Ideal vs. Idealistic

A quick note to all students who are reading preceptfunland regularly.

An error in many of the papers that I've received is an inability to understand the difference between "Idealistic" and "Ideal".

An ideal is something that is perfect, for its purpose. For instance, you can have an "ideal criminal", or an "ideal jerk".

Tom can be an "ideal 1920s playboy (person who has a lot of fun, and many women)", but he can not be idealistic.

Idealistic, means that someone believes in an ideal world, or an ideal future. Almost no one in the book, especially Nick, is idealistic. However, there are many people (who at least superficially) are ideals.

1. Daisy is ideally beautiful, and funny (but really a bad person)
2. Tom is the ideal rich, powerful, brutal man (but really weak and unable to confront reality)
3. Gatsby is the ideal partying, bootlegger, criminal (but really he is a good person)
4. Meyer Wolfsheim is the ideal strongman criminal (but does not stand up for his friends)

The ideal is a tool used by artists to make points; Idealism is something young people who want to save the world have.