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Lies are a treacherous thing, yet everyone tells a few lies during their lifetime. Deceit surrounds us all the time; even when one reads classic literature. For example, F. Scott Fitzgerald makes dishonesty a major theme in his novel The Great Gatsby. The falsehoods told by the characters in this novel leads to inevitable tragedy when the truth is revealed. Jay Gatsby, one of the main characters in the novel, fails to realize that when one tells a lie, it comes back to bite you. For example, he initially tells his neighbor, and potential friend Nick, that he had inherited his redundant sums of money from his family. One night, the night Gatsby reunites with Daisy, he and Nick are admiring his substantial house. During the conversation, Gatsby slips out, “It took me just three years to earn the money that bought it” (Fitzgerald 90). By this, one can see Gatsby lie about how he acquired the wealth he has. When Nick questions his inheritance of the money, Gatsby automatically stutters with another lie- that he lost his family fortune in the panic of the war and had to earn all the money again by himself. Gatsby may have not realized he let this lie slide out from under him due to the rush of emotions connected with the reunion of his long lost love. Nevertheless, he did lie to Nick about his past, along with many other people, including Daisy. When he and his love first meet, he lies to her and comes off as a rich, stable man, she would be lucky to fall in love with. This is not the case, however. He is not as innocent as to have just inherit the wealth he gloats. Fitzgerald states, “He might have despised himself, for he had certainly taken her under false pretenses. I don’t mean that he had traded his phantom millions,... ... middle of paper ... ...of events, leading to many deaths. On the other hand, because Gatsby was lying and deceiving people to try to reach a goal, should his actions be considered ambitious? Since Tom and Daisy were not truly in love, and simply did not want to hurt the other, should their actions be considered thoughtful? Maybe there is a good intention behind the lies, but never a good outcome. Works Cited Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. 1925. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2004. Print. Hermanson, Casie E. "An overview of The Great Gatsby." Literature Resource Center. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Literature Resource Center. Web. 24 Feb. 2011. Sutton, Brian. "Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby." Explicator 59.1 (Fall 2000): 37-39. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Linda Pavlovski. Vol. 157. Detroit: Gale, 2005. Literature Resource Center. Web. 24 Feb. 2011.
Gibb, Thomas. "Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby" The Explicator Washington: Winter 2005. Vol. 63, Iss.3; Pg. 1-3
...ald." Critical Essays on Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby." Ed. Scott Donaldson. Boston: Hall, 1984. 13-20.
Gatsby is a nice person, but his character seems fishy because of his unknown past. Nick is the one that actually takes the time to understand Gatsby and he is successful at it but it takes him a minute. Gatsby was a sneaky and smooth individual (Fitzgerald 54). At the beginning of the book, Gatsby tricks even Nick. For example, When Nick first moves in beside Gatsby, he notices a shadow in his neighbor’s yard. Nick believes it to be Gatsby and the next moment he looks up the shadow is gone. Nick is confused for a second because he did not hear any noises. There is one point in the book where Gatsby lies to Nick. In The Great Gatsby, Nick and Gatsby have a conversation about how Gatsby received his money. Gatsby told Nick that he had inherited his money. Then Gatsby starts coming up with different lies to cover up what he had told Nick before. Gatsby then tells Nick that he was in the drug business and then in the oil business, but he was not in either one now. Nick can tell he is lying because he cannot keep his stories straight. Despite this, Nick stays in Gatsby’s corner throughout the novel, even when others are spreading lies and rumors about Gatsby (Hermanson). Even though Ga...
Way, Brian. "The Great Gatsby." Modern Critical Interpretations F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. New York: Chelsea House Publishers. 1986. p. 93.
Magill, Frank N. "The Great Gatsby." Magill's Survey of American Literature. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1991. Print.
Americans have been told since the day they were born that lying is bad. No one exemplifies this mentality then F. Scott Fitzgerald in his fictional novel The Great Gatsby where a so-called Trimalchio character whose throws extravagant parties in hopes of rekindling lost love. Through his decision to emphasize the bold face lies that certain characters tell throughout the novel. Fitzgerald establishes the theme that Lying for personal gain is unacceptable.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott, and Matthew J. Bruccoli. The Great Gatsby. New York, NY: Scribner, 1996. Print.
Unlike those cheesy romantic heroes from soap operas and films, Gatsby believes that by attempting to be someone he is not and by faking his identity, he will be able to win Daisy`s heart . Nick Caraway, the narrator of the novel, informs readers about Gatsby`s past and his first reaction to Daisy. He tells readers, “…he let her believe that he was a person from the same stratum as herself…that he was fully capable to take care of her. As a matter of fact, he had no such facilities…” (Fitzgerald 149). Gatsby basically lies about his social status to win Daisy`s heart, which shows how his relationship is based on dishonesty and lies rather than trust. Gatsby changes himself in order to make room for Daisy in his life. A romantic hero never lies beca...
There are many cases throughout the book where someone is dishonest to others that they know. It is definitely a motif throughout the pages of “The Great Gatsby” The first example that I am going to explain is with Jordan Baker. Jordan is a professional golfer that was in a big match for her golf career. A semi-finals match against other great competitors must have been very important for her. “At her first big golf tournament there was a row that nearly reached the papers a suggestion that she had moved her ball from a bad lie in the semi-final round.” She d...
Firstly, one may believe that telling lies once in awhile to their advantage is ok as it wouldn't harm anyone. Rather though, the ending result is usually much worse. In The Great Gatsby, many of the characters play two roles, one of deceit and the other as a normal person. One such character is Jay Gatsby. To everyone who doesn't know him well, he says he is an Oxford student who came from a wealthy family. To the people who actually know him though, he is a man who came from a poor family. In order to achieve his goal, finding his former girlfriend Daisy, he changes his entire life and wears a mask of deceit to those who are only acquaintances with him. A similar idea can
Robertsbridge, UK: Helm, 1992. Donaldson, Scott, ed., pp. 113-117. Critical Essays on F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby." Boston: G. K. Hall, 1984.
Honesty and truth is very important to Gatsby. He wanted the truth from everyone and what they truly thought about topics. Gatsby himself was not an honest man in the end. Gatsby became a millionaire by being the head of a couple of illegal activities. “Quote”
Trilling, Lionel. "F. Scott Fitzgerald." Critical Essays on Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby." Ed. Scott Donaldson. Boston: Hall, 1984. 13-20.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott, and Matthew J. Bruccoli. The Great Gatsby. New York, NY: Scribner, 1996. Print. The.
“The more people rationalize cheating, the more it becomes a culture of dishonesty. And that can become a vicious, downward cycle. Because suddenly, if everyone else is cheating, you feel a need to cheat, too,” Stephen Covey. Dishonesty is prevalent in this novel, and it is seen in Gatsby, other characters, and the Roaring Twenties. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald illustrates permeating dishonesty of people in the Roaring Twenties and their consistent beguiling patterns.