Reader Response: The Ambiguity of Hope
Hope is the driving force in our lives that keeps us going even though there is an inevitable end to our lives. Without hope there would be no reason to continue living regardless of what it is that you may hope for. According to dictionary.reference.com, hope is the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best. If this is the case then with no hope that would mean that you would not believe that things will turn out for the best additionally, if what is wanted cannot be had then there would be no point in continuing to live. With these ideas of hope it would be difficult to see hope as something that can be detrimental to your life. In The Great Gatsby, the
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idea of hope in humans’ lives is portrayed as both a positive thing, as most people would think of it, and as a negative thing that can take away from how fulfilled you feel in life. The character Gatsby in The Great Gatsby is one of the greatest portrayers of the ideas about hope that this novel shows. The green light across the bay is a symbol for the hope that Gatsby has that he will someday achieve the love of Daisy. Before Nick even meets Gatsby the book shows the importance of the green light when it says “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 way…” (Fitzgerald 21). Even though it has been many years since he has last spent time with her he always has hope that one day he will win her love back. This could be a driving force that is what makes him make the decision to continue on living in a life that could have no positive ending. Hope is also portrayed in its more negative manner through Gatsby.
Gatsby idolizes Daisy and sees her as his only goal in life. He makes all his money for her, buys his massive and magnificent mansion for her, and throws extreme, expensive parties in order to try to get her attention. He devotes his entire life to trying to win over the love that he shared with her in the past. Nick even warns him when he says “You can’t repeat the past.”, but Gatsby replies with “Can’t repeat the past? Why of course you can!”(Fitzgerald 110). Gatsby is blind to the fact that the past is the past and that you live in the present. His infatuation takes away from any fulfillment he may have in his life because the only true fulfillment he will have is if he achieves mutual love with Daisy. Friedrich Nietzsche stated, “In reality, hope is the worst of all evils, because it prolongs man’s torments.” If Gatsby had just forgotten about Daisy when he went to war he may have lived a life that was much more enjoyable, but because he is not willing to let go of the hope that he will someday win her back; his negative feelings are prolonged. According to psychologytoday.com, “…hoping that things will be different is stupid and thus evil in its effects.” Gatsby hopes that things will change, but in reality they will not. The bay that separates them can be used as a symbol for the distance that has grown between them; furthermore it is the impossibility that they will ever be together again. Gatsby hoping that things will be different is like hoping that the bay will dry up magically and he will be able to cross it and achieve what he has devoted his life
to. Hope is portrayed over a much larger picture in The Great Gatsby through the idea of the American dream or the hope of obtaining a fortune in New York without being born into it. The West Egg portion of the city is a direct representation of a hope for wealth as it provides opportunity and means of obtaining it. At the very end of the novel Nick begins to imagine Long Island as it originally was when the Dutch settlers discovered it in the New World. The book states, “And as the moon rose higher the inessential houses began to melt away until gradually I became aware of the old island here that flowered once for Dutch Sailors’ eyes…” (Fitzgerald 180). As he imagines it in this way he is connecting this reference to the entire situation about hope. He connects it to Gatsby’s strong hopeful feelings and the hope that many people have that they can get rich in New York. Nick doesn’t really confirm whether he believes in hope as something that can improve your life or if it is something that can get you stuck in a situation that is inescapable and horrid. In the end hope is neither evil nor good. Hope in life can be on either side; it can help you live and enjoy life by giving you a goal or something to live for or it can cause you to live a life that is unfulfilling. These ideas are shown to us as the readers of the book and should be taken into account in our own personal lives. Hope should not be shut down in all cases, by the same token it should not be held onto to the point that it should be obvious that you have clung to it for too long. Humanity and society as a whole can take a lot away from the message that The Great Gatsby portrays about hope.
In The Great Gatsby, Gatsby functions under the illusion that Daisy is perfect and is living in such distress because she was forced to marry Tom due to Gatsby being away at war and being poor. This illusion leads Gatsby to spend his entire adult life pining after Daisy and cheating his way up the social and economic ladder in order to win her over. Gatsby believes that Daisy will someday come back to him because she loves him so much and they will live happily ever after together.
Gatsby is unrealistic. He believes he can relive the past and rekindle the flame he and Daisy once had. He is lost in his dream and accepts that anything can be repeated, "Can't repeat the past…Why of course you can!" (116, Fitzgerald). For Gatsby, failure to realize this resurrection of love is utterly appalling. His whole career, his conception of himself and his life is totally shattered. Gatsby's death when it comes is almost insignificant, for with the collapse of his dream, he is spiritually dead.
The first impression that the reader gets of Gatsby is Jay’s initial explanation of him. Nick describes Gatsby as having an “extraordinary gift for hope” (2) or the ability to always be hopeful for the best outcome. This “ability” directly correlates to Gatsby 's platonic conception of himself and the world. Gatsby’s gift was not that he was able to see the best out of the worst situation but rather assume that the best situation would always occur for him. This “ability” lead Gatsby to take many risks especially the risk of believing that Daisy had only loved him. Gatsby also hopes that Daisy would call him back, leaving the phone lines open for Daisy when swimming in his pool. These acts only further lead to Gatsby becoming enemies with Tom, who gave Gatsby’s life up to Myrtle’s husband whose final act was shooting
The theme “blind pursuit of an ideal is destructive” is the main message of The Great Gatsby. Gatsby is on a blind pursuit of happiness. His ideal is to be with Daisy as he was in the past. Although, you can not ever really grasp the past and have things the same as they once were. This pursuit is destructive because Gatsby can not be satisfied with Daisy anymore. He really longed for an image of the past and how he and Daisy used to be, but she is not the same as she once was. Her past self is unobtainable but Gatsby is persistent. Gatsby vision of Daisy is unrealistic and much better than her true self. Nick stated in the book, “Daisy tumbled short of his dreams- not through her own fault, but because of his colossal vitality of his illusion”.
Gatsby’s quest to acquire Daisy was enlarged by his colossal obsession with the idea of being reunited with her, until the time actually came in which something so simple as a tea date was all he asked for in order to meet her. The purpose of acquiring such wealth and an extravagant home seems so pointless when Gatsby decides to meet with Daisy in Nick’s underwhelming cabin. The extravagancy of his vision deeply contrasts the modesty of the acquisition of his goal in this case. This shows a different side of Gatsby and his visions on what he thought would happen when he reached his goal and what actually occurred. Gatsby starts to panic when his visions do not occur when Nick and Gatsby are sat in Nick’s home, waiting for Daisy, Gatsby argues “Nobody’s coming to tea. It’s too late...I can’t wait all day” Fitzgerald 85). Gatsby is clearly very antsy and nervous about seeing Daisy again. He was very deeply in love with her and after 5 long years of waiting to see her again and they are finally reunited. All of his plans will be put into action and all of this planning will make him terribly self conscious
Upon first meeting Gatsby we find him staring at the green light at the end of the dock owned by Daisy. The exact wording of this moment is “But A 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” (Fitzgerald, 19-20). This instance alone shows nothing, save a longing, but when combined with the next few chapters it shows Gatsby obsession with all things related to Daisy. Another instance of Gatsby's longing for Daisy is showed in that his parties are meant to be for her. This conversation between Nick and Gatsby from late in the book shows Gatsby's concern when Daisy is actually at his party ““She didn’t like it,” he said immediately. “Of course she did.” “She didn’t like it,” he insisted. “She didn’t have a good time.” He was silent, and I guessed at his unutterable depression” (108-109). The major flaw in Gatsby's plan is that Daisy is old money, and old money and new money...
Past is that puzzle that can be delightful to remember but trying to chase it is like a dog chasing its own tail, and throughout the novel F. Scott Fitzgerald shows how abnormal the minds become when it is still beating in the past.The narrator introducing the main character for the first time, but not countering a verbal conversation but has a sight of him where he “decided to call to him, but for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone- he stretched out his arm toward the dark water in a curious way.” (Fitzgerald 20). This caused Gatsby to have the motive of reach out for the past before he met the sources that led to his goal or love of his life Daisy Buchanan. As a result his ego and his anxiety increases to a point where he tries to grab more than fate wrote for both of them, and when the person or thing have moved on or belongs to someone else then it is never too late to move on with your life. Gatsby stretched out his arm towards the green light; minute or far way, that was the dock of Daisy’s house. Along the same line the light does not represent the past but it was a light of hope for Gatsby that Fitzgerald convey that even it is across the bay he tends to try to reach for her even its physically impossible to do. Hence the disillusionment is what Fitzgerald is trying to convey that if a mind is still living in the past then it disarrays from the present along with the future. “His [Gatsby] tragedy lies in the ...
Mansions, cars, jewels, and extravagant parties- what more could a person want? Gatsby had it all, yet he was still empty inside, craving more. All the riches Gatsby has mean nothing without his great love, Daisy. Gatsby strived to become successful for the sole purpose of capturing Daisy's heart. However, Gatsby's dream is an unattainable and hopeless dream for he can never win her love. Daisy and Gatsby live only miles apart, but their relationship is eons apart, as Daisy is already attached. Gatsby is pursuing "a transcendent significance outside of society and beyond the notability of history" (Lynn 180). Gatsby is dreaming "the American dream" that anything is possible, but the tragic flaw within him is that he is living in the past and cannot see the destructive future that lies ahead. Gatsby says, "I'm going to fix everything just the way it was before,... She'll see," and he does not realize that he cannot make it the way it was before (Fitzgerald 114). When Gatsby does get the chance to prove himself to Daisy, it is already too late. According to Fitzgerald, "the whole caravansay had fallen in like a card house at the disapproval in her eyes," (Fitzgerald 114). Gatsby's downfall is in the fact that he is unable to determine the fine line that divides reality and illusion in his life. The green light at the end of Daisy's dock burns bright for Gatsby, but Gatsby does not realize that he cannot ever capture the light. He continues to dream blindly. This is evident when Nick tells Gatsby that he cannot relive the past and Gatsby replies, "Why of course you can, old sport!" (Fitzgerald 116). Gatsby's dream of capturing Daisy's love is based on a fantasy of romance, but the truth is that Daisy is already taken and no amount of money or popularity can change that.
Gatsby’s love life has become surrounded by ideas from the past. No longer is he able to fall in love with the moment, but instead he is held up on what have and should have been. He spends his time reminiscing on old times and previous relationships while he has also been building up a new life in order to return to the past. The unreal expectations he has for Daisy prove to us that he has trouble letting go of his old romantic ideas. Gatsby doesn’t want to accept and love this new Daisy, and instead he is hoping for the Daisy he knows to come back. But people change and there can be no expectations for someone to continue to remain the same after a number of years. Instead we must let go of the past and embrace the future for everything it could be.
We all want to get better. We always want our future to be brighter and more hopeful, and we strive for perfection. We dream big and do what we can to accomplish these dreams. Jay Gatsby was no exception. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby, the wonderful man who is admired greatly finds himself optimistic for the future, always yearning for the green light. Throughout the concluding excerpt from Chapter 9 in the novel, Gatsby’s optimism is evident and he is ready took look onto a better tomorrow. Even though it may appear as though Jay Gatsby has everything he can possibly desire, he truly wants one more thing, and is constantly fighting to achieve something that he cannot accomplish.
Gatsby, a man resentful of his past, has transformed his lack of confidence in the truth into a hopeless infatuation with Daisy and what she meant to his past and his
Based on the consequences of the past, Gatsby’s priority is to earn a place in high ranks in order to win Daisy. Remaining faithful through the years he endures apart from her, Gatsby builds a reputation of being affluent, for her. He expresses his loyalty towards Daisy through the wealth he establishes, for her. In the hopes that she will return to him after seeing his newly gained assets, Gatsby flaunts his mansion and possessions to Daisy. Everything he earns plays an important role in displaying his wealth to Daisy, as well as his dedication to her. Gatsby devotes several years to earning a fortune for Daisy, never deviating from his original motive of living the past, except with Daisy. However, Gatsby becomes “dazed” because her physical existence erases the importance of his belongings. Even though Gatsby’s valuables once signified the path to Daisy, because Daisy is now with him, the items mean nothing. Gatsby proves consistency in his love for Daisy as she is the motivating force that occupies his life. Gatsby’s persistent hope gives him the belief that he can and will live his happy ending with Daisy. When Gatsby’s imagination of Daisy does not align with the existing Daisy, he tells Nick, “Can’t repeat the past?...Why of course you can!” (110).
After their reunion, Gatsby and Daisy pick up where they left off, talking about old memories and future plans, Gatsby however does not see that these future plans are not entirely possible. He claims that he is going to “fix everything just the way it was before” and that he wants to restarts their new life together and leave the past couple of years behind them (118). This is saying that the pursuit of Ideals can cause a man to think irrationally and impulsively. In addition to this, Gatsby has a false sense of of safety, he states that he “wanted nothing less of Daisy than that she should go to Tom and Say ‘I never loved you’”, obliterating three years of marriage with the statement (117). This shows how through focusing all of himself into chasing his dream, Gatsby sees his situation through rose coloured glasses.He sees only the good and ignores all the negative repercussions are at inevitable in his case. Gatsby is also shown to be very overconfident in his dream, acting impetuously and arrogantly. He confronts Daisy’s husband, Tom Buchanan. Gatsby goes to Tom and tells him that his “wife doesn’t love [him]” and that “she never loved [him]” (139). This caused Daisy to move farther from Gatsby, realizing his addictive and obsessive nature towards
In the book Gatsby says, “Can’t repeat the past? He cried incredulously. Why of course you can!” (110). This quote explains one of mistakes leading to his downfall by stating that he does believe that you can repeat the pass when you can’t. In the book Gatsby tries his hardest to repeat his past relationship with Daisy and it leads him to trouble. He tries different tactics to gain her attention, like throwing the extravagant parties at his house. He hoped one night that Daisy would wonder in so he could see her again. The scene in the book where Gatsby, Nick, Tom, Daisy, and Jordan were in the apartment you can see how Gatsby’s actions had a toll on the other characters. Daisy specifically showed this when she said, “Oh, you want too much! She cried to Gatsby” (132). When Daisy said this it clarified that Gatsby was asking too much of her and that ultimately lead to his
Gatsby has many issues of repeating his past instead of living in the present. A common example of this would be his ultimate goal to win Daisy back. He keeps thinking about her and how she seems perfect for him, but he remembers her as she was before she was married to Tom. He has not thought about the fact that she has a daughter, and has been married to Tom for four years, and the history there is between them. The reader cannot be sure of Gatsby trying to recreate the past until the reunion between him and Daisy. This becomes evident when Nick talks to Gatsby about how he is living in the past, specifically when Nick discusses Daisy with him. “‘I wouldn’t ask too much of her,’ Gatsby ventured. ‘you can’t repeat the past.’ I said. ‘Can’t repeat the past?’ he cried incredulously. ‘Why of course you can!’” (110). This excerpt shows how Gatsby still has not learned that eventually he will have to just accept the past and move forward with his life. If he keeps obsessing about Daisy, and trying to fix the past, more of his life will be wasted on this impossible goal. Througho...