Fiasco for Gatsby: the Darker Side of Rags to Riches Tales

From the inception of the United States of America, a belief has held sway that has given hope to those who would normally be bereft of it: this belief is that, no matter where one comes from, it is possible to rise to the top of the pack and attain success and happiness. Often, in modern times, success stories embodying this aspect of the American Dream are termed "rags to riches" tales. The term is originally derived from author Horatio Alger Jr., a 19th c. American author. A large bulk of his oeuvre was directed towards lower class working men; contained there within were hopeful assertions that, through "honesty, thrift," and "industry" these man had the potential to rise up and attain affluence. While positive aspects can be noted within the above thesis, a plethora of criticism has risen up against the so called "Horatio Alger myth." While much of the censure falls within the bounds of racial bias (i.e. it being acceptable, during Alger's era, to assert that whites were better than blacks when it came to maintaining wealth), a few accurate critiques can be found with a bit of searching. Chief amongst these truthful critiques is mention that there exists a certain discrepancy between the ideals of the American Dream, regarding especially here rags to riches successes, and the realities of gaining, and subsequently dealing with, money in America. No matter the era, no matter the person, certain questions arise amongst all those who rise up: who am now compared to who I was then? How will my money change me? And perhaps, most importantly: will my relationships with others change?

For James Gatz, wealth was always an ideal; unlike others, to whom ideals might be unachievable goals, James, from birth, knew that he was destined to be rich. Born to a "shiftless and unsuccessful farm people," James found that he had "never really accepted them as his parents at all"; this made it easier for him to adopt the name Jay Gatsby at the soonest possible opportunity (98). Wasalu Muhammad Jaco also came from humble origins and, similar to Gatsby, sought from the beginning a higher purpose than the aimless life he might have been confined to in the slums of Chicago. Though he never actively distanced himself from his parents, Wasalu too took on a new name to help achieve success: after joining Kanye West on the track "Touch the Sky," Wasalu's rapper name, Lupe Fiasco, rocketed into fame. In these regards at least the two remain similar.

However, after achieving these new personas, both set off on somewhat different paths in life: while Gatsby sought, at all costs, to achieve success, Fiasco dedicated himself to a career of his own, where his words and his actions would remain true to his humble roots irrespective of potential monetary gain: in many ways these career choices began to manifest themselves in the love lives of these two respective entrepreneurs; whereas Gatsby, upon entering the home of Daisy (the supposed 'true love' of his life), might remark that "he had never been in such a beautiful house before," and that it had "an air of breathless intensity," Fiasco would demonstrate remarkably fewer financial concerns when his girlfriend was about; for example, right as he was leaving for a concert in the song "Paris, Tokyo," Fiasco "heard Murder," the lamentations of his oft ignored girlfriend, and "dropped [his] bags in a flash...to dry [her] tears." However, despite their differences, both Gatsby and Fiasco eventually began to succumb to that which they both, at different points in their lives, they decried: the tendency to value money over love.

Lupe Fiasco, returning home to his then-girlfriend

For Gatsby, a certain perversion existed for all of his infatuation with Daisy; some, such as Nick, might have taken note of Daisy's exceptional voice for it's ethereal ability to give to all those who partook in it a glimpse of a "promise," a window into a world where "she had done gay, exciting things just a while since and that there were gay, exciting things hovering in the next hour" (9). Gatsby, on the other hand, bluntly asserted that "her voice is full of money" (120). Gatsby, whilst pursuing the riches, forgot that rags too had some benefits, chief amongst them a hearty, healthy connection to others and a willingness to understand them beyond their superficial stations in society. Gatsby's rise brought about his inevitable fall, because in the end, neither he nor Daisy truly loved each other. Perhaps, after walking the grand halls and splendid parlors of Daisy's home for the first time, Gatsby, in his mind, connected irrevocably his 'love' for Daisy with his love for money. It's interesting to note how proudly, after achieving all of his successes, he displayed his home for Daisy, demanding the concession that it "looks well," not unlike a preening peacock might proffer its feathers for a potential mate (89).

For Fiasco too morals, morals which he had strove for so long to maintain, were superseded by a lust for bigger cars, bigger houses, and more money. As Fiasco premiered his albums Food & Liquor and The Cool, it became obvious to listeners that, more than most, Lupe sought to speak poetically more than anything else through his lyrics: be it in the song "Kick, Push," in which he discusses young love in the context of underground skateboarding, or in the grimmer "Put You On Game," a harsh critique of gun violence across the globe, lyrics remained honest evaluations of society more than meaningless and catchy drivel. In the song "Paris, Tokyo" such powerful and honest lyrics were used as a way to confess his love to his then-girlfriend. Fiasco, in the song, loves his girlfriend so much that he confesses "I even keep your picture in my pass-purt" to her, and later he promises that he'd be willing to "revoke [his] membership" to a group of friends who travel internationally if only she were to ask. Such dedication, sadly, was fated to end eventually in the context of young wealthy rappers. Soon after his Lasers album was released (it is important to note that this album, more than any of Fiasco's prior works, was harshly criticized for its synthetic beats, dumbed-down lyrics, and obvious attempts to cash in on pop music's popularity) Fiasco, notorious for refusing to talk explicitly about his love life in public, was photographed in public with a succession of different women, none of whom were the same girlfriend he had had when he wrote "Paris, Tokyo."

In conclusion then, how can we judge Lupe Fiasco and Jay Gatsby? Of the two, indubitably Gatsby fell harder from the great heights he had climbed to; despite all his so called love and popularity, only 3 people attended Gatsby's funeral, and Daisy, in the end, didn't deign to make an appearance. Perhaps Owl-eyes was correct when, at Gatsby's funeral, he muttered, "The poor son-of-a-bitch" (175). Both Gatsby and Fiasco rose too quickly for their own good, and on the way up they confused whether or not they wanted love and money with whether they loved to want money. Unlike Gatsby however, Fiasco still has time to turn around his descent into money-driven obsession; his next album, a follow-up to his first album entitled Food & Liquor 2: The Great American Rap Album, is to premier this summer, and so far early signs indicate that it is going to be a return to Fiasco's earlier works and styles. Whether or not it lives up to its promise, the album will certainly appear, and another album after that; one can only hope that, on his way to getting steadily richer and richer, Lupe Fiasco can look back at the mistakes Jay Gatsby made and try to avoid his predecessor's pitfalls. He might not however, and Fiasco, much like Gatsby, might eventually find that money isn't enough to sustain his happiness forever. Either way, the rags to riches tales will certainly go on.