Class Conflict in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s the Great Gatsby

Jay Gatsby, a millionaire from the Midwest, is renowned for the parties he throws at his Long Island home. His many guests, however, know nothing about him. As Nick befriends Gatsby, he discovers that Gatsby and Daisy had been in love, but that Daisy did not wait for him to return from the war and married another. Fitzgerald’s magnum opus portrays a society in the midst of a cultural and social revolution, with issues of class, social position, and gender taking center stage. This compelling volume analyzes themes of class conflict in The Great Gatsby, delving into the author’s life and experiences of upper-class culture. A series of essays investigates topics such as class snobbery and education, the universality of class divisions, and two visions of the American Dream in conflict as they relate to the novel. Modern perspectives on class allow the reader to link events in the text to the issues of today.