Abstract：F. Scott Fitzgerald is regarded as an excellent American novelist of the 1920s. The Great Gatsby, written in 1925, is considered as his finest work. The Great Gatsby takes the love story between Daisy and Gatsby as the plot, depicting a scene of the American society in the 1920s. It criticizes the phenomenon of pursuing money and indulging in comfort. Up to now, a substantial number of researches have been done on the theme of The Great Gatsby. The researches mainly pay attention to either the author’s writing technique or to the exploration of the novel’s themes which involve the disenchantment of American dream. However, exploring deeply into the researches, we find that few essays have ever analyzed deeply of the character’s attitudes towards love, money, social relationships and the relation of money and moral corruption. This thesis tries to reveal the mammonism in the novel by analyzing the character’s attitudes towards love, money and the consequence of money worship, and criticizes the problem of moral corruption. There are six parts of the thesis. The first chapter introduces the writer, the plot of this novel and literature review. Chapter Ⅱ introduces three female characters’ utilitarian view of love. Chapter Ⅲ discusses the attitudes toward money of Tom and Myrtle. Money is the meaning of life. Chapter Ⅳ reveals the moral corruption resulting from money worship. The conclusion part summarizes the main idea, and strengthens the significance of the study, indicating that people should have spiritual aspiration and morality.

Key words: mammonism; love; money; moral corruption

论《了不起的盖茨比》中的拜金主义

摘  要：菲茨杰拉德是美国19世纪末20世纪初一名出色的小说家。《了不起的盖茨比》创作于1925年，被誉为其最杰出的作品。《了不起的盖茨比》以黛西和盖茨比的爱情故事为线索，描绘了一幅美国20世纪20年代物欲横流，金钱至上的社会景象，批判了人们追求财富和享乐的现象。至今评论界对于这部小说的研究甚多，大部分研究围绕文章的叙事技巧或是“美国梦”的幻灭，少数从人物对于爱情、金钱的态度以及金钱与道德败坏之间的联系进行分析。本论文立足文本，试图通过深入分析人物的爱情观、金钱观以及道德败坏的现象来揭示小说中的拜金主义，批判拜金主义所带来的精神空虚，自私自利的社会现状。本文共五部分，第一章引文简单介绍作者、作品情节、小说研究现状以及本研究的目的和意义。第二章介绍文中三位女性，黛西、乔丹和默特尔的功利的爱情观。第三章介绍两位人物，汤姆和默特尔对于金钱的态度，金钱是其赖以生存的意义。第四章揭露金钱崇拜对于人物道德的败坏。结论部分总结该论文的主要观点，揭示小说的意图, 表明人类应当有更高的精神追求与社会道德感。

关键词：拜金主义；爱情；金钱；道德沦丧

Contents

1. Introduction 1

1.1 Research Background 1

1.2 Literature Review 1

2. The Love under the Pursuit of Benefit 4

2.1 Daisy’s Love under the Demands of Materialism 4

2.2 Jordan Baker’s Utilitarian Views about Love 5

2.3 Myrtle’s Money-Oriented Love 5

3. Money: The Meaning of Life 7

3.1 Tom Buchanan’s Attitude towards Money: For Maintaining Love and Luxury 7

3.2 Myrtle’s Dress “Variations”: To Gain Superiority and Seduce the Wealthy 7

4. The Moral Corruption Resulting from Money Worship 9

4.1 The Spiritual Emptiness and Hollowness of Daisy and Myrtle 9

4.2 Irresponsibility and Selfishness of Jordan Baker 9

4.3 The Hypocrisy of Gatsby’s “Friends” 10

Conclusion 12

References 13

1. Introduction

1.1 Research Background

Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (1896 –1940) is an American writer. His works illustrate the Jazz Age and present a vivid picture of the aura of that historical period. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century and a member of the “Lost Generation” of the 1920s.