“There was music from my neighbor’s house through the summer nights. In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars.” (Fitzgerald 39) In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby, all is well in the setting of 1920s Long Island. Elegant and lively soirées are ubiquitous, and people don’t have a care in the world… or so it seems. The era of excitement is littered with secrets. Every member of high society seems to be hiding something. Self-made millionaire Jay Gatsby uses this to his advantage -- he toys with the ideas of hiding and concealing to craft the persona he desires. Fitzgerald uses the motif of concealing to show how Gatsby hides his true identity from himself and others in an attempt to develop a better self-image of wealth and sophistication. Soon after Gatsby is introduced as a character, it can be inferred that he is hiding something. Some may argue that this is false, and …show more content…
(Fitzgerald 90)
Gatsby seems to have some familiarity with the lies he spews, as though he has been telling them to himself and others for years. His words are so automatic he does not even think about what he is saying. Based on Gatsby’s reluctance to tell the truth, it can be assumed that he is ashamed or scared to tell the true story of his background. Fitzgerald’s use of the hiding and concealing motif gives an air of mystery about Gatsby’s past. Neither Nick nor the reader know the facts of his history at this point, so this is a moment for Gatsby to deceive people into thinking of him as a well educated