The Great Gatsby Lesson Plan

Is there significance to the particular song that Ewing Klipspringer plays for Gatsby and Daisy to dance to? What might it mean?

In addition to being a popular song of the time, "Ain't We Got Fun" expresses aspects of the care-free attitude that the people of Gatsby's world try to project. The song is written from the point of view of people who have little money and yet manage to be happy, as opposed to Gatsby and Daisy, who have a lot of money but remain unhappy. It serves to underscore the disconnect between the American Dream of wealth and prosperity, and actual happiness--as we see in these characters and their stories, the two do not always occur together.

What do...