A circus is a collection of talented performers, performers, trainers and vendors who transform empty fields into a phenomenal place where acrobats soar above the crowds, trainers tame the wild animals and magicians amaze the audience while being in shock. control of the main man - the ringmaster. The ringmaster, the most visible performer and most important part of the show, maintains a display capable of captivating the audience. In F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby illustrates such a character. The life that Gatsby creates becomes a circus act that ultimately prevents him from winning back the love of Daisy Buchanan. Everyone at Gatsby's parties becomes an act in his big circus because the environment Gatsby creates reduces them to an attraction rather than a person. Before the Buchanans' first appearance at one of Gatsby's parties, the social context of the novel places great importance on wealth and status. However, at Gatsby's parties, this importance changes. For example, Gatsby introduces Tom as "the polo player" and he "remained 'the polo player' for the rest of the evening" (105). Tom Buchanan, the idle rich man from an old family with old money, becomes a spectacle by being given a title that makes him the most entertaining, a title without regard to his name or established status. At another Gatsby party, "a tall, red-haired young woman from a famous choir was indulging in song," but "whenever there was a break in the song, she filled it with panting, broken sobs , then resumed the words. once again in a quavering soprano” (51). This famous lady's unfortunate performance becomes another act of the show when she makes a fool of herself. People don't judge her or call her emotional. Instead, the crowd stands there... middle of paper ... despite James Gatz's mistakes about the traditional rich, his circus act manages to capture the attention of Daisy and thousands of other guests. While building his extraordinary show, he also created and became the character of Jay Gatsby. However, Gatsby is nothing more - and can never be more than an illusion designed by Gatz to create an appearance of opulence capable of achieving Tom's status and acquiring Daisy. Ultimately, when Gatz's circus collapses, every element of the Great Gatsby and his show is revealed as the appearance of it all. Like a circus, Jay Gatsby can only exist temporarily, because if either exists for too long, someone can peek behind the curtain and reveal the many allusions, flaws and lies used to deceive the crowds by making them believe in the grandeur of the circus. , Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Scribner, 2004.