The Great Gatsby: A Foolish Gatsby and a Corrupt Daisy

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The Great Gatsby, is a classic American novel about an obsessed man named Jay Gatsby who will do anything to be reunited with the love of his life, Daisy Buchanan. The book is told through the point of view of Nick Caraway, Daisy's cousin once removed, who rented a little cottage in West Egg, Long Island across the bay from Daisy's home. Nick was Jay Gatsby's neighbor. Tom Buchanan is Daisy's abusive, rich husband and their friend, Jordan Baker, has caught the eye of Nick and Nick is rather smitten by her. Gatsby himself is a very ostentatious man and carries a rather mysterious aura about himself which leads to the question: Is Gatsby's fortune a house of cards built to win the love of his life or has Daisy entranced him enough to give him the motivation to be so successful? While from a distance Jay Gatsby appears to be a well-educated man of integrity, in reality he is a corrupt, naive fool.

Jay Gatsby fell in love with a young Daisy Buchanan prior to his military assignment overseas in WWI. Gatsby wanted to marry Daisy but she wouldn't marry him because he was poor and not a socialite. Gatsby then spent the five years, after his return home from the war; he strived to accumulate enough wealth to receive Daisy's love and attention.

There is one quote in my cards that I honestly had no idea what it meant. The quote was just plain creepy though. I had no idea it was when these little girls walked by Nick and Gatsby. The little girls were singing:

“I’m the sheik of Arabia,

Your love belongs to me.

At night when you’re asleep,

Into you tent I’ll creep.” (pg.83)

Then all of a sudden it hit me. It is such a foreshadow device and the little girls represent Daisy and the spell she has over Gatsby and Gatsby’s eventual downfall. The quote is about someone who’s love for another person is so great but that love cannot be so the person in love is killed, by love. Since this quote was only mentioned once Fitzgerald didn’t want to pound it into our head that way. However, this quote is a sign early in the book the Gatsby and Daisy will never happen. I wish I had picked up on that when reading the book it really is a noticeable quote and a very important foreshadow.

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