Lindsey Klotthor Overlord Whitt STEM English 24 March 2023 The Great Gatsby Literary Criticism The Great Gatsby is an unparalleled story of the 1920s told through the eyes of Nick Carraway. Though the novel is complex and significant, it is important to delve further and understand why it is an influential part of American Literature. To do this, we must look at it from three important viewpoints: in a historical context, through archetypal criticism, and in a moral and philosophical focus.
The rich bastard/good guy dichotomy is most essential to Steinbeck’s narrative purpose for Chapter Two. Tom Joad Jr., while prying the truck driver for a ride, claims that “sometimes a guy’ll be a good guy even if some rich bastard makes him carry a sticker.” We know that the driver wants to be a good guy, similar to the emergence of ‘good personality’ over ‘good character’ in The Great Gatsby. The phrase “good guy” is only referenced six times within the novel, all within chapter two. “Rich bastard” only appears twice, both within chapter two again.
Archetypes of The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald depicts more than a few archetypical references in his novel The Great Gatsby. Throughout the novel, the author includes a variation of archetypes: biblical and mythological. The author creates the main characters of the story to portray the different aspects of these archetypes through the description of their actions and physical features. Fitzgerald expresses archetypes through his characters to develop the impression of the “American Dream” during the 1920s. (Throughout the novel) many biblical allusions are made to the Christian religion.
The Humanization of Literature “Listen carefully to the sound of your loneliness, like a heartbeat, drives you mad in the stillness of remembering what you had.” -Stevie Nicks Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is among the most frequently interpolated American novels, from the Peanuts comic strip to Taylor Swift songs. This high engagement is driven by newly popularized narrative techniques that mimic the human condition in poetic capacity that transcends the standard romance novel.
How are people’s private personas different from their public personas? While some people may be the same in public as they are in private, others are not. Authors tend to use this as a way to make unique characters in their novels. F. Scott Fitzgerald applies this characteristic on a character named Gatsby in The Great Gatsby. In the beginning of the book, Gatsby is perceived as rich and wealthy.
In the novel, “The Great Gatsby”, in chapter 3, Gatsby’s behavior when he would do his parties would be unusual because he would not participate in his own festivities. He would throw the parties for people to enjoy but would not behave like his guests would. He makes it look like if he wants something to happen but it never occurs yet. For example, Gatsby’s odd behavior is shown when he Nick finds him “standing alone on the marble steps and looking from one group to another with approving eyes.” Gatsby does this in a way of illustrating that he might see someone who he has been waiting for long period of time.
Just like most novels, The Great Gatsby has a mixture of admirable and despicable characters. There are three characters that stood out the most for having one trait or the other. Jordan Baker, Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby have certainly earned the titles given to them. Jordan Baker is one of the more despicable character. Although she is not one of the major characters of this novel, she is the easiest to pick out for being a rotten person.
Active Reading Journal: Quest for Enlightenment Wood’s idea that “Dunstan Ramsay is a perfect case of plight in the imagination of a chilly Canadian culture” (Wood 24) is true. Dunstan’s journey begins with the unfortunate incident with the snowball hitting Mary Dempster. His life is forever changed by this situation that, arguably, is caused by the “chilly Canadian” snow. There are several other aspects of Fifth Business that mirror Canadian culture. The school Dunstan teaches at models Upper Canada College (Wood 24), showcasing a Canadian school.
Gatsby Analytical Essay Author F. Scott Fitzgerald has deftly woven dozens of themes and motifs throughout his relatively short novel The Great Gatsby. One theme that resonates in particular is that of isolation. This theme pervades the entire book, and without it, nothing in Gatsby’s world would be the same. Every character must realize that he or she isn’t capable of truly connecting with any other character in the book, or else the carelessness and selfishness that leads to so many of the book’s vital events would not exist. Fitzgerald develops the feeling of isolation and aloneness by his use of the motif of careless self-absorption, a behavior we see many characters exhibiting.
As defined by Aristotle, “a tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction” (“Tragic Hero” 1). In The Great Gatsby, Great historical writers like Sophocles and the aforementioned Aristotle used this character archetype while manifesting their works to create characters that were both larger than life, but also were human. Like these dateless litterateurs, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses this timeless archetype to create the titular character Jay Gatsby. Fitzgerald likens Gatsby to fellow tragic heros like Antigone, Oedipus Rex, and Odysseus by describing him to be both a common man and larger than life. Furthermore, similar to other tragic heroes, Gatsby has a tremendous fall from grace.
“Most affectations conceal something eventually, even though they don’t in the beginning…” (pg. 57). The world of the 1920’s required that one disguise one’s true self for an incarnation that people would lust over. In his novel, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald suggests that portraying oneself as someone they are not will raise questions and uncertainty in those they meet. In the passage where Nick meets Gatsby for the first time (pg.48 ) Nick observes Gatsby’s smile and the effect it has on him. The details about Gatsby’s smile conveys that Nick, at first is charmed by the Gatsby’s warmth, but soon sees through his facade despite Gatsby’s efforts to ingratiate himself to Nick.
This story explores how society affects people's lives by showing both the ups and downs that come with social status. The Great Gatsby takes place in New York City with the narrator, Nick, being one of the main character's cousins. He brings us along in the chaotic life that New Yorkers live by spending time with Tom, who lives on East Egg, which is perceived as a wealthy and fashionable community. Tom tells Nick about his affair with Myrtle, a married woman, who lives in the Valley of Ashes with her husband who happens to be financially unstable. Using Tom's character and East Egg to illustrate the divide in social class, F. Scott Fitzgerald clearly conveys to readers the theme that people's social status can have an effect on their actions.
There are many popular pieces of media that use a lack of self-awareness in a character. One such piece of media is The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. In the novel, Gatsby lacks self-awareness because joins the mob to get money in order to satisfy Daisy, but he does not realize that Daisy would not want him if he was a mobster. Gatsby made most of his fortune from illegal sale of alcohol and other mob activities in order to impress Daisy. However, in Chapter 7, when Tom reveals to Daisy where Gatsby makes his money from, Daisy begs to go home with Tom.
The question being asked is if Nick Carraway an honest narrator. This question is being asked due to mixed emotions of this particular narrator. At times it feels like Nick is holding back his honest opinion because he doesn 't want to hurt anyone or just because Nick doesn 't want to say the harsh truth. This affects the story at times such as Nick knowing about Tom 's mistress and never telling Daisy about her. Which in the end resulted in a very unfitting demise for Gatsby and Myrtle.
The Great Gatsby Literary Analysis “They were careless people…” says Nick Carraway, the narrator of The Great Gatsby. In a story depicting the 1920s during a time of prosperity, growth, and the emergence of the America as a major global power, this statement may seem to be contrary. But in reality, Nick Carraway’s description of his friends and the people he knew, was not only true, but is an indication of those who were striving for the American dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald suggests that the American Dream is foolish, the people who pursue it are immoral and reckless, and this pursuit is futile. First, F. Scott Fitzgerald proposes that the American dream is foolish.
