The Breathtaking Summer of Nick Carraway
In the novel, The Great Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald writes in the perspective of Nick Carraway learning about his mysterious neighbor, Jay Gatsby, and the many breathtaking moments Carraway witnessed that summer. Throughout the novel, Carraway narrates the many acts of rebellion, infidelity, and marriage arrangements as if it is incredibly normal in his society.
The rebellion within the novel is brought to light when Nick Carraway narrates that he moved to West Egg in the year of 1922, the era otherwise known as prohibition. Gatsby throws these rambunctious parties where he supplies many people with alcohol illegally. He makes his money doing shady acts; thus, no one who knows of Gatsby, knows what he …show more content…
The uninvited guest list ranges from intelligent Yale alumni and royalty to a group of movie stars and even the state senator. Carraway keeps a list of all these people on a timetable. Fitzgerald writes that Nick Carraway, “can still read the gray names, and they will give you a better impression than my generalities of those who accepted Gatsby’s hospitality and paid him in subtle tribute of knowing nothing whatever about him”(Fitzgerald 57). All of these high class people work hard to keep a certain image all week, then go to Gatsby’s parties and live a weekend of illegal acts. They drink, gamble, and simply have a ball. Many of these people have such a great time at Gatsby’s that they stumble home in a drunken daze just to come back the next weekend. This crowd is known to be full of important people; thus, it is quite rebellious to be seen illegally over indulging on alcohol. At one of the many parties, there was a man by the name Ripley Snell who is said to be a big drinker. Carraway explains Snell from one of the parties saying, “Snell was there three days before he went to the penitentiary, so drunk out of the gravel drive that Mrs. Ulysses Swett’s automobile ran over his right hand”(Fitzgerald 58). There are many more of these impaired accounts. For example, Carraway tells of a drunken car accident in Gatsby’s drive where the wheel falls off and the driver is completely …show more content…
This era holds many characteristics differing from the dream life. In the novel, the society acts as if rebellion, cheating, and a marriage without love is absolutely normal. With these standards, a good life can be found. A rebellious person has a great time drinking and gambling, a cheating person will find the love they need, and an arranged marriage will easily shape the life of a person. Fitzgerald finds a way to project the excitement of each of these unhealthy acts. He shows how each unhappy person tries to fill the void in their life with one of these acts and in the end how it is pulled away from them. The breathtaking, extravagant life portrayed in The Great Gatsby is followed by a consequence that, in the end, was finally
In the novel, The Great Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald writes in the perspective of Nick Carraway learning about his mysterious neighbor, Jay Gatsby, and the many breathtaking moments Carraway witnessed that summer. Throughout the novel, Carraway narrates the many acts of rebellion, infidelity, and marriage arrangements as if it is incredibly normal in his society.
The rebellion within the novel is brought to light when Nick Carraway narrates that he moved to West Egg in the year of 1922, the era otherwise known as prohibition. Gatsby throws these rambunctious parties where he supplies many people with alcohol illegally. He makes his money doing shady acts; thus, no one who knows of Gatsby, knows what he …show more content…
The uninvited guest list ranges from intelligent Yale alumni and royalty to a group of movie stars and even the state senator. Carraway keeps a list of all these people on a timetable. Fitzgerald writes that Nick Carraway, “can still read the gray names, and they will give you a better impression than my generalities of those who accepted Gatsby’s hospitality and paid him in subtle tribute of knowing nothing whatever about him”(Fitzgerald 57). All of these high class people work hard to keep a certain image all week, then go to Gatsby’s parties and live a weekend of illegal acts. They drink, gamble, and simply have a ball. Many of these people have such a great time at Gatsby’s that they stumble home in a drunken daze just to come back the next weekend. This crowd is known to be full of important people; thus, it is quite rebellious to be seen illegally over indulging on alcohol. At one of the many parties, there was a man by the name Ripley Snell who is said to be a big drinker. Carraway explains Snell from one of the parties saying, “Snell was there three days before he went to the penitentiary, so drunk out of the gravel drive that Mrs. Ulysses Swett’s automobile ran over his right hand”(Fitzgerald 58). There are many more of these impaired accounts. For example, Carraway tells of a drunken car accident in Gatsby’s drive where the wheel falls off and the driver is completely …show more content…
This era holds many characteristics differing from the dream life. In the novel, the society acts as if rebellion, cheating, and a marriage without love is absolutely normal. With these standards, a good life can be found. A rebellious person has a great time drinking and gambling, a cheating person will find the love they need, and an arranged marriage will easily shape the life of a person. Fitzgerald finds a way to project the excitement of each of these unhealthy acts. He shows how each unhappy person tries to fill the void in their life with one of these acts and in the end how it is pulled away from them. The breathtaking, extravagant life portrayed in The Great Gatsby is followed by a consequence that, in the end, was finally