Nick Carraway's Narrative Voice In Chapter 1 Of The Great Gatsby

Scott F. Fitzgerald’s prose fiction “The Great Gatsby” (1925) is arguably one of the best-written pieces in American literature. Set in the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties of 1920s America, Fitzgerald captures the cultural aspect of society, including the economic boom of postwar America, jazz music, and free-flowing illegal liquor. However, what makes his novel so universal is his iconic characters. Fitzgerald’s style created vivid and realistic characters, which brought them to life to a large extent as he skillfully manipulates narrative voice and dialogue into his story.

Fitzgerald employs a nuanced narrative voice, embodied by Nick Carraway, to bring to life his character, Jay Gatsby. Nick’s voice has a reflective tone that allows

For instance, in Chapter 1, Nick sees Gatsby for the very first time and is instantly allured by the charisma that exudes from him. He describes his smile as “one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life.” Through the use of a hyperbolic expression, the quote depicts Gatsby’s intention of putting forward a notion of what people want to see, highlighting the extent to which Gatsby tries to epitomise the American Dream. Nick mentions, “It faced — or seemed to face — the whole external world for an instant, and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favour.” Using truncated sentences emphasises the significance of Gatsby’s smile by adding an element of mystery, possibly suggesting that his smile holds a deeper secret, luring us in just like how it lured Nick. In Chapter 1,

Fitzgerald incorporates vivid and realistic dialogues between Tom and Myrtle that showcase their attitudes and relationship, ultimately touching upon the theme of social stratification. The dialogues create authenticity and liveliness within the characters, bringing them to life. In chapter 2, a situation occurs between Myrtle and Tom regarding a dog that goes: “Is it a boy or a girl?" she asked delicately. "That dog? That dog's a boy." "It's a bitch," said Tom decisively. "Here's your money. Go and buy ten more dogs with it."The use of colloquial language through “bitch” paints Tom as a hyper-masculine, aggressive guy from an elite class. It’s clear from the way he casually throws away ten dollars to buy the dog for Myrtle that he’s from old money and has too much money at his disposal. The fact that he insists he’s more knowledgeable than the dog seller showcases his superior attitude towards the working class. In contrast, Myrtle believes Tom spoiled her because he cares for her and her blindness goes as far as missing the point of Tom looking down on the dog seller, who’s from the same class as her. In the same chapter, Myrtle shouts, “Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!" shouted Mrs. Wilson. "I'll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai——" to taunt Tom. Tom reacts by “Making a short deft movement” and “broke her nose with his open hand”. The repetition of Myrtle shouting Daisy’s name