"The Great Gatsby" is an American classic. If you have not read the book or watched the movie then you really should, 10/10 would recommend. To sum up the book, using a few words, it is about affairs, alcohol, parties, and devastation. Besides being a great story, it also serves as a great tool for learning life lessons that are applicable in everyday life. (Warning: the following article will contain spoilers.)
1. Money can't buy love.
This theme is shown throughout the entire book. The biggest example is Tom and Daisy. Daisy only loses hope in Gatsby and marries Tom because he has money, not necessarily because she's in love with him.
2. You can't erase the past.
The biggest struggle during this entire book is the fact that Gatsby can't let go of the past. He's still hung up on Daisy even though it's been five years and she has married someone else. He hangs onto the idea that in the past they were in love, but now she has a past with Tom and that kills him — literally.
3. Actions speak louder than words.
Daisy is a prime example of this. She is constantly telling Gatsby how much she loves him, but yet she didn't go to his funeral? If you really loved someone you'd think you'd at least go to the funeral.
4. Don't be afraid to experience life.
Nick comes to New York with big ambitions, but by the end he realizes New York is not for him. However, because he went through the experiences that he did, he gained a lot. He met so many new people, he experiences alcohol more than he ever thought he would, and he now has great stories to tell.
5. People aren't always what they seem.
James Gatz = Jay Gatsby. Need I say more?
6. Money can't buy happiness.
Daisy marries Tom because he has money and so she can have anything that she wants. However, she soon realizes that she isn't happy. The money that she once thought so appealing isn't giving her happiness.
7. Lies can make you lonely.
Gatsby is such a lonely person. Seriously. Only one person showed up to his funeral lonely. He's also a huge liar. I mean he made up "Jay Gatsby," his entire life was a lie and that made him lonely.
8. "You can't fool God."
As Wilson says many times "You can't fool God." Everything comes out in the open eventually.
9. Don't lose who you are in order to fit in.
So many characters in this book are lost in the superficial party world that they don't really know who they really are anymore.
10. Know your morals and stick to them.
Nick is basically one of the only people in this book who starts off with good morals and who ends with them. He leaves New York because he can't be around the people who are testing his morals.
11. People will remember you more for your impact, rather than how much money you had.
As I said earlier, only one person came to Gatsby's funeral. Even though he had huge parties with so many people no one really cared for him. He sort of just faded from existence.
All in all the Great Gatsby can teach you a lot about life while being super entertaining.
