Escapism has been used as a theme in literature since the Epic of Gilgamesh, and comes in many forms, both mental and physical. People use escape to help them cope with the many difficulties they encounter in life. Escapism, while comforting and stress-reducing, is ultimately useless and will only make problems worse. The Great Gatsby and the Glass Menagerie strongly illustrate the theme of escape. The two works show that escapism is a highly destructive form of dealing with problems, which only makes the situation worse and metaphorically digs a deeper grave, as demonstrated by the characters present in the two works, along with their actions and flaws, as well as escaping symbolism. In many cases, escapism will lead to the character's downfall, which is exactly what happens with Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby. In The Great Gatsby the character Jay Gatz, or Gatsby, is consumed by escapism throughout the novel, which ultimately leads to his death. Even in Gatsby's backstory, he tried to escape his problems in his mind. When he was growing up, ...