Redemption In The Great Gatsby

One of the most prevalent themes in literature is the idea that mankind needs a savior to redeem us from our chaotic world and morally corrupt selves. The theme of redemption is incorporated into literature through various techniques that speak to humanity on a higher level than strictly narrative. Two literary works that clearly demonstrate redemptive features are Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. Both works contain a range of deeply complex characters that either attempt to save others or need saving themselves. Additionally, the settings depicted in each of the works reflect the necessity of salvation during the times in which they were written. By closely analyzing both setting and characters, one can identify the overarching theme of redemption and how Hemingway and Fitzgerald incorporate it to comment upon the …show more content…
The violence of WWI, referred to by Gertrude Stein as “slaughtering whatever god we had in our own trenches,” places The Sun Also Rises in a wounded society needing redemptive healing (Hemingway 23). The novel begins with the characters surrounded by sickness with society and lostness of identity (Hemingway 23). In the opening scene, several characters attend a party where they repeatedly mention feeling sick and nauseous in relation to their environment (Hemingway 29). As they drive from bar to bar, the characters float untethered by identity or morality (Hemingway 30). Hemingway uses the characters’ time in Paris to depict the crisis in moral values his generation experienced in reality. Notably, The Sun Also Rises begins with foreword by Gertrude Stein addressing this crisis and calling Hemingway and his fellow artists, “You are all a lost generation,” referring to their present reality, as well as the setting of the