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CHAPTER II THEORETICAL REVIEW
This chapter points out the theoretical review that is used to support the analysis of this thesis. This chapter is divided into four parts. The first part
provides the review of related studies. It explains the studies that have been conducted by some researchers which are related to this thesis. The second part is
about the review of related theories. It consists of theory of hedonism, cultural psychological theory, and self-regulation theory. The next part is about the review
on hedonism in New York in 1920s which becomes the cultural background of this study. The last part is the theoretical framework which explains how the
theories are used to answer the research questions of this study.
A. Review of Related Studies
The Great Gatsby is a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. In this novel,
Fitzgerald describes many things that happen in 1920s in New York in great details with a lot of events, literary things, and theaters. By reading this novel,
people will understand the social situation of New York people in 1920s. The novel is written over 80 years ago, but the story is still relevant today where
wealth can undermine social values and moral cynicism, greed, and the fulfillment of the desire for worldly pleasures. Therefore, there are many studies conducted to
analyze this novel from many aspects, such as the characters, the symbols, or the cultural background of the novel. This paper focuses on how a character of this
10 novel reacts to the culture. There are two related studies that have the same topic
as this paper. The first study is from Oliviana 2002, titled The Socio-Historical
Criticism towards the 1920s American Society Seen through Gatsby’s Life in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. In her study, there are three main points that are
discussed. The first is about how Fitzgerald describes Gatsby‘s character and life.
The second is about how Gatsby becomes a reflection of the writer, and how Fitzgerald describes the life of the America society in the novel. The writer of the
study tries to connect the social, historical, and Fitzgerald‘s biography aspect. She
finds that Gatsby as the main character of the novel has two characteristics that are really different. Gatsby has a big motivation to reach his dream and he is
really ambitious to reach his dream. However, on the other side, the way he reaches his dream is bad. She also finds that it reflects Fitzgerald‘s life at that
time. It is found that the society in New York in 1920s often conducts many
parties, do some happy things, and free sex. Social inequality, criminal acts, and moral decadence can be found as the conflicts in this novel as reflected in the
main character, Gatsby. In the previous study, it discusses more about the culture and how the main character lives his life which also reflects Fitzgerald as the
writer of the novel at that time. It is true that Fitzgerald admits that at that time he lives in the middle of society that likes party very much. However, here in this
study, the writer tries to discuss the opposite of Gatsby‘s and society‘s life as reflected in a minor character.
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