Theme Of Irony In The Great Gatsby

559 Words2 Pages

Fitzgerald exposes to the viewers the great infatuation Gatsby has with time and attempting to re-incarnate the past through revealing how affluent he has become to daisy, thus expecting her to be with him and make up for the past five years that were lost. The allusion presented creates a sense of irony as Gatsby has all the money and reputation to attract anyone and anything, and buy what ever he desires but the thing he is passionate about the most is his past love for Daisy. Gatsby’s nostalgia for the man he used to be and the love he had with daisy is juxtaposed against America’s nostalgia of its lost morals and values of the roaring 20’s. Gatsby’s obsession with time and daisy is expressed when he was standing on the wharf, “...he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way...I could have sworn he was trembling. …show more content…

Even though this man is portyaed to have everything and is living the American Dream, a life of luxury, status and wealth but what he most desires is out of reach literally and metaphorically. This green light delivers assurance and hope that he is close to having her in the future. This continuous expectation of the past being re-incarnated for Gatsby began to seem like he was so close, the melancholic tone that is used in the novel returns during the reunion of Gatsby and Daisy at Nicks house. Gatsby was so focused on re-incarnating the past five years he was oblivious to the changes that had occurred in both of their lives such as Daisy getting married and having a

Show More
Related

  • The Great Gatsby

    2209 Words  | 5 Pages

    Nostalgia, the bittersweet longing for things, persons, or situations of the past, is the dominant feeling throughout The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It is an eloquently written novel filled with intricate details and written to evoke the romanticism in anybody. The love affairs evolving throughout the story add substance as well as emotions to the author’s message, a moral lesson concerning how people think and behave. I found numerous instances in the book that aroused soul-searching questions that every person asks him/herself at one period of time or another. Mr. Jay Gatsby, the self made millionaire, is desperately seeking to reunite with his first and only love, Daisy Buchanan, who is already married to Tom. The story unfolds through the eyes of Mr. Nick Carraway, who lends a moral standing to the story, remains more distant than the other characters, and is more a spectator than being actively or emotionally involved in the situations. Fitzgerald’s use of Carraway as a spectator, and how brilliant it is, is one aspect that all literary critics seem to agree upon. The first literary critic, Jeffrey Steinbrink, primarily focuses his analysis on the element of time. He states, “the notion that the flow of history can be arrested, perhaps even reversed, recurs in The Great Gatsby as a consequence of the universal human capacity for regret and the concomitant tendency to wish for something better” (Steinbrink 179). The inability to recover the past as well as the tendency to try and correct it is most evident with Jay Gatsby.

    Read More

  • Similarities Between The Wizard Of Oz And The Great Gatsby

    1309 Words  | 3 Pages

    “ Its attitude is one of disillusionment and detachment; Fitzgerald is still able to evoke the glitter of the 1920s but he is no longer dazzled by it; he sees its underlying emptiness and impoverishment” (Trendell 23)The story is narrated from the point of view of Nick, one of Gatsby’s friends. The problematic and hopeless romantic, Gatsby, sets out to fulfill his dream in acquiring Daisy, his lifelong love, through his many tactics and ideas. Gatsby is introduced extending his arms mysteriously toward a green light in the direction of the water. Later, Gatsby is shown to be the host of many parties for the rich and Nick is invited to one of these parties where Gatsby and Nick meet. When Gatsby later confesses his love for Daisy he explains she was a loved one who was separated from him and hopes to get her again explained when he says, “I hope she'll be a fool -- that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool”(Fitzgerald 56). There are several obstacles that Gatsby must overcome and the biggest one that is Daisy’s current fiancé but that still does not get in the way of him trying to recover Daisy’s old feelings. His attempts are made through money and wealth because he tries to buy her love back instead of letting it happen naturally.

    Read More

  • Flaws In The Great Gatsby

    514 Words  | 2 Pages

    Gatsby makes many mistakes throughout the novel, all of which Fitzgerald uses these blunders as a part of his thematic deconstruction of the American Dream. However, Fitzgerald does not write Gatsby as a bad person whom embodies all that is wrong with western capitalism. Instead, Fitzgerald portrays Gatsby as a good man who was victim of the qualities ingrained in him by an imperfect ideological system. It is this distinction which makes Fitzgerald’s argument all the more potent, and his audience’s ability to mourn Gatsby as a tragic figure all the more important. Whereas Fitzgerald’s opinion of Gatsby may otherwise have been misconstrued as a negative one, the scene of Gatsby’s funeral clearly conveys the character of Gatsby as a tragic and sorrowful one.

    Read More

  • Daisy's Dream In The Great Gatsby

    1208 Words  | 3 Pages

    Fitzgerald, like Jay Gatsby, while enlisted in the army, fell in love with a girl who was enthralled by his newfound wealth. After he was discharged, he devoted himself to a lifestyle of parties and lies in an attempt to win the girl of his dreams back. Daisy, portrayed as Fitzgerald’s dream girl, did not wait for Jay Gatsby; she was consumed by the wealth the Roaring Twenties Era brought at the end of the war. In the novel, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald presents the themes of wealth, love, memory/past, and lies/deceit through the characters Gatsby, Daisy, and Tom.

    Read More

  • The Green Light In The Great Gatsby

    1067 Words  | 3 Pages

    The thrill of the chase, the excitement in the dream, the sadness of the reality is all represented in the green light that encompasses Jay Gatsby’s attention in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The meaning contained in the green light consumed Gatsby in ways that demonstrated an unhealthy obsession in which five years of his life was spent attempting to get Daisy. The moment that dream became attainable to him, she fell right into his reach only to crush his heart. Five years were wasted on a dream that he really could not see. His life was spent changing himself to achieve “the dream.” Everyone needs to be able to say they lived their life to the fullest and have no regrets when it becomes their time. Do not waste it on an unrealistic

    Read More

  • Irony of The Great Gatsby

    1011 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many authors use irony as a way of questioning the reader or emphasizing a central idea. A literary device, such as irony, can only be made simple with the help of examples. Irony can help a reader to better understand certain parts of a novel. F. Scott Fitzgerald helps the reader to recognize and understand his use of irony by giving key examples throughout The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald uses Gatsby’s lush parties, Myrtle’s death, Gatsby’s death, and the title of the novel to demonstrate how irony plays a key role in the development of the plot.

    Read More

  • Irony In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

    1191 Words  | 3 Pages

    F. Scott Fitzgerald uses a way to highlight Gatsby’s characterization by showing how he could be seen as great, but also using the title ironically to formulate the real depiction of Jay Gatsby. Gatsby is a very ambitious man, and he will not stop in his pursuit to regain Daisy’s love by becoming a part of the rich and lavish lifestyle that her new husband has provided for her. He will stop at nothing to succeed in his mission by even stooping to committing crimes in order to get what he wants. Although, Gatsby can be seen as someone to be admired with his drive for success and his desire to be with Daisy once again, the title of this novel is ironic because both of those reasons lead him to failure. Even though Gatsby ultimately achieves the

    Read More

  • Wealth in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby

    1505 Words  | 4 Pages

    Past is that puzzle that can be delightful to remember but trying to chase it is like a dog chasing its own tail, and throughout the novel F. Scott Fitzgerald shows how abnormal the minds become when it is still beating in the past.The narrator introducing the main character for the first time, but not countering a verbal conversation but has a sight of him where he “decided to call to him, but for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone- he stretched out his arm toward the dark water in a curious way.” (Fitzgerald 20). This caused Gatsby to have the motive of reach out for the past before he met the sources that led to his goal or love of his life Daisy Buchanan. As a result his ego and his anxiety increases to a point where he tries to grab more than fate wrote for both of them, and when the person or thing have moved on or belongs to someone else then it is never too late to move on with your life. Gatsby stretched out his arm towards the green light; minute or far way, that was the dock of Daisy’s house. Along the same line the light does not represent the past but it was a light of hope for Gatsby that Fitzgerald convey that even it is across the bay he tends to try to reach for her even its physically impossible to do. Hence the disillusionment is what Fitzgerald is trying to convey that if a mind is still living in the past then it disarrays from the present along with the future. “His [Gatsby] tragedy lies in the ...

    Read More

  • The Ironic Title of The Great Gatsby

    1141 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Ironic Title of The Great Gatsby Titling is a very important part of the fiction-writing process. It is important for authors to be careful in choosing their titles because the titles often can have great influence on certain aspects of the story. In the book, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the title was formulated with the intention of heightening characterization through the use of irony. When readers start to read this novel, they immediately see a man who seems very glamorous and powerful while they have already been predisposed to seeing him in an alluring light due to the book's title.

    Read More

  • Loneliness In The Great Gatsby

    716 Words  | 2 Pages

    The existence of the distant, yet gleaming green light in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, serves as a pivotal illustration of an individual’s gravitation towards the reflection of the past. For example, every night while on his illustrious balcony, Jay Gatsby stands alone while yearning for the affection and comfort of his lost love, Daisy Buchanan. Once a happy couple with grand aspirations for a brilliant future, Gatsby and Daisy find themselves split when Gatsby is drafted for war. Although still hoping that Gatsby would return in time for them to continue on with their lives, Daisy finds herself falling in love with Tom Buchanan. As the years of separation progress, the heartbroken Gatsby finds himself living vicariously through memories of the passionate times that the two once shared. Although only a minuscule

    Read More

  • What Is The Reality Of Reality In The Great Gatsby

    807 Words  | 2 Pages

    Gatsby’s obsession of his love for Daisy and wealth prove his dream as unattainable. Throughout the novel, he consumes himself into lies to cheat his way into people’s minds convincing them he is this wealthy and prosperous man. Gatsby tries to win Daisy’s love through his illusion of success and relive the past, but fails to comprehend his mind as too hopeful for something impossible. In the end, Nick is the only one to truly understand Gatsby’s hopeful aspirations he set out for himself but ultimately could not obtain. In the novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald is able to parallel many themes of the roaring twenties to current society. The ideas of high expectations and obsession of the material world are noticeable throughout the history and is evident in many lives of people today.

    Read More

  • The Pursuit of Wealth, Power, and Pleasure in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

    684 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hugh Hefner once said, “I looked back on the roaring Twenties, with its jazz, 'Great Gatsby' and the pre-Code films as a party I had somehow managed to miss.” The parties of the Roaring Twenties were used to symbolize wealth and power in a society that was focused more on materialism and gossip than the important things in life, like family, security, and friends. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, portrays the characters of Tom and Daisy Buchanan as the epitome of the era. The reader sees these characters acting selfishly and trying to meddle with others’ lives. On the other hand, Nick Carraway, the narrator, acts more to help others and act honestly. Initially the reader sees Carraway’s views towards Jay Gatsby as negative as Gatsby’s actions are perceived as being like the Buchanan’s. As the novel moves forward, the reader notices a change in Carraway’s attitude towards Gatsby. Carraway sees Gatsby for whom he truly is, and that is a loving person who only became rich to win Daisy’s heart. But in this the reader also sees how corrupt and hurtful Gatsby’s actions were to the love of his life. Gatsby’s relationship with Daisy reveals that just as Gatsby’s dream of wooing Daisy is corrupted by illegalities and dishonesty, the “American Dream” of friendship and individualism has disintegrated into the simple pursuit of wealth, power, and pleasure.

    Read More

  • The Great Gatsby: American Dream or American Nightmare?

    1747 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the novel, Gatsby, a wealthy socialite, pursues his dream, Daisy. In the process of pursuing Daisy, Gatsby betrays his morals and destroys himself. Through the eyes of the narrator, Nick, one sees the extent of the corruption Gatsby is willing to undertake in order to achieve his dream. Although Fitzgerald applauds the American Dream, he warns against the dangers of living in a world full of illusions and deceit; a trait common during the Roaring 20s. The language and plot devices Fitzgerald uses convey that lies and facades, which were common during the Guided Age, destroy one’s own character and morals.

    Read More

  • Missed Opportunities

    684 Words  | 2 Pages

    In conclusion, “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald’s most prevalent theme conveyed throughout his work is time. In the novel, Fitzgerald displays this recurring theme of time with the help of Gatsby, Daisy and Tom. Yet, “The Great Gatsby” still connects to the modern world. People are given many opportunities throughout their lives, but some people take these opportunities and embrace them. Others simply lose these opportunities because of the loss the time.

    Read More

  • Irony And Symbolism In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

    1208 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Sick venom in men and women overcome with pride, a perfect world is never perfect only filled with lies, promises are broken and more resentment come alive...” -Kendrick Lamar (CITATION). With this quote Kendrick expresses that just because someone seems to have everything, they may just be missing one of the most important concepts. Happiness, faith and love are among life's most pursued dreams. However some may fail to reach them. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses irony, symbolism and characterization to instill that having artificial and materialistic values will surely result in tragedy.

    Read More

More about Theme Of Irony In The Great Gatsby

Open Document