Analyzing The Book 'Two Sides Of The Same Coin'

Two Sides of the Same Coin

Dreams, the most simple definition of a dream is hope. But a dream is the beginning of every thought, emotion, and idea. The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald is a book told through the eyes of Nick Carraway. Throughout the book, we follow Nick as he encounters Gatsby and Daisy, both carrying their dreams and burdens. The passage I will be talking about takes place towards the end of the book, Nick has just had a conversation with Tom about Gatsby and Myrtle's death. Nick talks to Tom about what he said to Wilson that afternoon, and Tom reacts in a defensive and panicked way, explaining that Wilson was out of his mind and crazy, willing to pull the trigger at the wrong guy. So Tom told him the car belonged to Gatsby and

His word choice helps guide the reader into his thoughts and feelings. Nick's first example of diction talks about the possibility of anything, “face to face for the last time in history with something commensurate to his capacity for wonder”. The use of the words commensurate and wonder in this sentence gives us a bigger picture to look at. Wonder can be anything, that's the beauty of it. The only limit on wonder is the limit on one's ideas. The island that Nick describes is so virgin and full of life that dreams could blossom and flourish everywhere. Wonder correlates directly with dreams, wondering being the act of curiosity and possibilities and a dream being prioritized wonder. Now supporting the opposite of an ambiguous dream is, consequences. “On the white steps an obscene word, scrawled by some boy with a piece of brick, stood out clearly in the moonlight and I erased it, drawing my shoe raspingly along the stone.” (?) Highlighting the words Obscene, scrawled, and raspingly, they all describe with negative connotations some kind of decay. Gatsby’s house, which is the symbol of the American dream, is now marked with imperfection. This shows that beneath the wealth and beauty of his house, there is destruction and a sense of emptiness, with no one around to clean it off except Nick. Nick’s diction is a mixture of gleaming and flowering ideas, with a sense of internal decay and destruction.

Nick manifests his feelings in the passage, showing both prosperity and hardship in dreams. The biggest representation of the negative side comes from this part of the passage, “He did not know that it was already behind him, somewhere back in that vast obscurity beyond the city, where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night.” (?) This sentence creates such a strong picture in the reader's mind of Nick's real feelings about Gatsby’s life. It paints us into a dark, hopeless night past a bright and dazzling city. A city where Gatsby lost his true self, searching for light to feed his hopes and dreams. Now Nick fades into a new train of thought, one that carries new possibilities and opportunities. “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 the Dutch sailors’ eyes-a fresh, green breast of the new world.” Nick is wondering for himself about the origin of dreams. He shows and tells us what he thinks. He paints a picture of a brand new world, untouched by mankind, full of life and endless possibilities. The imagery paints a picture of his thoughts and ideas for the readers. He gives us the idea that dreams are beautiful and endless, like the island. But at the same time, he shows us that dreams can be dark and lonely. He shows us that even with a green light at