The Jazz Age was a time of light-hearted celebration that changed America. Throughout literary works, the devolution of a character can change the character for the better or for worse. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gatsby’s vessel transitions from beginning, middle, and end. The beginning of Gatsby’s life is unknown to most people: This explains why Gatsby is seen as a mysterious man. Gatsby sees himself as a private man. Gatsby is desperate to reveal himself to Daisy, but feels he has to protect his secrets by keeping up a mysterious facade. Nick Carraway remarked, “when I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished” (21). Gatsby is a mysterious, dark figure to Nick. When Gatsby sees Nick watching him, he goes back into his …show more content…
house, Gatsby is afraid Nick will tell Daisy that he was watching for her. He wants to remain a secret. Gatsby is not full but content. Catherine remarked, “I’m scared of him. I’d hate to have him get anything on me” (32). Catherine does not know much about Gatsby, but she understands that he is a powerful, respected, and mysterious man. He can do whatever he wants and not face the consequences and is celebrated for it. Gatsby is content and uncracked. Gatsby is an extremely mysterious man. In the middle of Gatsby’s life, he is recklessly in love with Daisy.
He loves Daisy with all that he is. Nick remarked, “The front door opened nervously, and Gatsby, in a white flannel suit, silver shirt, and gold-colored tie, hurried in. He was pale, and there were dark signs of sleeplessness beneath his eyes” (84). Gatsby is nervous because he has decided to risk spilling and cracking to reveal himself to Daisy. Gatsby is slightly less full, slightly cracked because of the stress he is under about seeing Daisy again. He hopes that she will not reject him and fill him up, but has no idea how their meeting will go. He is slowly becoming more open with others which shows that he is becoming more confident in himself. However, this could result in happiness or loneliness, but he ultimately decides to come clean. Gatsby and Daisy beginning an affair is okay for now in Gatsby’s opinion, but he eventually wants to be with Daisy out in the open. However, Daisy does not feel the same way. Nick remarked, “He wanted nothing less of Daisy than that she should go to Tom and say: ‘I never loved you’ (109). Gatsby has always loved Daisy. He cannot comprehend why she will not leave Tom, if she has loved him all this time too. Gatsby is feeling rejected and broken which causes him to spill and crack. However, Gatsby is still recklessly in love with
Daisy. At the end of Gatsby’s life, he dies a broken, lonely man. Nick remarked, “Was Daisy driving? ‘Yes,’ he said after a moment, ‘but of course I’ll say I was’” (143). Gatsby is willing to go to jail for a crime he did not commit for Daisy even though she rejected him and told him she loves Tom and would never leave him. This shows how desperate Gatsby is for Daisy to love him and accept him. Everything he has done has been for her approval. Gatsby continues to want to do anything to protect Daisy. It is like she is his lifeline, she keeps him going. At this point, Gatsby is a quarter-empty, quarter-cracked teacup. Nick remarked, “I called up Daisy half an hour after we found him, called her instinctively and without hesitation. But she and Tom had gone away early that afternoon, and taken their baggage with them” (164). Gatsby sacrificed everything that he was trying to protect in the beginning for Daisy. He sacrificed his life, his teacup. Daisy left him without a goodbye, proving she never really loved him at all. Gatsby is now an empty, shattered, nonexistent teacup because there is nothing left of him. He does not have any one-sided love left to give. Gatsby died a broken-hearted man. The symbol of a teacup illustrates the devolution of Gatsby’s life from beginning, middle, and end. The devolution of his life is a beautiful tragedy. Blindly loving someone who is incapable of loving back will lead to becoming a shattered, nonexistent teacup like Jay Gatsby.
The two were young lovers who were unable to be together because of differences in social status. Gatsby spends his life after Daisy acquiring material wealth and social standing to try and reestablish a place in Daisy’s life. Once Gatsby gains material wealth he moves to the West Egg where the only thing separating he and Daisy is a body of water. It is through the eyes of Nick Carraway, the narrator of the novel, that the reader gains insight into the mysterious Jay Gatsby. In Nick’s description of his first encounter with Gatsby he says, “But I didn't call to him, for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone—he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him, I could have sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward—and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock.” The reader soon discovers that the green light is at the end of Daisy’s dock, signifying Gatsby’s desperation and desire to get her back. Gatsby’s obsessive nature drives him to throw parties in hopes that his belonged love will attend. The parties further reveal the ungrasping mysteriousness of Gatsby that lead to speculations about his past. Although the suspicions are there, Gatsby himself never denies the rumors told about him. In Nick’s examination of Gatsby he says, “He had one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced, or seemed to face, the whole external world for an instant and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself.” This persona Gatsby portrays shows how he is viewed by others, and further signifies his hope and imagination
Though the story is told from Nick’s point of view, the reader gets many perspectives of Gatsby from different characters. One can see from characters like Jordan Baker -Nick’s girlfriend through the majority of the novel, or Tom- the husband of Nick’s cousin Daisy; that Gatsby is not as good as everyone where to think. Based on how these characters act and feel about Mr. Gatsby it is evident that they dislike him to some extent, showing a bit more of a flawed human side of him. Tom is quoted saying “I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn't far wrong.” about Gatsby depicting Tom’s harsh feelings towards him and showing the reader Tom’s negative feelings about Gatsby. Because the story is told from Nick’s point of view, Gatsby is still painted as this mysterious man because Nick is a bit curious of him and does not know Gatsby in the beginning. ‘"They're a rotten crowd," I shouted across the lawn. "You're worth the whole damn bunch put together."’ Nick says to Gatsby, showing that he thinks he is worth more than Daisy, Tom, or the other characters. With this quote one can infer that Nick holds Gatsby on a bit of a high platform than the other characters, giving the reader Nick’s indirect characterization of
F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby, captures a fine description of how life was in America during the Jazz Age. The Jazz Age signaled an end to traditional American values and a movement towards new ones. The purpose of The Great Gatsby was to show how traditional American values were abandoned and how the pursuit and desire for wealth could lead to the downfall of one’s dreams and goals in life. Happiness obtained from money is only an illusion, money has the power to corrupt and obscure one’s mind and lead one down the path of failure and misery. By using symbolism, imagery, and character personalities and traits, F. Scott Fitzgerald manipulates language to fulfill the purpose of The Great Gatsby.
Gatsby has this mysteriousness about his character and in the novel when Gatsby first introduces himself to Nick; something is drawn to finding out more about the man called “Gatsby”. Gatsby only reveals little about himself throughout his relationship with Nick, and the first time that he reveals his character to Nick, he is very interested “ My incredulity was submerged in fascination now; it was like skimming hastily through a dozen magazines.” (F. Scott Fitzgerald pg.72) Nick’s perception of Gatsby is show through this quote by him showing fascination and interest towards Gatsby’s character. When Gatsby shows him tokens from his past, nick is like a kid in a candy store, looking through all of the tokens, wanting more and more, but Gatsby only tells him a little about himself. Nick thinks that Gatsby is interesting because of what he tells and shows him, but a major part of why he is so interesting to Nick is because he only has revealed little of his character, where Nick wants to see all of it. Gatsby is called a great man in this novel, and what makes him so great is the way that he reveals himself to others. Gatsby does not make interactions with too many people, and that is part of why he is so “great” when you meet him. At his parties there is a mysterious mood that settles once his name is said because of al the contradicting rumors of who he is. When Nick is
Gatsby was infatuated with Daisy Buchanan, this is why he moved to the West Egg. He was a man of great wealth who threw parties on weekends for everyone to come. He found out that his next door neighbor, Nick Carraway, was a second cousin once removed of Daisy. He has Nick arrange a tea party for Daisy to come so that they two can meet up once again. While they are waiting for Daisy to get there, Gatsby gets nervous, afraid of what to say and what to do. Even after she arrives he acts as though he’s afraid to say or do the wrong thing, that if he messes up he’ll never have a chance to get back what they once had.
The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald was written in a unique and intellectual way using three devices providing the readers with detailed descriptions, emotions and creativity capturing the American Dream. They are Diction, Syntax, and connotation, Fitzgerald 's word choices and arrangement of the sentences using this devices put an image in our mind to how the Jazz Age use to be back then. The author was able to recreate Jazz Age or the roaring 20s is when wealthy people spend their money on alcohol, material things that will not last a long time in the novel in order to enhance the aspect of the American Dream back then and in current human society. His figurative language throughout Great Gatsby captures images appealing to
In the novel The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Daisy Buchanan is unthinking and self-centered. Daisy is unthinking because when she meets Nick for the first time after the war; the first thing she says is “I’m p-paralyzed with happiness” (8) which is really unbecoming for a social butterfly like her. Moreover, she stutters while saying the word “paralyzed” which could imply that she says this without really thinking, because this is not the typical greeting one would say to their cousin, even after a long time. Also, since Daisy is pretty high on the social ladder, she expects people to laugh at her terrible jokes because she laughs after saying she is “paralyzed with happiness” even though Nick does not, illustrating her inconsiderate
Gatsby’s true dream is made abundantly clear throughout the entire text; winning Daisy back and reigniting the flaming love they once had. Gatsby’s dream of having Daisy divides him from his power at one critical point in the text, “Then I turned back to Gatsby-and was startled by his expression. He looked-and this is said in all contempt for the babbled slander of his garden-as if he had ‘killed a man.’ For a moment the set of his face could be described in just that fantastic way” (134). As Gatsby is arguing with Tom over Daisy and whom she loves, he loses himself to his temper and emotion. He embarrasses himself and soils the image of himself that he's built up for others to see, and loses his perceived power. Gatsby also shows a lack of personal integrity, esteem, and power when he requests for Daisy to say she never loved Tom at any point in time, such as when he says, “‘Daisy, that’s all over now,’ he said earnestly. ‘It doesn’t matter any more. Just tell him the truth-that you never loved him-and it’s all wiped out forever’”
Tom suspects that Gatsby and Daisy are having a relationship, but has no evidence to prove it. However, whenever Tom would leave the room, Daisy would immediately run into Gatsby’s arms to show her affection. To their dismay, Tom sees this: “She had told him that she loved him, and Tom Buchanan saw” (Fitzgerald 126). This leads to a confrontation between Gatsby and Tom, where Gatsby boldly declares that “Your wife [Daisy] doesn’t love you …She’s never loved you. She loves me” (Fitzgerald 139). Gatsby feels untouchable, and his confidence in Daisy’s love for him allows him to declare this to Tom. However, Tom slowly gains control of Daisy, reminding her of the experiences they shared together. Realizing this, Gatsby becomes desperate, and attempts to force Daisy into saying things she doesn’t believe, but Daisy tells Gatsby the truth: “’Even alone I can’t say I never loved Tom… It wouldn’t be true’” (Fitzgerald 142). Gatsby is delusional because his only thought is proving to Tom that Daisy doesn’t love him, and fails to realize that he is slowly losing Daisy. He is once again so absorbed by Daisy that he fails to realize what is going on around him. Even after Daisy runs over a woman murdering her in cold blood, Gatsby is willing to take the blame for her, and states “of course I’ll say [to the police] I was [driving]” (Fitzgerard 154). Gatsby still loves Daisy after she commits murder, which is a testament to his obsession and delusion over her. Gatsby is willing to go to prison and lose everything because Gatsby still believes that Daisy loves him despite Tom proving
F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote “The Great Gatsby,” in 1926, however he set it in the summer of 1922, or as he christened it, the Jazz age. Through the way Gatsby is perceived we can see Fitzgerald’s ideas on the American dream and the effects it has on those who chase it. I chose this question as it relates strongly to how my views towards Gatsby change as the novel proceeds. Fitzgerald achieves this alter in feelings through his writing style, the theme of the novel and his use of narration.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald conveys how Jay Gatsby’s ambition is the root of his success and death. When Gatsby, a man of humble beginnings, meets Daisy, her wealth and high status allures him. They fall in love, but due to Gatsby’s low financial and social position, Daisy feels insecure and leaves him. Gatsby’s optimism and obsession to win Daisy prompts the ambition that ultimately drives him to his noble yet tragic ending.
The characters Fitzgerald created in both The Great Gatsby and “Winter Dreams” reveal the age in which he lived in and did very well to define the time period. In this way that Fitzgerald is regarded as a historian in the era. After World War I, American society went through a period of intense change. Traditional principles in God, country, and civilization were traumatized as Americans confronted the anguish of a war of that degree. During the 1920s, many Americans acknowledged that an old order had been substituted by a new, open society, one that embraced new fashions of clothing, behavior, and even the arts. Fitzgerald coined the name ‘‘Jazz Age’’ to describe this decade, which along with the ‘‘Roaring Twenties’’ came to express the Cultural Revolution that was then taking place at the time.
Gatsby is represented as being very mysterious, which is due to him being focused on his ideals rather that his relationships with others around him. In the novel, Gatsby is presented as being a vary hidden man, even staying hidden and quiet during his own parties he throws. His party guests spread rumors about him being “a nephew of Kaiser Wilhelm’s” and that he “killed a man once” (35). These show that people didn’t really know Gatsby, and Gatsby didn’t know them. Although, Gatsby does not want these rumors going around about his name, because when heard by the wrong ears, it could lead to him losing his dream. Because of this, Gatsby is also constantly trying to prove these rumors wrong, by lying. He states that he “[does] not want [people] do get the wrong idea of [him]” and in this case he really means Daisy (49). In addition to being mysterious and deceptive, Gatsby’s pursuit of ideals also caused him to act passionately. The narrator describes Gatsby to “stretch his arms toward the dark water in a curious way” every night, which represent his unfailing pursuit of his Dream
When Nick visits Daisy she tells him the story of how her daughter was born, “It’ll show you how I’ve gotten to feel about––things. Well, she was less than an hour old and Tom was God knows where. I woke up out of the ether with an utterly abandoned feeling.” By leaving Daisy behind at a time when she most needs him, Tom loses his value of companionship with Daisy. He no longer fits the three criteria that Daisy feels she needs in a man. Daisy knows that Tom no longer loves her and is having an affair with another woman, but despite all of this, Daisy has no intention of leaving him (20). This is because Tom, despite no longer fulfilling her emotionally, is still better for her financially and socially than if she left him to live alone. If Daisy wants to stay in her class, she has no option other than to stay with Tom. When Daisy finally sees Gatsby again, she suddenly has another option besides staying with Tom. Daisy knows that Gatsby has true feelings of love towards her, but leaving Tom would prove to be risky as it could tarnish her reputation and by extension her social stability. Daisy is now struggling between taking a risk for love and maintaining a safe, stable life she is ultimately unhappy
The Jazz age was a convivial time known for innovation, creativity, and women pushing the limits of their new found freedom, but it was also a time of mourning and loss after the end of World War I. The combination of these emotions is what made the roaring twenties so unique, yet unstable. Before the twenties, the American dream had been to earn a stable income and raise a family in the great country that is America, but during the twenties the American dream became much more diminished as people worked for riches and luxuries that only a few could afford. In The Great Gatsby the main characters are striving for this dream of riches in a turbulent setting, but ironically are blinded by the distractions of the Jazz age and they do not realize until it is too late and that they have been walking away from their own dreams. During the Jazz age people partied, drank, and danced to their heart’s content, but little did they know that they were losing sight of the American dream.