Analysis Of The Great Gatsby

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The time period the novel is set in is dubbed “The Roaring Twenties”. This was an era when people were trying new things; women smoked and drank, many men found themselves in more wealth than they had ever had before, and the recently ended World War I sent the nation into an economic growth. This very period is the complete setting for The Great Gatsby. According to Anaya, Gatsby is a 'nouveau riche', someone who only just came into a great deal of money and finds extravagant ways of showing it off. (Anaya). He does this to attract Daisy. Although Daisy herself is not a complete "flapper", he was highly influenced by them. (Anaya). When Gatsby returns, Daisy is still in love with him and, even though she is married, runs away with him, but only for a short period of time. Before the roaring 20s, this would be uunusual, but as the women's rights movements set in, it is not so uncommon of a sight. (Caldwell). Daisy can be seen as a “flapper”, a woman of the 1920’s who went out as much as men and went to great parties, like Gatsby’s. But how did Gatsby acquire his wealth in the first place? It is important to understand that in the 1920’s, alcohol had been prohibited, and people were finding ways to acquire it illegally. (Wikipedia). This made “bootleggers” a lot of money, and Gatsby is involved in such business. Fitzgerald’s own life greatly impacted the novel as well. The Great Gatsby draws many similarities between F. Scott Fitzgerald's life and this novel. These similarities range from basing characters off important people in his own life to the complex love relationships he went through into the novel to convey the themes. . The book is a telling of sorts of the events in Fitzgerald's early life. (Lantz). Firstly, the ... ... middle of paper ... ...ese reviews, the fact that so much criticism has come from The Great Gatsby shows just how influential it is. These qualities make The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald’s most influential novel. No wonder it is dubbed “The great American novel” (Yardley). From its use of characters like Daisy representing greed, Nick an observer, and Gatsby as a typical 1920’s man chasing the American dream, to its parallels to Fitzgerald’s life (Lantz) and its historical context (Caldwell). , The Great Gatsby is no doubt one of Fitzgerald’s best and most influential works. In fact, it was even adapted into films twice. The one with the most similarities and accurate representation of characters is the 1974 version with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow. There is more than enough proof to show that one piece of work, such as The Great Gatsby, can have an impact on so many people over many years.

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