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Jay gatsby's reality
Moralality in the great gatsby
Moralality in the great gatsby
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Jay Gatsby is certainly great in the eyes of Nick, but there are also traces of suspicion in Gatsby’s work. Nick, the narrator, thinks that Gatsby was “all right”, but some of his actions rose some questions in Nicks mind (2). Many phone calls made Nick think that he got his money dishonestly. Some of the facts that Gatsby said about himself contradicted each other. Most of what Nick thought about Gatsby was that he was a good man and was indeed ‘great’, but he could not dismiss the fact that there were a lot of reasons for suspicion.
Throughout Nick’s narration he makes the point that Gatsby was “worth the whole damn bunch” of them and was very great (154). The first description of Gatsby stated that “there was something gorgeous about him” (2). A lot of his characterization is comparing him to “a rotten crowd”, which could be taken to mean all the rich. Nick’s comparisons all say that Gatsby is the best rich person out there, better than all of them “put together” (154).
Some reasons why Gatsby is the best include the free parties he throws, and the fact that he rose up ‘from rags to riches’. All of the parties that he threw were open to anyone, they “were not invited, they went there” (41). At these parties, no one knew what Gatsby looked like or even if he existed, but they were there anyway. Because no one saw him he would not be drinking, he would not be dancing, and would not be going crazy, like the rest of the ‘guests’. Later in the novel Nick learns more about Gatsby and how he was born into a poor family and gained riches through hard work. In the war he received many metals and then later went to oxford. These facts made Nick respect Gatsby. Although Nick is unsure about how Gatsby got most of his riches.
Nick qu...
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...lf “one of the most honest people I[he] have[has] ever known”, being honest of course (59). Although this over honesty could make him a bad narrator, he is better than a narrator that lies. Most of the time nick is a reliable narrator who tells the truth, especially when it comes to Gatsby. His thoughts about Gatsby’s character are very just, because he is suspicious about the same things that regular people would be. Also Nick is from a rich family and so he has been around rich people for all of his life. Because of this fact one would think that he is very capable of judging all types of rich people. To be overly honest, as what Nick would say, Gatsby is great and is seen as great in the eyes of Nick, but his suspicions still stand. The reader knows that those suspicions and Nick’s overall ideas are true through the characteristics of Nick and his experiences.
The Great Gatsby is narrated by Nick Carraway. Nick tells the story of the things he experienced when he moved to New York City to work in the bonds business. The reader is told the story, which includes Nick’s perception and opinion in certain events. The reader wants to believe that Nick is a reliable narrator and he seems to be one, in the beginning. Nick describes himself as “one of the few honest people that I have ever known” (Fitzgerald, 59). Although, Nick thinks this of himself, there are many things in the story that hint otherwise. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Nick is not a reliable narrator. This is seen through his negative judgments of others, his friendship with Gatsby, and because he does not know everything about Daisy and Gatsby.
The novel, The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, provides the reader with a character that possesses qualities both challenging to understand and difficult to endorse. These characteristics show themselves through the character’s desire and passion to pursue his dream. Jay Gatsby, an elusive, persuasive, and sometimes deceptive man displays such contrast in his moral foundation that leaves the reader questioning his true motives at nearly every action. There is an argument to be made that Gatsby is both great and not so great, making him the epitome of moral ambiguity. For example, Nick, another major character, who happens to be the narrator of the story, first describes Gatsby in the opening chapter of the novel as someone who he both
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby recounts a love story of fortune, sacrifice, and passion. Mystified by the foreign land of excessive capital and immense material possessions, the narrator, Nick Carraway, judges or exalts numerous inhabitants of the East and West Eggs, especially Jay Gatsby, whose mystery and secrecy attracts many. Although it seems like Mr. Carraway obsesses about Gatsby, strictly, for his wealth, a careful look at craft choices and his characterization reveals that Jay Gatsby captivates Nick because he is one of the only characters, who, unclouded by prosperity, recognizes his own fascination with money.
When Nick’s father told him that “Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages you’ve had” (1) he most likely meant not all people have the same opportunities in life. However, Nick perverted his father’s meaning and understood it as “a sense of the fundamental decencies us parcelled out unequally at birth” (2). Nick’s interpretation of his father’s advice provides insight into his conceited, somewhat supercilious attitude, as he believes that not all people are born with the same sense of manners and morality. Throughout the entirety of The Great Gatsby, Nick continuously elucidates on his poorness in many scenes. For instance, Gatsby, knowing that Nick was poor and did not earn much income, offered him an easy job, which Nick refused due to his honor.
The last thing that Gatsby’s best friend, Nick, manages to say to him before he is murdered is, “They’re a rotten crowd, you’re worth the whole damn bunch put together.” (198). This shows that Gatsby, even though he is wealthy, has a lot more to look to in his life than others. It isn't exactly a compliment, but it certainly states that he is better than the rest. However, the thing that kills Gatsby is his desire for intangible things like love and status, which he believed he could acquire with wealth alone. His death is the symbol of his inability to live up to his dreams.
Gatsby is quintessentially presented to us as a paradoxical enigma. As the novel progresses this sense of mystery shrouding him is heightened. We see Gatsby through the looking glass, we catch frequent glimpses of him, yet only through Nick’s trained eye. We are, to a certain extent, unable to judge him for ourselves. Even so Nick is eager to depict Gatsby as a multi-faceted character, one who hides behind his own self concocted images of himself. Is this the ‘indiscernible barbed wire’? Is Gatsby himself the ‘foul dust that floated in the wake of’ his own ‘dreams’?
The two main characters presented in the novel are Gatsby and Nick. Gatsby is shown as a very mysterious individual, many people do not know whom Gatsby is. However he is a well-known individual who has many rumors going around about him and his background such as “Somebody told me they thought he killed a man once” (Fitzgerald, 45). There are not many physical description of Gatsby but Nick described him as “He had one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced, or seemed to face, the whole external world for an instant and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself” (Fitzgerald, 49) from what Nick said it shows that Gatsby has a trustworthy appearance. We learn that Gatsby’s parents were farmers who were very poor but Gatsby was still very ambitious and he wanted to live “THE AMERICAN DREAM”. Gatsby whole purpose in life after loosing Daisy due to going to the war was to get Daisy back and live a perfect life with her. Nick is the narrator of the novel who reflects on his experience with Gatsby. Nick often views himself as a “Well rounded man” (Fitzgerald, 10) because he thinks he is open minded, tolerant, and a good listener because of this Gatsby reveals his true identity and tells Nick about his past and personal affairs. Nicks main purpose in the book was too guide Gatsby in getting Daisy and being by his side. As a friend Nick tries to tell Gatsby that his idea of getting Daisy back is foolish this also shows that Nick was a true friend by looking out for his friend. In comparing the novel to th...
declares to Gatsby that he’s worth “the whole damn of them put together”. Nick and
Though the story is told from Nick’s point of view, the reader gets many perspectives of Gatsby from different characters. One can see from characters like Jordan Baker -Nick’s girlfriend through the majority of the novel, or Tom- the husband of Nick’s cousin Daisy; that Gatsby is not as good as everyone where to think. Based on how these characters act and feel about Mr. Gatsby it is evident that they dislike him to some extent, showing a bit more of a flawed human side of him. Tom is quoted saying “I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn't far wrong.” about Gatsby depicting Tom’s harsh feelings towards him and showing the reader Tom’s negative feelings about Gatsby. Because the story is told from Nick’s point of view, Gatsby is still painted as this mysterious man because Nick is a bit curious of him and does not know Gatsby in the beginning. ‘"They're a rotten crowd," I shouted across the lawn. "You're worth the whole damn bunch put together."’ Nick says to Gatsby, showing that he thinks he is worth more than Daisy, Tom, or the other characters. With this quote one can infer that Nick holds Gatsby on a bit of a high platform than the other characters, giving the reader Nick’s indirect characterization of
No one can be perfect in everything; it is good to make mistakes as long as we learn from them. Jay Gatsby was a man of secrets; he leaves an insightful mark on every person he talks to. Gatsby’s neighbor, Nick, says “it is what preyed on Gatsby, what foul dust floated in the wake of his dreams that temporarily closed out my interest in the abortive sorrows and short-winded elations of men.”(Fitzgerald 6-7). Nick was simply appalled by Gatsby and wanted to know about him and any secrets he may have, Nick felt Gatsby was a great man of mystery and was extremely interesting. Gatsby told Nick “I don’t want you to get a wrong idea of me from all these stories you hear” (69), then opened himself up to Nick and told him “My family all died and I came into
Nick Carroway is not a very judgmental person, in fact, he himself states that he withholds judgment so that he can get the entire story out of the person to whom he is listening. To say that Nick is both approving and disapproving is not suspiring, for Nick rarely looks at things from only one perspective. Nick finds Gatsby to be ignorantly honest, in that Gatsby could not fathom the idea of saying something without really meaning it. He respects Gatsby for his determination to fit in with the East Egg crowd, though Gatsby does not realize that he does not really fit in with them. On the other hand, Nick sees Gatsby to be excessively flashy and, in the words of Holden Caulfield, 'phony.' Gatsby's whole life is a lie from the moment he left behind the name James Gatz and became Jay Gatsby. Gatsby lies about his past to try to have people perceive him as an 'old money' guy when that really is not necessary. Gatsby's valiant efforts to lure Daisy are respectable, yet they show Gatsby's failure to accept reality and give up on his long lost dream.
Ultimately, although readers portray Nick as an honest and unbiased narrator, through the above evidence combined with the fact that the 2 years have passed for Nick, his narration point is inherently bias. Since he has such a close friendship with Gatsby, Nick manages to overlook Gatsby’s illegal activities, and portray him unjustly as a virtuous man. The portrayal is unjust because Nick doesn’t account for his flaws, and he highlights his positives.
Gatsby may have not realized he let this lie slide out from under him due to the rush of emotions connected with the reunion of his long lost love. Nevertheless, he did lie to Nick about his past, along with many other people, including Daisy. When he and his love first meet, he lies to her and comes off as a rich, stable man, she would be lucky to fall in love with. This is not the case, however. He is not as innocent as to have just inherited the wealth he gloats.
In this case, Gatsby is great because he charms the lives of many. The party-goers are attracted to Gatsby. They adore his pink suit, sparkling eyes, and dazzling smile. Gatsby sweet talks the people in attendance at his parties and makes sure that all of the women are well taken care of. On one occasion, he delivered a brand new dress to a woman who had torn hers at his party. Even Gatsby’s colleagues are attracted to his personality. Meyer Wolfshiem shares his opinion of Gatsby with Nick: ‘“Fine fellow, isn’t he? Handsome to look at and a perfect gentleman…There’s the kind of man you’d like to take home and introduce to your mother and sister” (Fitzgerald 76). A person like Gatsby, so highly regarded, must be great. Even Gatsby’s neighbor Nick Carraway, who is not inclined to make any judgments on others, deems Gatsby great. Nick’s last words confirmed his feelings all along about Gatsby: ‘“They’re a rotten crowd,’ I shouted, across the lawn. ‘You’re worth the whole damn bunch put together.’” (Fitzgerald 162). Only three people attended Gatsby’s funeral besides the servants: Nick Carraway, Henry Gatz, and Owl Eyes. A person as well liked as Gatsby, should have had more people attend his funeral. Gatsby was no longer alive to intrigue his guests by stimulating their minds with fictional facts. He was not able to charm his guests with his sweet smile or insightful remarks. Because he could not do any of these tasks, people did not come to his funeral. It was not because he was any less great. Gatsby’s charming personality made him
He becomes our eyes and ears in this world and we have to see him as reliable if we are to proceed with the story's development. In The Great Gatsby, Nick goes to some length to establish his credibility, indeed his moral integrity, in telling this story about this "great" man called Gatsby. He begins with a reflection on his own upbringing, quoting his father's words about Nick's "advantages", which we could assume were material but, he soon makes clear, were spiritual or moral advantages. Nick wants his readers to know that his upbringing gave him the moral fiber with which to withstand and pass judgment on an amoral world, such as the one he had observed the previous summer. He says, rather pompously, that as a consequence of such an upbringing, he is "inclined to reserve all judgments" about other people, but then goes on to say that such "tolerance. . .