The Great Gatsby and the theme of Loss, Relevant to America today?

One theme that I found whilst reading the Great Gatsby, is the theme of loss or the threat of loss. Throughout the book there are instances of loss or the threat of loss. The most prominent form of loss detailed in the novel is the loss of life. These instances are the death of Myrtle and the subsequent death of Gatsby.

The fear/threat of loss is also prominent in the novel with many characters in situations that could result in them losing everything. One such situation is that of Daisy. She is in an abusive marriage and her husband Tom is having an affair, the most logical course of action would be to leave Tom, however she does not because she would not only lose her status in her community, she would also lose her child. Another instance of this is that of Myrtle, Tom's mistress. In her situation she is a lower class women playing with the money of an upper class man, but she is at a constant threat of losing that as Tom could leave her at his own will and move on to another woman, and Myrtle would be straight back into the situation she is desperately trying to escape from. In the end Myrtle loses something that is more important than money, her life.

The theme of loss and the threat of loss, follows the idea of American doubt very well. The idea that America is not the secure nation where social mobility is a possibility, but is instead a unstable platform that at an instance can drop an individual from the highest point in their society and drop them to the bottom.

These ideas are very relevant to America today, an economically weakened America that is clawing its way through the mud of debt and economic crisis, where homers face the threat of being repossessed, where workers face the threat of losing their jobs and the prominent ideal of the American Dream, is more of a fantasy for all but the most well off individuals that led to the situation that America finds itself crawling away from.