Trending Failure of Selfish Society
How does "Gatsby" mirror society now in it's downfall
Barrington High School
October 2012
Overview
American Revolution
This picture depicts the triumph experienced by the new United States as a result of a young, ambitious population.
Fall of the Roman empire
The demise of the great Roman Empire is captured in this painting of chaos and destruction.
The Demise of Modern Society?
Both modern society and the high society of "The Great Gatsby" are associated with inherent carelessness. This theme of carelessness is evident throughout the entire novel, and can be seen in various forms when observing modern society. A famous example from the novel "The Great Gatsby" involves Jordan Baker, a member of the wealthy upper class and her view on driving. She confesses “They’ll keep out of my way,” she insisted. “It takes two to make an accident.” (Fitzgerald 58). This quote demonstrates her general and complete disregard. When driving, she ignores the safety of herself and other drivers, relying on others to ensure avoidance of an automobile accident. Too many of these careless people in one population will cause inexorable ruination of the society. This behavior has a great deal to do with the eventual failure of high society in "The Great Gatsby". Unfortunately, similar characteristic can be seen in demographics of civilization today. One example would be the excess amount of individuals irresponsibly partaking in driving under the influence. In 2010, 1.4 million Americans were arrested for driving under the influence, and noted, that statistic only includes arrested individuals. It is fearful and of great danger that a society would contain such a concentration of careless individual. Alarming statistics in many other categories display corresponding results. Littering (shown below) shows a rising trend in the U.S., only further establishing the presence of careless, self-centered individuals in society. There is no possibility of a modern society succeeding with this handicap existing in it's population.