In The Great Gatsby, author F. Scott Fitzgerald utilizes the subjectivity of narration to provide further insight into the characters of the story. Because the novel is told through a first-person point of view, objectivity is nearly impossible. That would require the narrator to disregard their personal feelings and opinions. Therefore, The Great Gatsby is a subjective narrative full of biased opinions about the lives of the wealthy in New York, during the roaring twenties. These opinions come from Nick Carraway, who is born into the upper class. He claims to be honest and holds himself to a moral standard that, in turn, causes him to pass critical judgement onto the actions of others. Nick’s reactions and descriptions of his experiences reveal
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In the very beginning of the novel he says that “Only Gatsby… was exempt from my reaction- Gatsby, who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn”(2) when he was discussing his moral ideals. But he goes on further to say that he had “an extraordinary gift for hope, a romantic readiness such as I have never found in any other person”(2). Nick, throughout the novel, both heavily insulted and complimented Gatsby. We see through this that Nick always seemed to be unable to decide how he truly felt about Gatsby, and what he truly valued in life and in himself. Nick also stated, “Gatsby turned out alright at the end; 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” (2). Nick here means that corruption of money, the way it led all the rich to become selfish and generally obsessed with their own interests to the point they were blind to everything else, is what preyed on him. Gatsby was representative of the lack of responsibility and disillusionment of the rich that Nick so strongly disliked. Gatsby tried too hard to create an image of himself that he believed would appeal to Daisy and became self-destructive with his desire for her. At the same time, however, Nick valued romance and hope, two forces that he felt were missing from his life. Gatsby chased Daisy simply because he loved her, and that innocence appealed to Nick; he never stopped supporting Gatsby, even through death. By examining Nick’s opinions of Jay Gatsby, readers can infer Nick’s
In the very beginning of the novel he says that “Only Gatsby… was exempt from my reaction- Gatsby, who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn”(2) when he was discussing his moral ideals. But he goes on further to say that he had “an extraordinary gift for hope, a romantic readiness such as I have never found in any other person”(2). Nick, throughout the novel, both heavily insulted and complimented Gatsby. We see through this that Nick always seemed to be unable to decide how he truly felt about Gatsby, and what he truly valued in life and in himself. Nick also stated, “Gatsby turned out alright at the end; 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” (2). Nick here means that corruption of money, the way it led all the rich to become selfish and generally obsessed with their own interests to the point they were blind to everything else, is what preyed on him. Gatsby was representative of the lack of responsibility and disillusionment of the rich that Nick so strongly disliked. Gatsby tried too hard to create an image of himself that he believed would appeal to Daisy and became self-destructive with his desire for her. At the same time, however, Nick valued romance and hope, two forces that he felt were missing from his life. Gatsby chased Daisy simply because he loved her, and that innocence appealed to Nick; he never stopped supporting Gatsby, even through death. By examining Nick’s opinions of Jay Gatsby, readers can infer Nick’s