What do all tragedies have in common? They all have someone or something that suffers and throughout history there have been many literary examples of tragic heroes. The Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and published in 1925 is an American classic that played with the ideas of a materialistic American Dream, disillusionment, and what it truly means to be a tragic hero. A tragic hero is defined as a person of noble birth with heroic or potentially heroic qualities. In contrast with this definition, Jay Gatsby in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel embodies a tragic hero.
Though the exploration of tragic heroes isn't a new concept, yet it is commonly correlated with what it means to be an epic hero. An epic hero is a brave and noble character in an epic poem, admired …show more content…
Gatsby’s true persona is revealed when a guest at the party realizes Gatsby “didn’t cut the pages” of his books (Fitzgerald 46). Indeed his books were not cut, but this fact alone doesn’t discredit Gatsby being a tragic hero. His father still believes that “Gatsby was a hard working, sensitive and intelligent man. Like his father said ‘he was only a young man but he had a lot of brainpower’” (Fitzgerald 176). Mr. Gatz didn’t know much about Gatsby, yet he still believes that Gatsby had heroic characteristics. Nick also states, “he had lost the old warm world, paid a high price for living too long with a single dream” (Fitzgerald 169). Gatsby’s ability to hold onto his goals and naiveness led to his demise. The way Gatsby is portrayed is the reason he can be considered a tragic hero, “Fitzgerald imbues Gatsby an archetypical American background. He starts out poor, has high-minded aims, and struggles to overcome his impoverished circumstances”(Lathbury 46). Fitzgerald depicts Gatsby to be a trouble character with humble beginnings to make the audience feel a sense of familiarity with
Though the exploration of tragic heroes isn't a new concept, yet it is commonly correlated with what it means to be an epic hero. An epic hero is a brave and noble character in an epic poem, admired …show more content…
Gatsby’s true persona is revealed when a guest at the party realizes Gatsby “didn’t cut the pages” of his books (Fitzgerald 46). Indeed his books were not cut, but this fact alone doesn’t discredit Gatsby being a tragic hero. His father still believes that “Gatsby was a hard working, sensitive and intelligent man. Like his father said ‘he was only a young man but he had a lot of brainpower’” (Fitzgerald 176). Mr. Gatz didn’t know much about Gatsby, yet he still believes that Gatsby had heroic characteristics. Nick also states, “he had lost the old warm world, paid a high price for living too long with a single dream” (Fitzgerald 169). Gatsby’s ability to hold onto his goals and naiveness led to his demise. The way Gatsby is portrayed is the reason he can be considered a tragic hero, “Fitzgerald imbues Gatsby an archetypical American background. He starts out poor, has high-minded aims, and struggles to overcome his impoverished circumstances”(Lathbury 46). Fitzgerald depicts Gatsby to be a trouble character with humble beginnings to make the audience feel a sense of familiarity with