Connection: Gatsby and Farnsworth

Writing my college essays, I am forced to think about my achievements in life and my upbringing. The college admission process forces me to think critically on my life and examine myself as a human being. As I reminisce and ponder these questions I am a lot like the character Gatsby from the novel by F.Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, and like the visionary Philo T. Farnsworth. Gatsby and Farnsworth both failed because they were too prideful, and did not have a clear grasp of reality.

            Both Farnsworth and Gatsby were way to prideful, as a result, it lead them to their downfall. Gatsby demonstrate pride through his wealth and power. Gatsby throws enormous parties at his mansion to demonstrate the wealth and to show the power he has. One scene, Gatsby throws his expensive clothing to impress Daisy to show his pride. As a result of his pride, he created a grand illusion of himself and lost hold of reality. Farnsworth, like Gatsby, was too prideful because of this; he did not accept any help from other people. When Sarnoff asked Farnsworth to join his company he decline because of his pride. If he had joined the RCA he would have died a happier man. He would have had sufficient funds to pursue his dream and get credit for his work. Farnsworth and Gatsby got too caught up on his pride he lost his grasp on reality.

            Farnsworth and Gatsby lost hold of reality. They both believed in the romanticized and fantasy life. Gatsby got caught up on his false illusion of himself and Daisy which lead him to his downfall. Gatsby thought of Daisy as this idealistic, perfect person. He thought he felt short of Daisy’s expectations because of this he created an enormous illusion of him. Because Gatsby’s persona was so big, Daisy felt she had felt short of his expectation. Farnsworth believed in the romantic notion that he would get full credit for his work and that life is fair. Farnsworth believed in this romantic notion of life and invention, as a result, he never searched for help and remained stubborn. Gatsby and Farnsworth delusional ideals caused them their downfall.

            I feel like I am a lot like Gatsby and Farnsworth. Like both people, I am very stubborn and not open to many ideas. I am stubborn because I have a lot of pride in myself. Any activity that I do, I believe I am the best at it. I do not take other people’s ideas for consideration and I rarely ask for help. I try to solve problems by myself. I also have a romanticized illusion of life and myself. What I have learned from my seventeen years of life is that I rarely show people my true identity. I create an ideal illusion of myself like Gatsby. I believe life is fair and that I can achieve anything. By studying the character Gatsby, and Farnsworth, I learned that I need to put hard work to achieve my goals and seek for help if I am struggling.