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Literary Analysis Of'The Great Gatsby
Great Gatsby Analysis
Literary Analysis Of'The Great Gatsby
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Think about the last time you performed a random act of kindness for a stranger. Was it a true effort to change the course of someone’s day, or was it an attempt to raise your own self esteem knowing that you helped someone unfamiliar to you? The question, are Gatsby and Nick truly friends, or did they secretly hate each other the whole time, looms in the novel The Great Gatsby by Scott F. Fitzgerald. Nick and Gatsby have a love/hate relationship because Nick and Gatsby are outsiders in West Egg, Gatsby is a user, and they both want other things in life than what they have.
Because Gatsby and Nick both differ from the rest of West Egg, they are considered outsiders and they grow to love each other over time. Since Nick values hard work, he
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wants to move to West Egg, which signifies newly earned money. In the West Egg, Nick does not know anybody. Although his family name can easily get him a home in East Egg, Nick wants to prove that he is a strong man capable of earning his own money. Unlike Nick, Gatsby’s parents are farmers, and do not have connections in the East Egg. East Egg signifies old money, and old money is something Gatsby nor his parents have. To live in West Egg, Gatsby has to accumulate his own wealth. Similarly to Nick, Gatsby does not know any other West Egg Residents. By random chance, Gatsby and Nick end up as neighbors. Overtime, they start to care for each other and engage in many activities. Nick says, “...I had gone to two of his parties, mounted in his hydroplane... and made frequent use of his beach” (64). But with any relationship, there is always another side than just love. On the other hand, Gatsby and Nick hate each other because Gatsby is a user.
Gatsby takes advantage of Nick to reunite with Daisy. When Gatsby tells Nick to invite Daisy over for tea, he uses Nick to rekindle his previous relationship with Daisy. Comparatively, Gatsby uses Nick again when he tries to make it seem like Nick, Gatsby and the Buchanan’s are all friends. Gatsby clearly sees that Nick is his only way to socialize with the couple, and he uses that to his advantage. By hesitantly letting Tom drive his car he has yet another way to hang around with Daisy later that day in the hotel room, where he tries to make Daisy confess that she never loved Tom. Obviously, the only reason Gatsby gets the chance to talk to Daisy is because of Nick’s connection with the Buchanan’s. Additionally, Gatsby uses Nick to make himself feel better and raise his own self esteem. Apart from any other guest, Nick is invited to the first party he attends at Gatsby’s house. Because he receives an invitation, it makes Gatsby seem as if he has no friends and is trying to comfort himself by having “a friend” he could invite. It is apparent that Nick does not even know who Gatsby is at the party because of what he says while he talks to Gatsby. He has no clue who Gatsby is or even that they are neighbors. Fitzgerald writes, “‘I’m Gatsby’ he said suddenly. ‘What!... I beg your pardon’” (48). All of these reasons combined makes Nick hate Gatsby and the morals he stands
for. Nick and Gatsby also have a love hate relationship because they both want other things than what they have in life. To begin, Gatsby desperately wants friends and he does everything in his power to get them. Because of the party he holds, he meets Nick and that leads to their continually growing friendship over time. Eventually, they love each other so much that Nick is one of three people to show up at Gatsby’s funeral. Nick says, “About five o’clock our procession of three cars reached the cemetery” (174). In addition, Gatsby also wants to please everyone he comes across. This makes Nick hate him because Nick barely even knows who Gatsby is and Gatsby already starts to use nicknames like “old sport.” Furthermore, Gatsby wants to offer Nick a job out of respect, but to Nick, the gesture does not come across in a friendly manner. Nick is upset because he already has a job and it seems like Gatsby assumes that Nick is not wealthy enough or that he is not happy with the amount of money that he makes. At different times Nick and Gatsby seem to have moments where the love and hate each other due to Gatsby acting as a user, both of them living as outsiders in West Egg, and both of them wanting other things in life. It is the fact that they are both different that allows their relationship to grow throughout the course of the novel. Even though Gatsby acts fake, ultimately that is what bring him and nick together and tears them apart. So the true question still remains. Were Gatsby and Nick only trying to benefit themselves, or did they truly set out to do the right thing by changing the life of stranger with simple acts of kindness?
Nick Carroway is not a very judgmental person, in fact, he himself states that he withholds judgment so that he can get the entire story out of the person to whom he is listening. To say that Nick is both approving and disapproving is not suspiring, for Nick rarely looks at things from only one perspective. Nick finds Gatsby to be ignorantly honest, in that Gatsby could not fathom the idea of saying something without really meaning it. He respects Gatsby for his determination to fit in with the East Egg crowd, though Gatsby does not realize that he does not really fit in with them. On the other hand, Nick sees Gatsby to be excessively flashy and, in the words of Holden Caulfield, 'phony.' Gatsby's whole life is a lie from the moment he left behind the name James Gatz and became Jay Gatsby. Gatsby lies about his past to try to have people perceive him as an 'old money' guy when that really is not necessary. Gatsby's valiant efforts to lure Daisy are respectable, yet they show Gatsby's failure to accept reality and give up on his long lost dream.
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
His duplicity continues, as he meets Tom’s mistress, and later arranges Daisy and Gatsby’s meeting, even going as far as to say “don’t bring Tom” (85). These are clear deceptions and violations of trust, which both reveal that Nick is not the honest and forthright man he wants the reader to believe his is; on the contrary, in many ways he is the opposite of honest and forthright. However, Nick’s most clearly professed lie is in protection of Daisy, when Tom insists that Gatsby had killed Myrtle, and Nick remains silent, forgoing telling Tom about the “one unutterable fact,” - that it had not been Gatsby who was driving the car when it had hit Myrtle, but Daisy - in favor of protecting Daisy (178). This obvious deception shows that despite Nick’s conviction in his honest character he does not neglect others, who depend on him. Once again, Nick mischaracterizes his traits and even fails to recognize his deceptions and violations of trust as being dishonest, failing to evaluate his own
to rekindle the love between Gatsby and Daisy. After this period in the novel, Gatsby and Nick became even closer friends. & nbsp; Getting closer to the end of the novel is when the reader sees the true friendship between Jay Gatsby and Nick Carraway. Whenever Gatsby would ask Nick to do something Nick would always have or make the time to do it. The strongest example of the genuineness of Nick is when Jay Gatsby was murdered by Mr. Wilson, Nick took care of all the arrangements for the funeral and all Gatsby's assets. Nick said "I found myself on Gatsby's side, and alone." (Gatsby, p.165) Nick said this because everyone who knew him wouldn't even take the time or effort to attend the funeral service. He even had people say that Gatsby deserved it, and these were people who. attended his parties. Nick was the only true friend of Gatsby. & nbsp;
Even though he had some thought that the meeting would provoke harmful tensions between Tom, Daisy, and Gatsby, he went along with it anyways, further demonstrating his own innate lack of reservation. Ultimately, Nick is an unreliable narrator who overlooks Gatsby’s lies because of his biased judgment of him. Nick portrays Gatsby as a generous and charismatic figure while in reality, he is a duplicative and obsessed man entangled in illegal business who is determined on an unattainable goal. It is highly ironic that Nick judges others for their lack of morality and honesty; his own character is plagued by lies as he abets Gatsby in many of his schemes.
As Nick and Gatsby become more acquainted, Nick is invited to dine with Gatsby for lunch. They arrive at the restaurant, and eat while engaging with one of Gatsby’s business partners. After the three enjoy their lunch, Nick bumps into Tom Buchanan, the husband of Nick’s cousin, Daisy. Attempting to introduce Gatsby to Tom, an “…unfamiliar look of embarrassment came over Gatsby face… I turned towards Mr. Gatsby, but he was no longer there” (74). The reason for his disappearance is unknown, thus adding to the ambiguity of Gatsby.
Nick’s father said “Whenever you feel like criticizing any one, just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages you’ve had.” This verbal guidance passed on to Nick by his father is put into play every time Nick meets someone. Nick never judged anyone even after having secrets being revealed to him. One of these secrets would be when Tom introduces Nick to his mistress, Myrtle. Tom trusts Nick with this information because of Gatsby’s reserved judgments. On the other side, Nick initiates controversial contact between Tom’s wife, Daisy, and Gatsby. Both Daisy and Gatsby trust Nick to keep this relationship secret because Gatsby will not judge. The ability to reserve judgment, that was passed on to Nick from his father, keeps Nick at a neutral stand point between Tom and Daisy’s relationship; he never judges their doings as being immoral or more unjust than the others. Without the advice previously given to Nick by his father, Gatsby and Daisy do not trust Tom and therefor nothing ever happens between the two. Gatsby’s reserved judgments creates the foundation for the main story
Gatsby used Nick because he knew that Daisy was his cousin and he wanted to see her. “Nick’s cottage becomes the site of Gatsby’s reunion with Daisy. The material world seems to re-cede as Gatsby “revalued everything in his house according to the measure of response it drew from her well-loved eyes.” The once cavernous mansion, familiar only when filled with strangers, grows curiously intimate as the lovers wander through its rooms (Doreski).” Gatsby and Daisy seemed to get back to where they left off really quickly. Also Gatsby was just as in love with her as he had been before. Daisy and Gatsby had loved each other way before she ever met her husband Tom Buchanan.
Gatsby’s life story is continuously questioned by Nick because of slight tendencies that Gatsby shows. Despite his wealth, Gatsby acts differently than his wealthy counterparts. During the first party that Nick attends, the other attendees start out acting very civil, but they slowly become partiers later in the text. They drink heavily and all the wives begin to fight with their husbands. While they interact very socially with each other, not everyone is quite sure who Gatsby is. For part of the night, Gatsby is described as watching all the events. Nick states, “I could see nothing sinister about him. I wonder if the fact that he was not drinking helped to set him off from his guests, for it seemed to me that he grew more correct as the fraternal hilarity increased” (Fitzgerald 50). From this quote, the fact that Gatsby acting different is assigned to the fact that he has not been drinking, but even earlier during the party when Nick meets Gatsby, he describes him as “an elaborate elegant young roughneck, a year or two over thirty, whose elaborate formality of speech just missed being absurd. Some time before he introduced himself I’d got a strong impression that he was picking his words with care” (Fitzgerald 48). Nick later admits that “I would have accepted without question the information that Gatsby sprang from the swamps of Louisiana or from the lower East Side of New
In the book “The Great Gatsby” we have the character Nick, which at first, gave the impression of a nice person, because in the book he states that keeps all judgments to himself, stated in, this quote, “ In consequence I am inclined to reserve all judgments.” This gives an idea that Nick while knowing the character of another keeps his ideas to himself, in addition, it shows that Nick is aiming to keep the judgments that his father gave him with out giving up, even though it has caused Nick a lot of trouble. That make Nick boring, nonetheless, he continued showing an ambition to keep his fathers advise, ...
In the first part of the book Gatsby throws a number of large parties, hoping Daisy will come to one of them so he can pursue her. Unsuccessful, he manipulates Nick into arranging a meeting between himself and Daisy. Nick has Tom, Daisy, and Gatsby for tea. Subsequently, Gatsby invites them to go for a ride with him. Thereafter, Gatsby tries to drive a wedge between Daisy and Tom, but though she claims to love him, her love is as superficial as the image Gatsby has created with his money.
... in The Great Gatsby so the two characters can emphasize their goals by working together, which in this case was Gatsby's reunion with Daisy. With the Nick's realization of Gatsby being a genuinely good-hearted man who wanted nothing else but love, he forever sides with him against the other shallow, careless characters. Omitting the fact Gatsby died as an effect of dreaming so much, Nick, on his own accord, tries to dream himself simply because Jay Gatsby made a hopeful future seem so ideal and attainable. Once Nick realizes he can't do exactly that, he gives up, throws everything away, and is left only with memories that eventually matured him to tell his story, to tell his reasoning how and why Mr. Gatsby ended up so respectable and great in his eyes: Gatsby had an incorruptible dream of love, and that was what had completely magnetized Nick to his polar opposite.
From the beginning of The Great Gatsby by Francis Scott Fitzgerald, Nick Carraway is developed as a reliable narrator. His honesty and sense of duty are established as he remarks on his own objectivity and willingness to withhold judgment. However, as the book progresses and Nick’s relationship with Jay Gatsby grows more intimate, it is revealed that Nick is not as reliable as previously thought when it comes to Gatsby. Nick perceives Gatsby as pure and blameless, although much of Gatsby's persona is false. Because of his friendship and love for Gatsby, his view of the events is fogged and he is unable to look at the situation objectively.
“The Great Gatsby” is one of these stories with its amazing characters and its exaggeration. This book has a major drawback. Gatsby and Nick’s relationship was too close. Gatsby was so cautious that he fired all his servants, but he allowed Nick to stay with him to peek on Daisy and Tom and to make sure Daisy was not hurt. Nick accepted his request to stay outside. This is where Nick contradicts himself again, “I disliked him so much by this time that I didn’t find it necessary to tell him he was wrong.” (Fitzgerald,136). He disliked Gatsby but he still stayed to help. But why should Gatsby, such a cautious person, allow Nick to stay beside him? And why would Nick be willing to stay even if he dislikes Gatsby so much? This part of the story is illogical, and that is why I don’t like this
At the beginning of the book Nick sees Gatsby as a mysterious shady man. In the beginning of the chapter Nick somewhat resents Gatsby. In Nick’s opinion Gatsby was the representation of “…everything for which I have unaffected scorn.” (Fitzgerald 2). Nick sees Gatsby as what he hates the most in life, rich folk. Since the start of the novel it was obvious that had “Disapproved of him from beginning to end.” (Fitzgerald 154). As time passes, Nick realizes his neighbor has quite a mysterious past. Some think he’s a bootlegger, and a different person wa...