The Great Gatsby is a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald which portrays the art of sacrifice performed by the various characters in order to accomplish their own versions of the American Dream. Sacrifice is the act of giving up something of value in order to achieve some higher advantage. It is an art in the way that it is something crafted, and contains an element of planning. The end result of the sacrifice, whether it be enlightenment or loss, is a moulded creation. Towards the end of The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald mentions the Dutch sailors who first sighted the "new world" of America. These sailors saw America as a new life of freedom, holding a promise of spiritual and material fulfilment. The period after World War I, also known as the Roaring Twenties, is usually associated with money and gaiety. This quickly overcame the spiritual side of the...