All human beings have dreams and goals for their future that they wish to one day turn into reality. Dreams are different for each person, and some dreams are bigger and grander than others, but they are all similar in the sense that human beings live for dreams because they innately yearn for a better tomorrow. While many people achieve their ultimate goals throughout their lives, some people have unattainable dreams that are doomed to failure. Two American novels par excellence, The Great Gatsby and The Catcher in the Rye, tell the stories of two hopeful young men with noble plans, Jay Gatsby and Holden Caulfield. Both of these utopian youths possess impossible and unattainable dreams; Gatsby wishes to rewind his life so that he can enjoy it with his beloved Daisy instead of losing her in the war, and Holden wishes for time to stop completely so that he does not have to face the challenge of cruelly growing up and becoming an adult. society. Through the example of both of their tragic stories, it is evident that humans often rely too much on dreams, and when these vital dreams fail due to corrupt societies, they lose touch with reality and fall into despair and defeat. After finally reconnecting with the Now married to Daisy years after they were separated by the war, Jay Gatsby is determined to win her back and continue their relationship where they left off years before. Despite all the odds clearly stacked against him, as he is of poor blood and low social status compared to Tom, Gatsby “had thrown himself there with a creative passion, continually adding to it, adorning it with every brilliant feather that floated adrift. in his own way. No amount of fire or freshness can challenge what a man stores in his ghostly heart” (Fitzgerald 95-6). Ga......middle of paper......the society around them, which is often corrupt and doesn't treat everyone fairly. Like their owners, dreams fail because society lets them down. Dreams can be powerful and inspiring, but if taken too far, they can be toxic to happiness and even fatal in Gatsby's case. Reality, on the other hand, is always trustworthy, and it is wiser to simply accept and adapt to a society's flaws and imperfections rather than try to fight them as Holden and Gatsby did. Both men were unwilling to give up their precious dreams, but in the end that no longer mattered because society took them anyway and crushed them. The downfall of both of these characters demonstrates the importance of staying grounded and never deviating too far from the path of reality, because dreams alone cannot serve as a sufficient foundation upon which to build a prosperous and fruitful life..