The Great Gatsby

Just read F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby (1926). I am no literary critic but the novel clearly shows a profound disenchantment with the American dream. Jay Gatsby, who it turns out comes from a poor family, tries desperately to become accepted as part of wealthy society. He lives in a giant house and throws lavish parties which he generously throws open to all comers. Yet – without giving away the whole plot – he ultimately finds himself rejected by those with established wealth. Virtually no one attends his funeral despite his generosity during his lifetime.

The novel is set in the “Jazz Age” of the 1920s. Disillusionment of the generation who had the misfortune to fight in the First World War is palpable.