The American dream is expressed in fighting and never giving up on that dream. Bissinger's "Friday Night Lights" and Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" both show the struggle to achieve the American dream. The American dream shown in both books is obsession. Jay Gatsby is obsessed with Daisy. “I think he almost expected her to come into one of his parties some night” (Fitzgerald 79). Gatsby throws large, extravagant parties hoping to catch Daisy's attention. Gatsby is so obsessed that he spends all his time throwing parties, but Daisy never appears. He hopes and hopes that she will suddenly make an appearance at one of the many parties. Gatsby doesn't exactly want to force Daisy to show up, but rather entice her to make an appearance. Gatsby vaguely shows his obsession with this part of the time. Gatsby's obsession soon turns into a touch of stalkerism. “You always have a green light burning all night at the end of your dock” (Fitzgerald 92). Gatsby apparently looks out the window every night to spot the frightening glow of green light. His obsession has degenerated into a form of stalking. It's sweet at first knowing that he throws parties to get Daisy's attention, but now it's just plain creepy. Surprisingly, Daisy shows no signs of being frightened by Gatsby's statement. Gatsby's obsession with such a prize may have played a large role in his downfall. Odessa is obsessed with the Permian Panthers football team. “It became evident that these boys were holding the city on their shoulders” (Bissinger xiv). Without football Odessa would be just another worthless landfill. The city focuses all its time worshiping the Panthers. The stress of having to make everyone proud really gets to some players. Some football players only signed up... mid-paper... nanny, they can't even get past the semi-finals. All the hard work, effort and pure love for the game of football doesn't pay off. According to the boys, their dreams died on that field their senior year. Even though the 1988 Permian Panther team didn't make it, the dream lives on in every player and those of the past. While not all dreams come true, giving up will never be the right answer. The whole idea of ​​the American dream is to do what you love without any consequences. If people let life get in the way of their happiness, some people will be constantly angry about the way life turns out. Dreams are not meant to happen overnight or be easy to achieve. Dreams take time, effort and ambition to be realized. Even then dreams may never come true, but that shouldn't stop anyone from doing their best.