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F. Scott Fitzgerald claimed that The Great Gatsby was a moral tale. Do you agree with his assertion?

I certainly agree with F. Scott Fitzgerald's assertion that The Great Gatsby is a moral tale. For the most part, I see the novel as a moral tale because it illustrates how material wealth leads to immorality, while also deconstructing the American Dream.


The most obvious way Fitzgerald discusses the depravity of wealth is his examination of parties. Parties, and particularly Gatsby's parties, are an important part of Fitzgerald's novel. Through the extravagant celebrations regularly held at Gatsby's residence, we begin to understand the upper crust of society a little better, and the results are not pretty: By painting the social elite as carefree, alcohol guzzling, shallow individuals without a serious thought or genuine emotion in their bodies, Fitzgerald suggests that extreme wealth does not make one a better person. Rather, it leads to immoral habits, such as alcoholism, and a blatant disregard for others. Indeed, Fitzgerald suggests that wealth doesn't even bring happiness. Gatsby, for example, is one of the wealthiest men in the neighborhood, and yet he possesses no meaningful relationships and dies alone. 


Overall, Fitzgerald is deconstructing the American Dream and suggesting that the unbridled pursuit of wealth is not as important as we are taught to believe. As such, a potential moral of the story is that vast wealth does not make one happy, nor does it ensure that all our desires will be fulfilled. Thus, Fitzgerald's novel can be seen as a cautionary moral tale, one that suggests that the pursuit of wealth leads to immorality and an unfulfilled existence. 

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