Get the Summary of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby in 20 minutes. Please note: This is a summary & not the original book. Original book introduction: This engaging summary presents an analysis of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the classic American novel about the importance and futility of dreams. It tells the story of Jay Gatsby, whose ability to make his dreams a reality through sheer force of will initially seems boundless. However, this self-made millionaire and embodiment of the American Dream eventually discovers that even love, wealth and ambition are powerless in the face of rigid class boundaries, proving that the myth of the American Dream ultimately rings hollow. Today, The Great Gatsby is considered the quintessential novel about the American Jazz Age, and is widely viewed as F. Scott Fitzgerald's masterpiece. Fitzgerald drew a great deal of inspiration from his own experiences of the Roaring Twenties in New York to write the novel, and his status as one of the most famous American writers of the 20th century can be largely attributed to The Great Gatsby's enduring success.