Gatsby

• Gatsby does not view the pre-existing marriage of Daisy as an entity that should be respected
• He prioritizes his desperation to possess the American Dream, which for him is entirely dependent on his possession of Daisy, before Daisy’s own autonomy

  Warped perception of love
• His endless efforts to be associated with the ‘Old Money’ lifestyle that Daisy lives, despite her being married to Tom, could demonstrate how he cannot separate love from wealth
• With no thought for the life Daisy had built without him, Gatsby orchestrated an unexpected meeting with her, took her through his mansion, showed her everything they could have had if he had only returned sooner. Daisy’s history, the life she built thinking she would never see Gatsby again, did not even occur to him.
• Gatsby's pursuit of Daisy can be likened to the promise and downfall of the American Dream.
• The American Dream as a facade and false reality is zoomed in through the metaphor of the green light. The light being the promise and vitality is equally matched by it being small and distant; an important symbolic representation of Gatsby's unattainable love for Daisy as well as the difficulty of realising the American Dream
• His sole focus on her is myopic, as he becomes increasingly unaware of the societal constraints that surround him. In this way, his solitude is also representative of his ostracisation from society.
• Ultimately, Gatsby's lonely pursuit for Daisy's love is unrequited

  
  

  In the realm of love and relationships, a lonely one-sided pursuit invited probable doom and suffering.

  
  

  For Gatsby, love is commitment driven by obsession
• A dream of wealth and material acquisition

  A character with a lot of romantic optimism