“…He was at present a penniless young man without a past, and at any moment the invisible cloak of his uniform might slip from his shoulders” (Fitzgerald 149) In context, this quotation elucidates that based on societal restrictions Gatsby past will continuously haunt him. The poverty that he lived in makes him “without a past”, meaning that he was not even worthy enough in society since he didn't have many. A quality of constant determination that he possessed resulted in his transition into a noble man; that alongside his bond with Dan Cody. The presence of Dan Cody in his life gave him a glimpse of the world from a rich man's perspective. He obtained what he truly to desired, which was directly correlated to his one true desire: Daisy. He acquired his incredible wealth in just 3 years, but unfortunately he did this through illegal bootlegging. In this quote, the “invisible cloak” is a literary symbol that refers to the illegitimate fortunes that conceal his true past. It protects him from people, especially Daisy, uncovering his origination. However, even though the has established the same amount of money as an aristocrat, like Tom Buchanan, he isn't and never will be considered an equal to those that come from Old Money. There will always be social class segregation between Old Money and New Money. Gatbsy couldn’t obtain the grace and tastes of someone born into the aristocracy, no matter how hard he tries. The theme of ideal VS truth is accurately exemplified in this quote. Bootlegging to acquire a certain uphold within society shows that Gatsby is more concerned with his public image, as opposed to his self image. His past defines him as unworthy, so he went to extreme measures to try to create a new life for himself. His invisible cloak began to fall off as he lost his confidence. Gatsby began to lose faith in life, his act starting falling together as his grasp on Daisy was weakening. Vision was through rose-tinted spectacles when it came to Daisy, she was of some Godly presence to Gatsby. She is a representation of a temptress archetype. Daisy has been loved by many men, and that made her even more appealing to Gatsby. It excited him even more that she was wanted by many, and he somewhat had her for a period of time… but then he lost her again.Daisy’s reputation made her much more appealing. His self image knowing that she once loved him increased his self-perceived value of himself. This was a result of the influence of society’s values. The theme of superficial VS genuine is exhibiting here. As a result, he deceived Daisy into believing that he was something that he in fact was not. This relates to “Paradox and Dream” by Stienbeck. According to him, the American Dream consists of multiple paradoxes; people claim that they can do things that are beyond their capabilities. Gatsby deliberately gave Daisy a sense of security. He let her believe that she was fully able of taking care of her and protecting her, but he had no such facilities. His disguise was fading away, and he had no control over that.
Decoration Annotation
"'Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!' shouted Mrs. Wilson. 'I'll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai--' Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand." (Fitzgerald 37).
Unexpectedly, a lot is unveiled about the nature of Tom Buchanan in this quote. As Myrtle, his mistress, repetitively shouts Daisy's name, Buchanan gets defensive and begins to show signs of possessiveness. His inner-self seems to be complex and confused. Not wanting Myrtle to bring up Daisy shows signs of love, as well as a protective side over his wife. His actions and constant cheating seem to contradict this apparent respect he has for Daisy. A conjecture can be reached about Tom's intentions in marrying a beautiful, young woman like Daisy. On the contrary, Myrtle is a stout and stubby woman, which are both characteristics that completely run counter to the definition of beauty set by flappers during the Roaring 20's. The more obvious reason is the major gap between the social classes that Tom and Myrtle come from; Tom comes from Old Money, while Myrtle comes from no money at all. Being with her would assuredly obliterate his high social status. Reputation and status are both recurring themes in The Great Gatsby, as they held high importance in the 20's, especially after the economic boom. Not only does this quote reveal the complexity of Tom's intentions towards his wife and mistress, it also reveals how disrespectful to woman he is. In previous chapters, his racist nature was shown as he claimed that he belongs to the dominant race. needless to say, his thinking aligns with so when it comes to his gender. Not only is he committing a disdainful act of infidelity, having the audacity to lay hands on a woman and break her nose shows how the extremity of effect of the intense superiority that he seems to feel over others due to his high social classes. Not having to work a day in his life, yet getting to live a lavish lifestyle on the East Egg leaves Tom under the influence that he effortlessly deserves all that his mind catches a glimpse of. Unfortunately, money openhandedly controls society, even though it is more evident in some societies than others. In this quote, Myrtle's audaciousness exhibits the way in which she does not feel belittles due to her low social status when she is around Tom. After all a man like him is leaving his rich, stunning wife at his mansion and spending his time with a chubby woman in some random apartment past The Valley of Ashes. The thought of that must instill her with a sense of power. However, she doesn't get the chance to live through the satisfaction, since he punches her and "puts her in place" for bringing Daisy up. This quotation elucidates the way in which the reader gets to know these two characters: Tom Buchanan and his mistress, Myrtle Wilson.
Chapter One: Thematic Thoughts: Task 2-1
Nick Carraway: Home Description: Nick Carraway lived at West Egg, which is the less fashionable of the two. His small home was squeezed between two mansions, including the huge mansion of the well-known Gatsby. West Egg was characterized by being a habitat for new money, as opposed to the old money inhabiters of the East Egg. Nick comes from a family that is recognized in the West, where they originate. His household taught his to be snobby, and always try to steer away from making judgements about the "less-fortunate". Suggestions about the character: It is suggested about Nick that he has learned not to judge others. His father taught him how to be snobby, but at the same time, never look down on someone that could have less. This elucidates the way in which the Carraway's were aware of their prominence in society. They have been that way for a couple of generations. Even though they come from the Mid-West, Nick wanted to move to New York and make his own money on Wall Street. This shows how he is independently goal-oriented, and focused on makaing a living for himself, instead of following in his family's footsteps. Nick had to talk to his entire family about his decision before moving it, which suggests how they, as a family, respect the opinions of others, and therefore feel the need to discuss major decisions before taking them. Nick wanted to do something different, which is a representation of individuality and having a strong character. The information provided about his family and father's advice, one can deduce that he was raised with stereotypical focuses in mind, such as prioritizing wealth and power.
Gatsby: Home Description: Gatsby lived in a lived in a huge mansion that consisted of more than forty acres of lawn and garden. He even had a marble swimming pool. His extremely lavish and luxurious home was an imitation of Hotel de Ville in Normandy. His home situation seemed extravagant and fashionable, and this displayed the abundant amount of money that he had. Gatsby was known for being tremendously wealthy, and that was demonstrated by the description offered in the book about him home. Suggestions about the character: Mystery is directly correlated with the name Gatsby in the first chapter. His fascinating personality makes the reader want to find out more. Even though he is briefly mentioned in the first chapter, describing his silhouette as being dark and compelling offers a compelling connotation.
Tom Buchanan: Home Description: Tom Buchanan and his beautiful wife, Daisy, lived in a red and white Georgian Colonial mansion, which was overlooking the bay. Their house was broken by a line of French windows that were surrounded by an interior constructed of brick walls. It was located in East Egg, across the bay from Gatsby's mansion. The fact that Buchanan's mansion was on East Egg illustrates the exceedingly plentiful amount of old money that he has. This demonstrates a major difference between Buchanan and Gatsby: Buchanan is old money, while Gatsby is new money. Suggestions about the character: Tom Buchanan comes from money, and that is highly shown in his nature. He enjoys abundantly spending money in order to provide a lavish lifestyle for himself, and his wife, daisy. It is evident that Tom Buchanan has commitment and loyalty issues, since we find out that he is having an affair with another woman, which shows how disrespectful he is to Daisy, who he supposedly loves. Mary tells Nick that she thought everybody knew about Tom's affair. This shows how relevant and prominent Tom is in society, leading people to gossip and get nosy about his personal life. He is also quite spoiled; he never had to work a day in his life. Being born rich made Buchanan quite arrogant, believing that he is higher and better than everyone else because of his money. His racist nature is elucidated as he shares how whites are more worthy than blacks, as they are the "dominant race". He does not believe in equality, and is used to constantly feeling superior to others in all aspects: race, social class, family name...etc.
Who is the Narrator?
According to the first 3 pages of the novel, we learn a lot about the background of the narrator, who the reader does not yet know the first name of. As we look back at the way Carraway speaks of his family and what they’ve taught him throughout the years, once can sense that he comes from a privileged family, and does not struggle much financially. When he was young an vulnerable, Carraway’s father teaches him the following: “Whenever you feel like criticizing any on… just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantaged that you've had.” (Fitzgerald 1) This quote shows how his father is fully away of their family’s privileges. He teaches him son not to be judgmental, but at the same time does not necessitate the importance of remaining humble. Another quote adds the to fact that the Caraway family is slightly under the impression that they are among the most decent, or blessed, in their community based on their social class. “As my father snobbishly suggested, and I snobbishly repeat, a sense of the fundamental decencies is parceled out unequally at birth.” (Fitzgerlad 2) This quote reveals how the narrator is quite light-hearted and aware of the way he might come off, but embraces how he is acting quite snobbish. This family believes that they are worthy of more advantages than other. This relates to the theme of self-image, which actually plays a huge role in the actions and intentions of an individual. “My family have been prominent, well-to-do people in this Middle Western city for three generations.” (Fitzgerald 3) This quote demonstrates and reassuringly implies that the Carraway’s are quite prominent within their society. As the narrator considers moving to the east, the entire family takes part in influencing his decisions, probably because he is expected to carry his family name in the future. He shares the certain expectations of his family on him, which enforces some pressure on him to be as successful as his ancestors, especially his great-uncle. The geographical location that they are currently in would not provide as many opportunities as the east… which a reader can assume is NYC, where Wall Street was prominent. Ultimately, one can deduce that then narrator comes from money, but somehow has bigger dreams and differentiated focuses. He seems to have his character set in stone, as well as a strong and determined personality.
I made the assumption that narrator comes from the midwestern geographical location. It is implied that he was raised there, due to his statement about how his family has been prominent in that region for three generations, and therefore it is unlikely that his family would relocate after such extreme success in this specific area.
The Roaring 20s
The roaring 20s are an exceedingly fascinating era in the history of the United States, as well as American Literacy. As I researched the roaring 20s, I learned a lot about the lifestyle that individuals lived during that decade. One of the most interesting topics was the 18th amendment, which strived to abolish alcoholic beverages, as it declared production, transport, and sale of alcohol as illegal. Private possession and consumption remained legal, however. This law would not stop drinkers from obtaining the alcohol in which they craved, so speakeasies were established. Speakeasies are illicit establishments that manufactured and smuggled alcohol. This is interesting because, as I look at America now, I can never imagine it existing without alcohol. As we see in movies, it is simply apart of regular culture. Whether it's sipping on a glass of red wine on a fancy dinner, or taking shots at a high school party, alcohol is depicted as a typical part of American culture nowadays... for those who are legally over the age of 21, of course. It came as a shock to me, since I never expected that an amendment would ever in place in order to ban alcohol. Another thing that I researched which interested me is how automobiles became considered the most important catalyst or social change during the roaring 20s. Cars radiated luxury and prosperity. Their easy use instilled folks with a sense of freedom, Owning a car liberated Americans from often restrictive home or neighborhood situations. Driving a car was much less time consuming than walking or taking public transport, and therefore women could save time in their daily domestic chores, which left some spare time that allowed more women to become educated. Businessmen were also benefitted by having a faster, more personal form of transportation. The most fascinating part about this topic was that cars were created merely as a mode of transport, but ended up being utilized in a completely different way during the roaring 20s. They were referred to as "house of prostitution on wheels" as a result of all the sex occurring in cars during the 1920s. The last topic of interest is the 19th amendment, which prohibited any US citizen from being denied the right to vote based on sex. This amendment came about as a result of the women's suffrage movement in the United States. This interested me because women were brought more rights, and America was well on its way to gender equality during the 1920s., which is something that pleases the feminist within me.
This is a picture that demonstrates speakeasies in the 1920s. According to the 18th amendment, the prohibition of alcohol was a law that was required to be followed. The sign that the lady bans liquor on the premises, which is exceedingly ironic since everyone around her is drinking. This shows how people were rebellious and defied the law set forth by the government by illicitly selling alcohol and not letting its culture die out.
Future Encounters: Making Predictions
Based on the information that I have acquired during this scavenger hunt, I am extremely excited to read The Great Gatsby and learn more about how his personal life is reflected within his writing. I think that the plot and setting of The Great Gatsby will include the altering of a society into one that revolved more around alcohol, woman, and progression. I predict that the setting will include a lot of flappers and complicated relationships. I'm looking forward to detecting the slang that I've researched within the novel. I expect to encounter a heartbroken character, that might be bypassing certain struggles that Scott Fitzgerald experiences in his personal life. Maybe, the protagonist will encounter a woman from a different social class, which would make the chances of them having a love-story very low. I also expect to see more transport using automobiles, especially for those who are wealthy. Themes that may emerge include forbidden love, independence, American Dream, wealth, and social class. After discovering how fascinating the era of the Roaring 20s really was, I'm looking forward to reading the novel and comparing it to The Invisible Man and The Crucible, which were set at a much earlier time period.
This is a picture of Daisy and Gatsby- the 2 main characters of the novel. I'm excited to find out how the fall in love, as well as the struggles they face. I don't know anything but their names, but I can't wait to read the book and find out everything about this profound-looking love.
The American Dream: My Definition
-The idea of the American dream explains how America is a melting pot, which offers the blending of many cultures alongside the acceptance and equality of all. The American Dream claims that the patriotic American citizens can establish the ultimate life, where equality and new doors become open. They include the ideal reputation, income, and educational. The perfect significant other is also a part of that dream. Ideas such as freedom of speech are major aspects of the American Dream that cause it to stand out.