with nothing he managed to earn all of his money and make the public believe it was just an inheritance.
ReplyDelete-Meghan Munn
In the eyes of society, Jay Gatsby was successful. He had enough money to throw a party every week in his mansion. Everyone must have wished to be him. In my eyes, Jay Gatsby was successful in re-inventing himself and getting wealthy. Except, he never got the one he loved, Daisy.
ReplyDeleteI believe in they eyes of society Jay Gatsby was perceived as a wealthy and very successful man. He had it all in what the society made it seem like was the "perfect life" but i think that society didn't know the real Jay Gatsby they only knew the man with the enormous house and fancy parties with the inheritance from his parents. In reality though, he was someone who had to work for his wealth which nobody knew except Nick.
ReplyDelete-Madison Rockefeller
Gatsby was able to move up from working as a fisherman and a clam digger to living in a mansion, hosting fancy parties, and becoming known on both sides of the bay. It is never mentioned exactly how he earned his money, except that it was believed to be obtained illegally. He was able to keep people guessing about him, remaining a mysterious millionaire. I see Gatsby as being successful money wise, but not so successful in his love life. Even though he worked hard for his fortune so that he could provide for the woman he wanted, his efforts were useless since she chose another man who had the money before he did.
ReplyDeleteI believe in the eyes of society, yes, Jay Gatsby was a successful man. In my eyes, he was a very successful man. This was because he didn’t start out successful. He started out as a poor man that went into the army and then completed five months of college. If he didn’t work hard and meet new people he wouldn’t have been able to be successful. Sure he did thing that people didn’t agree with, but in the same manner he was nice once you got to know his personality and how to connect with him. Sometimes to be a successful person you have to start out as the low man on the totem pole because it will make you want better for yourself that much more. In the end, Gatsby was successful especially after his dad came and told Nick he was very generous and bought his dad the house he was living in.
ReplyDeleteKendall Larson
English 11 Honors
In the eyes of society I think that people would see Mr. Gatsby as a very successful man. Many people know of his wealth and when we know how rich somebody is we tend to jump to the conclusion that they are successful. In my eyes I think that Gatsby is also very successful. Knowing that he had to work for what he got drives the point even further. To society they might of just seen him a a man who threw parties, but he was in fact a very successful person.
ReplyDeleteMatt McCormac Blk 1
In the eyes of society, Gatsby would be considred a succesful man. The American dream is typicly defined as rising up from whatever social class you are a part of and becoming rich and succesful from you're own hard work. Gatsby rose from simple military career then went to colledge and later became extrememly succesful. I however, do not think that Gatsby's life was a complete success, because he had few friends, was selfish and inconsiderate. Which he displays in both his pursuit of Daisy and lack of remorse when Myrtle Wilson is killed. Therefore I beleive that Gatsby was financially succesful but did not fufill many other aspects of his life.
ReplyDeleteErik Lolland
In the eyes of society I feel that Gatsby was very successful. He had everything that would classify as “wealthy” and I wouldn’t doubt that one person who attended his parties would doubt his financial status. In my eyes he was successful money and prospering wise, but he wasn’t successful in making himself happy. I think he was successful in re-inventing the image he had, except for the part about not actually ever having Daisy to himself. You could tell that he felt as if along with inventing this image, he would also get Daisy with no problem. But unfortunately, that never happened and Tom stood in the way of a lot.
ReplyDeleteAlice Neff Block 2
In the eyes of society Jay Gatsby was a very successful man. He had millions of dollars placing him as “wealthy,” the “American Dream” for many. No guest would deny Jay Gatsby’s social status. In my eyes Jay Gatsby was successful in re-inventing himself as an individual, but did not completely succeed with life. He succeed in creating a new image of himself because he was able to start with nothing and then through hard labor manage to earn all of his money to fulfill his dream. A friend is what lacked in Jay Gatsby’s life though. Companionship is the quality that makes a human-being truly happy. Someone to share wonderful memories with is priceless.
ReplyDeleteIn society's eyes, Gatsby is an extremely successful man. He is wealthy, and a hard worker as well. In my eyes, he was not successful, because he did not get what he wanted- Daisy. He had to realize that money won't buy everything, but he did not accomplish what he wanted, so therefore deeming him unsuccessful.
ReplyDelete-Anna Toll
Gatsby was successful in giving the impression of success with his millions and opulent lifestyle. But in reaity it was a facade. He lacked many things like true friends (Few attented his funeral), social skills (Many of his guests had never even seen him), and the object of his desire, Daisy.She was the reason Gatsby made such an effort to amass his fortune. To impress her. But he was unsuccesfull. Its a classic case of money not buying happiness. Gatsby could re-invent himself but not his feelings. By the same token no one in the book was completely succesfull.Tom had bad character, Daisy was torn between to men, Wilson's life fell apart, and even Nick was unable to help Gatsby's situation.
ReplyDelete- Lyle Speth.
In the eyes of society, anyone who has a great deal of wealth and fame is a success. Two things of witch Gatsby had a great deal. In my eyes, he was a very successful man even though his tactics were disreputable.
ReplyDeleteThere is not any other character that I would consider successful. All of the other characters either came from money or were just getting by with what they had.
Robert Wood
I believe that Jay Gatsby WAS a successful man in society's eyes. I DO NOT think that he was succssful in my eyes. He lived the "american dream"; wealth, fame... freedom? I think not. He felt entangled within society and was not happy with himself. He fell to the thought that following the rules of society would bring him wealth, which in turn would make him happy. Quite the opposite, actually. His money simply complicated his life. I think he should have followed his heart, maybe stayed with Daisy in the beggining? Something that actually made him happy would have been the right path for Jay Gatsby.
ReplyDelete- Sean Lee