Caraway In The Great Gatsby

The narrator, Nick Caraway, in the Great Gatsby guides us through the book, Caraway is believable, and the reader wants to trust in his narrative. Therefore, every time changes his mind about the protagonist, Jay Gatsby, the reader tends to change their mind too. In the book, the interplay between determinate and indeterminate meanings trigger several cognitive processes, that will help the reader construct the meaning of the text, for example: retrospection, anticipation of what will come next, fulfillment or disappointment of our anticipation, revision of our understanding of characters and events. The portrayal of Jay Gatsby is the best example, the reader´s opinion of Gatsby is always changing. When Caraway first mentioned Gatsby ‘there was something

When the awkwardness has dissolved between Gatsby and Daisy, Gatsby wants to show her his mansion and he says ‘It took me just three years to earn the money that bought it!’ (p.58,) which makes the reader retrospect that he earlier said he inherited his money, he then says he lost the money in the war. Later on, in chapter 6, Gatsby explains to Caraway that his real name is James Gatz, his family is really poor and he inherited his money from Cody, an old man that he was sailing with around the continent for several years (p.62-64), this makes the reader retrospect earlier information regarding his wealth. In chapter 7, when Daisy reveals she is leaving her husband Tom for Gatsby, Tom bursts out ‘He (Gatsby) and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drugstores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter’(p.85,) that Gatsby´s wealth comes from illegal activities contradicts the reader´s opinion about Gatsby again. After Gatsby´s death, Tom´s statement gets confirmed by Wolfsheim ‘I raised him up out of nothing, right out of the