"More"


The story of The Great Gatsby is a prime example of how greed can lead to one’s downfall. Gatsby was very fortunate, he was known as a perfect man, he lived the American dream, yet he still wanted more. He fought to possess the one person who he believed would complete his life, which ended up killing him.

This leads to a question: why do people always strive for more than what they already have?

Humans want to go faster, further, and just beyond their capabilities in general. And to an extent that is a good thing. It lets us push ourselves to reach our goals. However, many disasters could occur just as we think we have grasped that light in the distance, just as Gatsby had.

Imagine sending a space rover to a faraway planet that, in theory, is supposed to contain life. This planet is only aligned at a closer distance to Earth once in every 200 years. The rover makes the year long journey to travel through space, and it has taken many years prior to the journey to build it such that it can last for a long period of time in harsh conditions. Everyone around our planet watches as the alien-like blueish green planet comes into view. Just as the rover passes the unknown atmosphere it gets ripped into shreds, and now we will never know if that planet contained life or not for 200 more years. Though this example might seem extreme and outlandish, it shows how the thirst for more knowledge can sometimes lead to a huge sum of effort rewarded with nothing but disappointment.

On the other hand, the push to reach goals that may seem unreachable can reward us as well. It can give us self satisfaction when we go 10 seconds faster in a race. This topic, striving for more than what we have, just happens to be one those situations where it is hard to pick a side.

“His dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it.” Maybe, in Gatsby’s case, he should have kept that light in the distance rather than bring it closer to him. It’s the choice of pulling it closer that can bring ruin, rather than the journey taken to reach it.
Image result for striving for more wealth cartoon

Comments

  1. UnknownNovember 4, 2017 at 8:01 PM

    I like how you related greed in The Great Gatsby to other examples. I also completely agree that greed can ruin even the most ideal societies and thus can be one of the downfalls of the human race, as it can not only lead to disappointment but also corruption and division in society that has ultimately affected the world and continues to do so. However, greed can also have its benefits. If everything planned goes smoothly, then we may be able to achieve a better social equality than we have today, among many other benefits.

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  2. UnknownNovember 5, 2017 at 8:24 AM

    I love that you discussed the multiple opinions and sides to this issue. I believe that whether or not striving for more is a good thing depends on the motivation behind it. In Gatsby's case, he was only worried about what he had to gain and in the end he ended up with nothing. But in the case of someone trying to better society it can be a positive and more selfless thing.

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  3. Claire YNovember 5, 2017 at 11:06 AM

    Wow this was a great post Shivani! The example you gave provided something concrete to help illustrate your case. It made me wonder if it's ever possible to take that greed for more away from people or if it's something innately part of us.

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