The Great Gatsby and Great Expectations A Comparison...

Since the beginning of time, society has been separated into classes; the rulers and the ruled, the rich and the poor, the nobility and the common folk. One can find examples of social caste systems in any time period. Over time, social standards have changed, but one thing has not. Those who possess wealth are thought to also possess happiness. From the outside looking in, the common man always believes that the wealthy live happier lives. But two landmark authors portray a different story. Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations and F. Scot Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, both show that in order to be truly happy, one must reject superficial things, such as one’s position in the caste system of society, and pursue one’s true desires.†¦show more content†¦Carraway enjoys her company for superficial reasons: her fame, her beauty, her position in society. But as Carraway spends more time with Baker, he learns that she is dishonest and afraid on the ins ide. Fitzgerald shows Baker’s unhappiness when he writes, â€Å"â€Å"I suppose she had begun dealing in subterfuges when she was very young in order to keep that cool, insolent smile turned to the world and yet satisfy the demands of her hard, jaunty body† (Fitzgerald 58). Baker had to learn coping mechanisms when she was â€Å"very young† in order to achieve happiness in upper class society. Baker had to learn to be fake, to ignore her inner desires and tap into her superficial wants. Carraway takes note of this, and notices this similarity in many members of upper class society. Carraway fins that often the wealthy and famous members of society are either vastly unhappy, or learn to twist their perspectives to be happy. Over the course of the summer, Carraway realizes that many upper-class people possess unappealing qualities similar to Bakers’. At the end of the novel, when given a chance to continue his career as a New York bondsman or return home, Carraway chooses to return to the Middle-Western United States, to his home. He realizes that upper class society is composed of unhappy and superficial people. When given the choice, Carraway chooses to reject social class and pursue what makes him happy. When an individual is so concerned with social standing that heShow MoreRelated Comparison of Values in Great Expectations and The Great Gatsby919 Words   |  4 Pagespeople come into wealth and begin rising on the social ladder, they usually become corrupted, and compromise their personal values. In the novels, Great Expectations and The Great Gatsby, the protagonists, Pip and Jay Gatsby respectively, believe their wealth is used for the common good, but in reality many values are being compromised. Pip and Gatsby both utilize their money in an attempt to bring the women they love into their lives. 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Scott Fitzgerald and the prescribed sonnets from â€Å"Sonnets from the Portuguese† by Elizabeth