Any Last Words?
There is no escape. The villain corners the hero and projects a snarky smile. The brave hero stands before this evil, determined not to go down without a fight. Before the villain pulls the trigger on our destined hero, he asks in a mocking gesture, “Any last words?” These “last words” leave the reader or viewer in suspense, craving more. What now? Will the hero ever escape the villain?
The greatest “last words” are ones that are carefully articulated by the author to allow every reader to create their own interpretation of the overall message. The Huffington Post remarks F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, as having the greatest last line written in all of American literature. There is much debate behind the moral …show more content…
The first sentence of the last passage reads, “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us,” (154). The green light represents Gatsby’s dream, a hope for a fresh start with Daisy. He desperately wants to win her over, so he mimics her materialistic lifestyle by throwing extravagant parties and driving fancy cars. Daisy is Gatsby’s American dream, and if he works hard, he will achieve this dream. That makes cents. Right? Wrong. No matter how much money Gatsby seems to spend, Daisy will never truly love him because as uttered in the 1974 Hollywood screenplay of the novel, “rich girls don’t marry poor boys”. Fitzgerald depicts that Americans put more emphasis on wealth than on being happy. None of the characters in the novel feel satisfied with their life, even if they have the wealth and social upbringing. Gatsby “[stretches] out his arms toward the dark water”, reaching for the green light, the hope of a new life, on Daisy’s dock which he is unable to grasp, making him unhappy (33). Tom loves Daisy, but realizes she is slipping from his life, and Daisy is unhappy because she understands she can never be with Gatsby, even if she wanted to. Money is not the key to success or happiness. The author is criticizing how Americans engulf themselves into materialism thinking they will be happy and successful this way. Materialism, in fact, comes at a price that inflicts suffering on others as well as themselves. In the case of Myrtle Wilson, Daisy’s careless actions lead to her demise and her “thick, dark blood [in] the dust” (121). Daisy’s classy lifestyle destroys Myrtle’s possible future with Tom because she cannot compete with her status. Her “American dream” is a futureless passion, hence the red blood in the gray dust. Also, the butler who is unable to smell due to polishing too much silver for
There is no escape. The villain corners the hero and projects a snarky smile. The brave hero stands before this evil, determined not to go down without a fight. Before the villain pulls the trigger on our destined hero, he asks in a mocking gesture, “Any last words?” These “last words” leave the reader or viewer in suspense, craving more. What now? Will the hero ever escape the villain?
The greatest “last words” are ones that are carefully articulated by the author to allow every reader to create their own interpretation of the overall message. The Huffington Post remarks F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, as having the greatest last line written in all of American literature. There is much debate behind the moral …show more content…
The first sentence of the last passage reads, “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us,” (154). The green light represents Gatsby’s dream, a hope for a fresh start with Daisy. He desperately wants to win her over, so he mimics her materialistic lifestyle by throwing extravagant parties and driving fancy cars. Daisy is Gatsby’s American dream, and if he works hard, he will achieve this dream. That makes cents. Right? Wrong. No matter how much money Gatsby seems to spend, Daisy will never truly love him because as uttered in the 1974 Hollywood screenplay of the novel, “rich girls don’t marry poor boys”. Fitzgerald depicts that Americans put more emphasis on wealth than on being happy. None of the characters in the novel feel satisfied with their life, even if they have the wealth and social upbringing. Gatsby “[stretches] out his arms toward the dark water”, reaching for the green light, the hope of a new life, on Daisy’s dock which he is unable to grasp, making him unhappy (33). Tom loves Daisy, but realizes she is slipping from his life, and Daisy is unhappy because she understands she can never be with Gatsby, even if she wanted to. Money is not the key to success or happiness. The author is criticizing how Americans engulf themselves into materialism thinking they will be happy and successful this way. Materialism, in fact, comes at a price that inflicts suffering on others as well as themselves. In the case of Myrtle Wilson, Daisy’s careless actions lead to her demise and her “thick, dark blood [in] the dust” (121). Daisy’s classy lifestyle destroys Myrtle’s possible future with Tom because she cannot compete with her status. Her “American dream” is a futureless passion, hence the red blood in the gray dust. Also, the butler who is unable to smell due to polishing too much silver for