The great Gatsby: The corruption of the dream The book "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald was an "icon of its time". The book deals with important, controversial and interesting topics in 1920s America. The novel is "an exploration of the American dream as it exists in a corrupt historical period." The main themes of the book are the decay of morals and values ​​and the frustration of a "modern" society. The Great Gatsby depicts the decay of the American dream and the lack of money and materialism. This novel also describes the divide between rich and poor (Gatsby and the Wilsons, West Egg and the Valley of Ashes) by comparing the differences between the Western United States (traditional Western culture) and the Eastern United States (money-obsessed values). On a smaller scale this could be seen as the difference between the Egg of the West (the “new” money) and the Egg of the East (the “old” money). The 1920s were a time of corruption and degradation of moral values ​​for the United States and many other countries. World War I had just ended and people were enjoying the materialism that came with it, new mass produced products like cars and radios filled people's driveways and homes, money was more accessible (before the Great Depression). Automobiles were becoming a social symbol in the 1920s, as we can see with Gatsby's five cars, one of which he gives to Nick and one of which he kills Myrtle Wilson later in the novel. Herbert Hoover (an American president) said in 1925 "We will root out poverty and put two cars in every garage." The parties that Gatsby held every week in the summer were a symbol of the light-heartedness of the era. Gatsby hid in the house while the 'guests', most of whom weren't even invited, celebrated, ate and drank until the early hours of the morning. without even meeting the guest or even knowing who he was. People came just to be seen or reported in the local newspapers. "In his blue garden people came and went like moths amid the whispers and champagne." This shows the inattention of the guests. Another quote about parties refers to how guests devour the endless supply of food and never care who gave it to them. "Every Friday five cases of oranges and lemons arrived from a greengrocer in New York. Every Monday these same oranges and lemons left his back door in a pyramid of pulpless halves." This is also a symbol; relates the "pulpless halves" to the rather "empty" hosts, soulless people obsessed with image and wealth, a corruption of the American dream. Another sign of the fall of the American dream in The Great Gatsby is the way Gatsby earns money. Gatsby obtains his fortune through the illegal sale of alcohol ("bootlegging"). The sale of alcohol was banned in the United States in the 1920s. Gatsby came from the Western United States where there was "old money". There he met Dan Cody who taught him how to bootleg. As Gatsby became richer, he moved to West Egg in New York. Gatsby's house is a rather artificial place, the house was originally built to impress Daisy with his so-called wealth, and this is a sign of a corrupt way of "winning" love through money and wealth. Gatsby's house is well furnished with old-fashioned looking ornaments and (probably) second-hand antiques, Gatsby's house also has a library full of "uncut" literature. The conversation between Jordan and an unnamed man at one of Gatsby's parties is about the books: "Absolutely real - they have real pages and everything. I thought they would be made of nice sturdy cardboard." These books and antiques are