Are Dreams Realistic?
By Will Nuding
Great Gatsby:
Gatsby's life long dream had been to relive the past. Daisy was a part of this past life, and he had always wanted to live the "American Dream." The symbol of Daisy being in his life was shown by the green light at the end of the dock-- showing that the love continued to linger. Unforchunatley, like Lennie, Gatsby died in trying to accomplish his dreams. He put it all on the line, to succeed his passion in becoming the greatest ever.
"He was a son of God . . . and he must be about His Father's business, the service of a vast, vulgar, and meretricious beauty. So he invented just the sort of Jay Gatsby that a seventeen year old boy would be likely to invent, and to this conception he was faithful to the end."
I chose this quote because it describes Gatsby's past and it shows that he will be determined to succeed his goals.
Gatsby throwing a grand party
Jay Gatsby
Gatsby reaching for the green light
Of Mice and Men
"An' live off the fatta the lan'," Lennie shouted. "An' have rabbits. Go on, George! Tell about what we're gonna have in the garden and about the rabbits in the cages and about the rain in the winter and the stove, and how thick the cream is on the milk like you can hardly cut it. Tell about that George."
"Sure," said George. "All kin's a vegetables in the garden, and if we want a little whisky we can sell a few eggs or something, or some milk. We'd jus' live there. We'd belong there. There wouldn't be no more runnin' round the country and gettin' fed by a Jap cook. No, sir, we'd have our own place where we belonged and not sleep in no bunk house."
They have it all planned out and are determined to complete this dream. However, one thing is still required in order to reach this dream... Money. Due to the fact that they are broke, they are required to continue to work on the ranch until they have enough money to buy some land on their own. On the journey to capturing their dream, a series of unfortunate events occurred. Lennie killed Curley's wife by strangling her because he got frustrated and he couldn't think about what he was doing. Then, the whole town sends an angry mob after Lennie to kill him. Lennie and George have no chance in survival because Lennie would get in trouble again and everyone would be after him. George had to put Lennie out of his misery and kill him. George shot his best friend for the greater good. Even though it was hard, George made the right decision because if the angry mob got Lennie would of suffered.
Lennie petting a dog
A ranch that Lennie and George want to live on
George and Lennie in the sunset
Comparison:
In conclusion, Lennie and George's dream is more realistic than Gatsby's. Lennie and George dream to live simply on a ranch of their own, while Gatby's dream is more complicated because it involves the manipulation of another's love and affection. Lennie and George's dream requires more tangible objects while Gatsby's dream is more emotional driven. Of Mice and Men and The Great Gatsby's characters dreams are similar and both very hard to reach but both are different in their own ways.