Explain what The Great Gatsby can tell us about why some people in our society will choose to reinvent themselves.

Jay Gatsby, the central character of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, symbolizes the dangers and demands inherent in attempting to achieve the American dream. He symbolizes the possibility and the necessity of reinvention as a requirement to bring the dream to a fruitful conclusion as it is recognized by so many. The American dream offers faith in the possibility of a better life. Its attendant illusion is the belief that material wealth alone can bring the happiness the dream promises to all. This requires, however, a transition from the original to the new, a rebirth, and a renaissance for so many who seek this holiest of grails. Through Gatsby, Fitzgerald brings together these ideas. Jay Gatsby believes a metamorphosis is the answer to the trials and tribulations...