The Great Gatsby

Introduction to the great gatsby.

F. Scott Fitzgerald, one of the greatest American writers, wrote The Great Gatsby. It was first published on 10th April 1925 and did not win instant applause. However, later it became the most read American novel , read by a diverse range of audiences. As time passed, it impacted the American generations, proving an all-time bestseller and a masterpiece. The novel shows the regions of West Egg and East Egg near Long Island known for its prosperity during the Jazz Era after World War 1. The story revolves around the obsession of the millionaire, Jay Gatsby for a fashionable woman, Daisy. She is very popular among the military officers for her parties. On account of the exploration of a host of themes, the novel has been termed Fitzgerald’s magnum opus.

Summary of The Great Gatsby

The story of the novel, The Great Gatsby , revolves around a young man, Nick Carraway, who comes from Minnesota to New York in 1922. He is also the narrator of the story. His main objective is to establish his career in the bonds. Nick rents a house in West Egg on Long Island, which is a fictional village of New York. He finds himself living amidst the huge mansions of the rich and famous . Right across the water, there is a refined village of East Egg. Nick’s cousin Daisy and her wealthy husband Tom Buchanan live in that part of the village. Tom is known to be cruel, absurdly rich as well. One day Nick goes to meet Daisy and Tom for dinner. There, he meets Jordan Baker, Daisy’s friend. Daisy is a well-known golf champion. She tells him about Tom’s affair. Apparently, Tom has a mistress in New York City. Daisy secretly confesses to Nick that she is not happy with Tom. Once Nick returns to his house in West Egg, he sees his neighbor, Jay Gatsby. Jay is standing alone in the dark calling out to a green light across the bay. The place points to Tom’s and Daisy’s place.

After a few months, Tom introduces Nick to his mistress, Myrtle Wilson. Myrtle is married George Wilson, who is not as lively or joyful as Tom. According to Nick, George is “a valley of ashes”. He also compares George to an industrial wasteland supervised by Doctor T.J. Eckleburg. They meet her at the garage where George works as a repairman. Tom, Nick, and Myrtle go to her apartment in Manhattan. Myrtle’s sister and some other friends join them. As they are heavily drunk, they fall into an argument . Tom punches Myrtle in the nose when she talks about Daisy and insults her. Nick also wakes up in a train station.

A few months pass, Nick grows comfortable with the noises and lights of dazzling parties held at his neighbor Jay Gatsby’s house. Jay always has the famous and rich people gather on Saturday nights . There all the rich and famous enjoy Gatsby’s extravagant bar and enjoy listening to jazz orchestra. One day, Nick receives an invitation from Gatsby to one of these parties. There he meets Jordan and spends most of the evening. Nick notices that Jay is mostly absent during his parties. He overhears the guests talking about Gatsby’s dark past. Later, Nick meets him at the end of the party. While at first, he doesn’t know who Jay Gatsby was. Nick is properly introduced to Gatsby asking Jordan to speak privately. When Jordan returns she doesn’t share any details of the conversation between her and Jay Gatsby.

Nick becomes even more suspicious about this mystery character and decides to learn more about him through Jordan.  Nick continues to see Jordan Baker. He also gets acquainted with Jay Gatsby at the same time. During one of the drives for lunch in Manhattan, Gatsby tries to dismiss the rumors that has been reaching Nick. Jay tells Nick that his parents were very wealthy people and were dead. He studied in Oxford and discharged as a war hero after World War 1. Nick doesn’t believe Jay at this point. At lunch, Nick is introduced to Gatsby’s business partner, Meyer Wolfsheim. Meyer is known to fix the World Series in 1919. (This character was based on a real person and a real event from the author’s time). Nick meets Jordan Baker. She reveals Nick about her conversation with Gatsby. Gatsby knew Daisy, Nick’s cousin five years before. While he lived in Louisville, Jay and Daisy were in love. When Jay left to fight in the war, Daisy married Tom Buchanan. Gatsby bought his current mansion on West Egg to be across the water to see Daisy from distance.

Gatsby request Nick to invite Daisy to his house so that he can meet her. After a few days Jay Gatsby, invited by Nick, meets Daisy over tea. Daisy is surprised to see Gatsby after five years gap. Initially, they are quiet and hesitant, making the meeting extremely awkward. Nick observes this and leaves them alone for some time. He believes that by giving them a little privacy, they might talk and sort things out. Surprisingly, when Nick returns, Jay and Daisy speak without any uneasiness in the environment. Jay Gatsby is beaming with happiness; and Daisy is crying happy tears. Later, they head to Jay Gatsby’s mansion. Gatsby begins to show all his rooms and artifacts to her.

Few days pass, with Daisy and Jay Gatsby meeting frequently, Tom comes to know about Daisy’s meeting with Gatsby. He doesn’t like it. One day, Tom unwillingly attends Jay Gatsby’s party with Daisy. Daisy feels uncomfortable at the party. She is disgusted by the bad behavior of the rich crowd at West Egg. Tom assumes that Gatsby has a business of selling goods illegally. He accuses Jay Gatsby at the party and also shares his frustration with Nick after the party. Gatsby tries to ignore all the fight and asks Daisy to leave Tom. He begs her to tell the truth to Tom that she does not love him. Gatsby asks Daisy to marry him after they separate. He confesses that he had never stopped loving Daisy.

Right after that incident, Jay Gatsby stops throwing his wild parties. Daisy visits him almost every afternoon. One day, Nick is invited for lunch by the Buchanans. Jay Gatsby and Jordan are also invited. During the lunch, Daisy compliments Gatsby in front of everyone. This also proves as a declaration of her love for Jay Gatsby. Tom also notices Daisy but chooses not to react. He requests them to come to the town. Daisy and Jat Gatsby go to Tom’s car. However, Tom takes Jay Gatsby’s car with Jordan and Nick. Tom stops for the fuel at George Wilson’s garage in the valley of ashes. Wilson breaks the news to Tom that he had been planning to go west of the city with his wife Myrtle to raise more money.

Hearing the news Tom is visibly mad and speeds towards Manhattan. He catches up with Daisy and Gatsby. They go to a parlor at the Plaza Hotel, while Tom is still disturbed by hearing George’s and Myrtle’s moving news. While having a drink Tom confronts Gatsby about his and Daisy’s relationship. Daisy tries her best to calm them down. However, Gatsby begs Daisy to reveal the truth of their love. When Tom continues to threaten Jay Gatsy, Daisy threatens to leave Tom. Out of prejudice, Tom tells them that he had been investigating Gatsby. He concludes that Jay Gatsby was selling illegal alcohol at drugstores in Chicago with Wolfsheim. Gatsby denies the allegations and tries to diffuse the situation. However, Daisy loses hope. They leave the Plaza, just as Nick turns 30, without celebrating his birthday.

While returning, Daisy drives Gatsby’s car. On the way they accidentally hit Myrtle. Just before the accident Myrtle and George had a severe argument. She runs toward the street thinking Tom is still driving Gatsby’s car. While Jay Gatsby and Daisy see Myrtle they don’t stop. Daisy is afraid to stop and is caught by a couple of witnesses. Tom who is following them from Plaza stops his car after seeing the accident scene and the crowd on the road. Tom is shocked and heartbroken after seeing Myrtle’s dead body in Wilson’s garage. Wilson reveals to Tom that a yellow car was responsible for the accident. Tom tells that the car was not his and leaves to East Egg while mourning. When Nick sees Jay Gatsby at the Buchanans’ mansion he comes to know that Daisy caused the accident. However, Gatsby tells him that he will take the blame if his car is found. Jay also decides to be at Daisy’s house as a guard to protect her from Tom.

The next day, Nick asks Gatsby to disappear, as his car will eventually be traced. Gatsby refuses to leave. He reveals the truth of his past to Nick. Jay Gatsby was from a poor farming family and met Daisy while serving in the army in Louisville. As he was too poor to marry, he did use illegal methods to gain his wealth after the war. Proving that Tom was correct.

Nick returns for work unwillingly. Gatsby desperately waits for Daisy’s call. After a few days, George Wilson visits Tom at the East Egg. He tells him that Gatsby killed Myrtle. After revealing the new George barges into Gatsby’s mansion. Gatsby is relaxing by his pool when George shoots him and then turns the gun on himself. Nick is shocked and arranges Jay Gatsby’s funeral. Nick and Jay Gatsby’s father is the only audience at the funeral. Eventually, Daisy and Tom leave Long Island without revealing their new address. Nick returns to the Midwest and realizes that his life in the East was never good.

Major Themes in The Great Gatsby

  • The American Dream: The novel, Great Gatsby , presents the theme of the American Dream through its character of Jay Gatsby. When Nick meets him, he overemphasizes his lifestyle. He even desires to be in his parties and introduces him to Daisy when a chance arises. Therefore, Gatsby meets Daisy and tries to revive his past love, seeing that he has achieved fame through his riches and would get her now . However, Daisy disappears from his life after the accident. Nick with his American dream is the only friend in the end who arranges his funeral. The frequent uses of business and business jargon show the theme of the American Dream.
  • Home: The novel shows its theme of home through different characters. Nick leaves home and returns when he learns about the importance of home distinctively different from the mansions of East Egg and West Egg. Jay Gatsby, too, learns that mansions do not become home of a person. That is why he reverts to Daisy to set up a home but fails in his attempts.
  • Money: Money is not only an important theme but also a theme in the novel. Money brings a few characters close to each other. The discussion of places like East Egg and West Egg and new and old money shows that money makes the mare go for Nick, Tom, Daisy as well as Gatsby. However, by the end, Nick comes to know that money is not everything as he performs funeral rites of Gatsby alone with nobody else besides his dead body.
  • Materialism: Materialism is another significant theme of The Great Gatsby in that it shows its ravages and destruction where it is desired to be the most important value. The lush and extravagant parties, the mysterious and rich lifestyles, and extravagant shows of wealth do not go side by the side the sincerity of relations in the human world. Gatsby’s lifestyle attracts others, but nobody knows his mental condition, though, he fails to win Daisy by the end of the novel when meets his end, as she is already married.
  • Past: Past is a constant theme in the novel that Gatsby, Tom, and Daisy want to leave their past but it constantly haunts them. Gatsby has made remarkable progress in his life. Daisy and Tom have caused quite a scandal in their previous city of Chicago, the reason that they are running away from it. Jordan Baker also tries to bury her past life. Nick then clearly explains it to Daisy that he cannot bring back the past.
  • The hollowness of Upper Class: The novel shows the hollowness of the elite class or upper strata of the American society through the characters of Jay Gatsby as well as the region of East Egg as corrupt and devoid of the moral and ethical framework but West Egg as the social fabric tied in a morality. When Nick learns about Gatsby and Daisy, he reaches the conclusion by the end that all is rotten to the core.
  • Life and Death: Fitzgerald has presented the theme of life and death through the parties that are being thrown in the West Egg region in New York and through the character of Nick and Gatsby. However, it is Owl Eyes that shows the looming shadow of death amid life. Death is shown to end Jay Gatsby’s life of extravagance.
  • Love and Marriage: The novel shows two strained marriages of Tom with Daisy and Myrtle Wilson with George Wilson as bad examples of marriages. Although Nick and Gatsby are in search of love and they find it to some extent, this is not the real love but just a type of tender curiosity in Nick’s words.
  • Class: The novel shows the class system through different characters such as Gatsby represents the upper strata, for Nick is seeking to join this class despite his being form the middle class. The incompatibility of the marriage of Myrtle with George shows this class difference.

Major Characters in The Great Gatsby

  • Jay Gatsby: James Gatz or Jay Gatsby is the main protagonist , known for his mysterious past and extravagant lifestyle. His parties and mansion located in West Egg make other characters seek his attention and be invited to his parties. Later, he reveals the truth to Nick that he was a young man from a poor family and lived in Dakota. He made fortune after serving in WWI in the army and knew Daisy then. His love, though, stays unrequited until the end as Daisy gave importance to money. Though he amasses a vast fortune. George Wilson kills him by the end of having an affair with his wife. Though in reality, Daisy commits the crime and kills Myrtle, but Jay takes the blame upon himself.
  • Nick Carraway: Nick is the narrator of the story. He is from a rich family from Minnesota and wants to join the upper class of the society by joining the bond business in New York. Hence, he moves to the city. Nick is seen as an honest and responsible man. He joins Gatsby and Buchanan’s just to experience the East Egg society. Once, Nick gets close to Gatsby, he comes to know the truth and stands by him. When Gatsby is killed by George, he arranges his funeral and leaves East Egg for good.
  • Daisy Buchanan: Daisy Buchanan is Tom’s wife. In the past, she was with Gatsby while he was serving in World War 1. She leaves Jay Gatsby because of his financial status. Through her cousin Nick, she meets Jay Gatsby after five years. She kills Myrtle in an accident. She leaves Gatsby when takes the blame on himself to protect her. She is quite selfish and immature.
  • Tom Buchanan: Tom is a former soccer player from Yale and comes from an elite family. However, the brutal and deeply insecure, the reason that he often displays racism. He is dominating over his wife, Daisy, and condemns her for meeting Gatsby. While he disapproves, Daisy’s choice, he has a mistress, Myrtle. Tom is also a bully and a narcissist.
  • Jordan Baker: Jordan is a strong woman and Daisy’s old friend who once won golf tournament through deceit. However, unlike her friend, she is quite cold in manners and does not respond to Nick’s advances.
  • Myrtle Wilson: Myrtle is Tom’s mistress and promiscuous woman. She crosses social boundaries if she finds a chance. In her desperation, she marries George, the owner of a garage, but continues her affair with Tom. When she picks up a fight with her husband over the move, she runs to the street where speeding Daisy accidentally kills her. though Gatsby takes the blame.
  • George Wilson: A poor and lazy garage owner, George Wilson. He married ambitious Myrtle but faces agony and mental torture over her affair with Tom. He later murders Gatsby assuming Gatsby had killed Myrtle by accident.
  • Meyer Wolfsheim: Meyer is Gatsby’s colleague and famous for his involvement in the world of crime and fixing series. He is a mixture of morality and the criminal world and offers condolence on the death of Gatsby.
  • Dan Cody: Dan is one of those men who exploited the Gold Rush and won riches. Gatsby became his disciple and learned the art of making money but didn’t receive anything else. Though he left some fortune for Gatsby, it was taken away by his previous wife.

 Writing Style of The Great Gatsby ‎

Fitzgerald applies wry and elegiac which also includes sophisticated style in The Great Gatsby . The language, though, creates a sense of loss and nostalgia , becomes poetic, at times, loaded with figurative images. In one way, it seems to be an extended elegy that laments the corruption of a whole class merely for the abstract concept of a dream which is rotten to the core on account of greed, avariciousness, and lasciviousness that it breeds. However, when the novel shows metaphorical language and elaborate images, it seems highly sophisticated. Fitzgerald is an expert writer and knows where to apply what type of language.

Analysis of Literary Devices in The Great Gatsby

  • Action: The main action of the novel comprises Jay Gatsby yearning for Daisy’s affection. He took the blame for the accident and faced sequences as George Wilson kills him. The rising action comprises the reunion of Daisy and Gatsby, while the falling action is the death of Gatsby or maybe his final funeral rites.
  • Allegory : The Great Gatsby shows some strands of allegory in the character of Gatsby who is a symbol of something to be re-created through dreams . However, as a representative figure of every common American, Gatsby seems to have made it an allegory, for his dream of winning his love after having won a Gothic mansion and name in the parties proves a miserable failure.
  • Antagonist : Tom Buchanan is the antagonist of the novel, The Great Gatsby . He is not only an imposing figure but also a dominating man who represents obstacles that stand between a man’s desire and his attempts to reach his goal. He does not let Daisy and Gatsby meet to fulfill their desire of marriage after loving each other.
  • Allusion : Some of the allusions used in The Great Gatsby are such as a reference to Midas, a Greek legend , another to Morgan, an American financier, to Maecenas, an art patron of Rome, to Oxford, a university in England and to Rockefeller, a self-styled billionaire of the 19 th century.
  • Conflict : There are two types of conflicts in the novel, The Great Gatsby . The first one is the external conflict going on between Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan, the husband of Daisy how to dodge him to win his wife. The internal conflict goes in the mind of Gatsby about himself, about his love and renewal of relationship with Daisy.
  • Characters: The Great Gatsby presents both static as well as dynamic characters. The young man, Nick Carraway, the narrator is a dynamic character . He not only sees the entire situation but also sees his friends and near and dear ones in a wider perspective . His opinion also changes from good to bad by the end of the novel about different characters such as Tome, Jordan, and Daisy. However, Gatsby and Tom stays the same and does not show any change. Therefore, they are static characters .
  • Climax : The climax in The Great Gatsby takes place when the group of all of them is coming back from New York and Myrtle is killed by Gatsby. Then Gatsby shows greatness by taking the blame and getting killed by George.
  • Foreshadowing : The novel, The Great Gatsby , shows several examples of foreshadowing . Its fourth chapter shows the first such example when Nick sees that the gambler Wolfsheim is the friend of Gatsby which points to the means of his riches. The second example occurs when Jordan asks Nick that Gatsby wants to meet Daisy which clearly shows that he is going to rekindle his old love.
  • I’m p-paralysed with happiness.’ (Chapter-1)
  • The Flowers were unnecessary, for at two o’clock a greenhouse arrived from Gatsby’s, with innumerable receptacles to contain it. (Chapter-5)
  • ‘FIer family is one aunt about a thousand years old. (Chapter-1) All these three examples show good use of the literary device of hyperbole .
  • If personality is an unbroken series of successful gestures, then there was something gorgeous about him, some heightened sensitivity to the promises of life, as if he were related to one of those intricate machines that register earthquakes ten thousand miles away. (Chapter-1)
  • He wouldn’t say another word. His correctness grew on him as we neared the city. We passed Port Roosevelt, where there was a glimpse of red-belted ocean-going ships, and sped along a cobbled slum lined with the dark, undeserted saloons of the faded-gilt nineteen-hundreds.” (Chapter-4)

In the first example, the passage shows the description of a person while the second presents the description of Port Roosevelt. In both descriptions, Fitzgerald has used senses of sound, sight, and hearing extensively.

  • Metaphor : The Great Gatsby shows various metaphors throughout the novel. For example, 1. The lawn started at the beach and ran towards the front door for a quarter of a mile, jumping over sundials and brick walks and burning gardens. 2. Twenty miles from the city a pair of enormous eggs, identical in contour and separated only by a courtesy bay, jut out into the most domesticated body of saltwater in the Western hemisphere, the great wet barnyard of Long Island Sound. 3. “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” The first metaphor compares the law to an animal , the second the places to eggs, and the last compares life to a voyage.
  • Mood : The novel, The Great Gatsby, shows a very serious mood that depicts pessimism and vapidity along with uselessness of the riches. It also becomes somber at the ugliness of the Valley of Ashes and the sad at the death of Gatsby.
  • Motif : The most important motifs of the novel, The Great Gatsby, are judgment, infidelity, and wealth which occur recurrently in the storyline.
  • Narrator : The novel, The Great Gatsby , has been narrated in a first-person narrative by Nick Carraway. It presents impressions of the place, society, and events from his personal point of view .
  • Half a dozen fingers pointed at the amputated wheel. (Chapter-3)
  • Blinded by the glare of the headlights and confused by the incessant groaning of the horns , the apparition stood swaying for a moment before he perceived the man in the duster. (Chapter-3)
  • The Dead dream fought on as the afternoon slipped away trying to touch what was no longer tangible. (Chapter-7) The first example shows fingers, second apparition, and the third dead dream as if they have lives of their own.
  • Protagonist : Although it seems that Nick Carraway is the protagonist, yet he is not. He is only the narrator. It is Jay Gatsby who is the real protagonist of the novel. It is because he demonstrates greatness by the end by telling truth to Nick, taking the blame on himself, and getting killed.
  • Paradox : The Great Gatsby, at the deep level, shows that Gatsby is a person of many paradoxes. He idealizes the American Dream and has become a gentleman to be liked. However, he has left this world with a single friend at his funeral.  
  • Rhetorical Questions: The novel shows the use of rhetorical questions in several places. For example, 1. What could you make of that, except to suspect some intensity in his conception of the affair that couldn’t be measured? 2. Who wants to go to town?’ demanded Daisy insistently. The first example shows the use of a rhetorical question posed by Nick that he does not want an answer. The second shows the same used by Daisy.
  • Theme : A theme is a central idea that the novelist or the writer wants to stress upon. The novel, The Great Gatsby , not only shows class, society, American Dream, and mortality but also demonstrates loneliness and the impacts of riches or wealth.
  • Setting : The setting of the novel, The Great Gatsby , is the city of New York and its Long Island with two fictional towns East Egg and West Egg.
  • Simile : The novel shows good use of various similes. For example, 1. Instead of being the warm center of the world, the Middle West now seemed like the ragged edge of the universe. (Chapter-1) 2. They (bonds) stood on my shelf in red and gold like new money from the mint. (Chapter-1)
  • The first simile compares the Middle West to a ragged edge, while the second compares the gold to new money.
  • Symbol: The Great Gatsby shows various symbols such as the green light, the clothes of Gatsby, and the Valley of Ashes as well as his car which shows that it is due to the new money that he has earned. Even the East Egg and West Egg or symbols of capitalism and materialism.
  • Irony : The novel shows irony in that, though, Gatsby is the center of attention of the parties, nobody shows up at his funeral except one person. The second irony is that Gatsby shows shyness when meeting Daisy despite his mundane success. The third example of irony is that Myrtle wants to die at the hands of Tom but it is Daisy who becomes her killer, for she was driving the car.

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literary analysis essay of the great gatsby

The Great Gatsby

F. scott fitzgerald, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

The Great Gatsby: Introduction

The great gatsby: plot summary, the great gatsby: detailed summary & analysis, the great gatsby: themes, the great gatsby: quotes, the great gatsby: characters, the great gatsby: symbols, the great gatsby: literary devices, the great gatsby: quizzes, the great gatsby: theme wheel, brief biography of f. scott fitzgerald.

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Historical Context of The Great Gatsby

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  • Full Title: The Great Gatsby
  • Where Written: Paris and the US, in 1924
  • When Published: 1925
  • Literary Period: Modernism
  • Genre: Novel
  • Setting: Long Island, Queens, and Manhattan, New York in the summer of 1922
  • Climax: The showdown between Gatsby and Tom over Daisy
  • Point of View: First person

Extra Credit for The Great Gatsby

Puttin' on the Fitz. Fitzgerald spent most of his adult life in debt, often relying on loans from his publisher, and even his editor, Maxwell Perkins, in order to pay the bills. The money he made from his novels could not support the high-flying cosmopolitan life his wife desired, so Fitzgerald turned to more lucrative short story writing for magazines like Esquire. Fitzgerald spent his final three years writing screenplays in Hollywood.

Another Failed Screenwriter. Fitzgerald was an alcoholic and his wife Zelda suffered from serious mental illness. In the final years of their marriage as their debts piled up, Zelda stayed in a series of mental institutions on the East coast while Fitzgerald tried, and largely failed, to make money writing movie scripts in Hollywood.

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The Great Gatsby Analysis

The great gatsby.

Overview | Summary  | Analysis | Characters | Themes |  Author

Read an analysis of The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby is a short novel, just nine chapters, each built around a party scene — though the final “party” is, of course, a funeral.

The story itself is about a poor boy from a farming background who becomes fabulously wealthy. It is also a love story. Both those stories are fascinating but perhaps, at its deepest level, it is an examination of the American Dream that reaches a pessimistic conclusion. The accumulation of great wealth and the aspiration to win the lady end in tragedy because the Dream does not live up to what it promises. The concept of money, which is at the centre of the Dream is complex. There is a tension between “old money” and “new money,” represented in the novel by the towns of East Egg where the old rich, including the Buchanans, live, and the downmarket West Egg, where Gatsby’s mansion is. In the end Gatsby is killed as a result of the events they are all involved in, and the Buchanans survive unharmed by retreating into the privileged society that will always protect them

The story is underpinned by a rich pattern of symbolism. For example, Gatsby’s ambition, both to gain Daisy’s love and to make it into a privileged social setting, is symbolised by the green light at the end of the dock at Daisy’s house.

The industrial wasteland where George and Myrtle Wilson live, known as The Valley of Ashes, is a contrast to the green light. It’s a dumping ground for the refuse of the factories that are producing the gadgets and appliances filling the homes of the post-war generation as the economy booms. Rejected, failing people like the Wilsons live there, an underclass without hope, exploited by the privileged.

The huge billboard bearing the eyes of the occulist, Dr T J Eckleburg, tower over the dump. The eyes are the moral conscience, looking down, like God, witnessing the corruption all around. On another level, they advertise another man trying to make money out of the poor people who live there.

Reading The Great Gatsby is the total reading experience. Apart from its compelling story and memorable and interesting characters, it is written in prose that is probably the finest in all American literature – before and after its publication.

Fitzgerald’s style in this novel encompasses everything that prose is capable of – not only that but at the highest level: it is sophisticated while being ironic; it’s full of metaphors and figurative imagery and all the devices of poetic language to convey its dominant tone of nostalgia and loss. Looking back from Gatsby’s death near the end of the novel, it seems to be an extended elegy for Gatsby. As narrator Nick Carraway puts it, he has told this story about a man who has gained his respect in spite of being someone “who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn.”

Nick describes Gatsby as elegant graceful and stylish in sentences that flow in musical cadences. Other characters are described in similar language while at the same time the author is exposing their unsavoury nature. That gives the exalted language a kind of irony and suggests ridicule rather than praise.

An example of that is the description of a Gatsby party in the language of the sophisticated, sober Nick. He describes the music, the colour, and the activity, creating a vivid, memorable picture. The guests are sophisticated people – powerful men, beautiful women, celebrities – but they become drunker and drunker, their sophistication evaporating as the night draws on. By the time the party ends many of them are blind drunk and incoherent. Their slurred and inelegant speech – “wonder’ff tell me where there’s a gas’line station” – is in great contrast to the language Nick uses to describe them:  “The groups change more swiftly, swell with new arrivals, dissolve and form in the same breath: already there are wanderers, confident girls who weave here and there among the stouter and more stable, become for a sharp, joyous moment the centre of a group, and then, excited with triumph, glide on through the sea-change of faces and voices and color under the constantly changing light.”

That is all one sentence, bound together by punctuation and conjunctions. It gives a vivid picture of the scene. Fitzgerald creates a strong sense of continual movement with words and phrases like” glide on,” “dissolve,” “wanderers,” “constantly changing,” “swell,” “form” – effortless movement, offering a view of youth and vitality celebrating their era, embracing it effortlessly with ceaseless motion.

The text has a highly evocative quality. Fitzgerald employs poetic devices to effect that. For example, the alliteration and repetition contribute to that in this passage where Nick and Tom meet Myrtle in the city. They are in an apartment and Nick imagines someone down below looking up at them through a window. “Yet high over the city our line of yellow windows must have contributed their share of human secrecy to the casual watcher in the darkening streets, and I was him too, looking up and wondering. I was within and without, simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life.” “Within and without,” “enchanted,” “repelled” reflect Nick’s simultaneous restlessness and fascination with New York.

Nick’s metaphorical descriptions stand in contrast to the unsophisticated speech of the vulgar characters. Wilson tells Tom about his suspicion about his wife’s infidelity. “I just got wised up to something funny …. that’s why I been bothering you about the car.”

The actual text is short, only 50,000 words, but also like poetry, it is the compression of an enormous amount of content and meaning.

Ernest Hemingway, a friend of Fitzgerald, was not very kind to him and considered his first novel, The Beautiful and Damned , as greatly inferior. The very successful Hemingway thought that Fitzgerald would never make it as a writer. But after reading The Great Gatsby he said that he now had to “try to be a good friend” to Fitzgerald, and wrote “If he could write a book as fine as The Great Gatsby I was sure that he could write an even better one”

Some would say that no American has written a better novel than The Great Gatsby .

That’s our take on The Great Gatsby themes. Make sense? Any questions? Let us know in the comments section below!

The Great Gatsby analysis

Leonardo DiCaprio plays Gatsby in the 2013 movie

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Your only partially right with what the movie is trying to show us about society. You missed the whole concept of a man doing everything in his power to earn what women want from men today…status money and power but yet even when the man achieves all of this she still stays with the powerful money man who supported her because love isn’t enough for women. Sadly the ending gets even worse he gives his life protecting a women who doesn’t truly want him she only wants comfort because she is giving in to her animal nature of a weak doe over being with the man who defender her, waited for her, dedicated his life to her and in the end all the women of his dreams got him was shot in the back as she shot him in the back repeatedly this is how what men have to look forward to today in this modern broken society like the “modern” broken society depicted in the movie as you stated in your synopsis sorry I’m not the best with typing but this is the raw truth of the movie everyone has missed

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The Great Gatsby

By f. scott fitzgerald.

'The Great Gatsby' by F. Scott Fitzgerald is an unforgettable novel of wealth and love. It chronicles the "Jazz Age," post World War I in the United States.

About the Book

Emma Baldwin

Article written by Emma Baldwin

B.A. in English, B.F.A. in Fine Art, and B.A. in Art Histories from East Carolina University.

The Great Gatsby  by F. Scott Fitzgerald was published in 1925 in New York City. It is considered to be Fitzgerald’s best and most famous novel . It depicts the lives of characters entangled in the New York City social scene , in dangerous love affairs, and endless wealth. Narrated by Nick Carraway, a man whose life mirrored Fitzgerald’s own, he takes the reader into the mysterious world of Jay Gatsby . Gatsby, a new multi-millionaire who seemingly lives the American dream, is consumed with the desire to reclaim a lost relationship.

Key Facts about  The Great Gatsby

  • Title:   The Great Gatsby
  • When/where written: Paris and the US in 1924
  • Published: 1925
  • Literary Period: Modernism
  • Genre:  Novel
  • Point-of-View:  First-person
  • Setting: New York City in 1922
  • Climax:  Gatsby and Tom fight over Daisy
  • Antagonist:  Tom Buchanan, Greed

F. Scott Fitzgerald and  The Great Gatsby

Fitzgerald’s  The Great Gatsby  is a modernist masterpiece . But, when it was published the author had no idea of its importance or how tied it would become to his own literary legacy. Fitzgerald, like the novel’s narrator, Nick, was born in Minnesota. He moved to New York to pursue fame and fortune, like Jay Gatsby. Perhaps also seeking inspiration in his personal experiences, Fitzgerald’s wife, Zelda, refused to marry him unless he could support her. This mirrors Gatsby’s experience with Daisy in the novel, ending in her marrying Tom Buchanan, a cruel man but one with more than enough money for her to live the kind of life she wanted. The Fitzgeralds were wealthy, but as debt crept upon them, Fitzgerald’s health worsened, and he suffered from mental illness. He died from a heart attack in 1940, with his wife passing away a few years later. Today, scholars consider  The Great Gatsby,  as well as Fitzgerald’s other novels, as a means for the writer to confront his feelings about (what he coined as) “The Jazz Age.” The period after World War I is well documented in  The Great Gatsby .  Fitzgerald was initially interested in the outrageous lifestyles of the wealthy in New York City, engaging in such a lifestyle himself. But, just as Nick Carraway discovered, things weren’t quite as bright and shining as they seemed.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Digital Art

Books Related to  The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby  is one of the best representatives of modernist fiction after the First World War. It was a period of emptiness and disillusionment that was for many such as the characters in this novel , filled with irrelevancies. He depicted lost people, depression, reality, and various types of corruption. As did other writers like James Joyce with his masterpiece Ulysses.  Hemingway’s works are also often compared to Fitzgerald’s. These include books like The Sun Also Rises.  Other books readers might find comparable to  The Great Gatsby  include  The Age of Innocence  by Edith Wharton,  To Kill a Mockingbird  by Harper Lee, and Fitzgerlad’s 1922 novel,  The Beautiful and the Damned.  The latter was published right before  The Great Gatsby  and tells the story of a socialite and heir to a massive fortune. Fitzgerald explores his marriage, military service, and the couple’s troubles.  This Side of Paradise  by F. Scott Fitzgerald is another novel in which readers can find themes comparable to those in  The Great Gatsby.  It was Fitzgerald’s first novel and follows several American youths after World War I.

The Lasting Impact of The Great Gatsby

When The Great Gatsby  was published in 1925, it sold around 21,000 copies, a number far lower than Fitzgerald’s previous novels. Today, the novel has sold over 25 million copies and has been translated into numerous languages. It’s a staple of classrooms all over the world. Today, the novel is said to embody the American spirit and convey the atmosphere of an incredibly important time in the history of the country . For some, this novel is the best representative of the American spirit and Fitzgerald’s “Jazz Age .” Despite the decades that have passed, the novel is still relevant today. It features complex characters with problems school-age readers and those simply reading for pleasure can relate to.

The Great Gatsby Review ⭐

‘The Great Gatsby’ tells a very human story of wealth, dreams, and failure. F. Scott Fitzgerald takes the reader into the heart of the Jazz Age, in New York City, and into the world of Jay Gatsby.

The Great Gatsby Historical Context 🍾

‘The Great Gatsby’ is F. Scott Fitzgerald’s best-known novel. It encapsulates the Jazz Age of the United States in the 1920s.

The Great Gatsby Themes and Analysis 🍾

Within ‘The Great Gatsby,’ F. Scott Fitzgerald taps into several important themes. These include the American dream, and its decline, as well as wealth, class, and love.

The Great Gatsby Quotes 💬

Throughout ‘The Great Gatsby’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the reader can find a wide variety of beautiful and thoughtful quotes.

The Great Gatsby Summary 🍾

‘The Great Gatsby’ is generally considered to be F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece. It represents a cultural period in the United States that’s now referred to as the Jazz Age.

The Great Gatsby Characters 🍾

‘The Great Gatsby’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald is filled with interesting and morally bankrupt characters, such as Daisy Buchanan, Jordan Baker, and Ewing Klipspringer.

It'll change your perspective on books forever.

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The Great Gatsby Literary Analysis

literary analysis essay of the great gatsby

The ideals of financial freedom, success, and happiness make up the American dream. However, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby book takes a different look at the American dream, analyzing how some people misuse it to suit their egotistical needs (Lindberg, 2015). In Fitzgerald’s novel, Jay Gatsby is a man who loses touch with reality as he pursues the American Dream to its very extreme. The author of this fascinating American tale analyzes how pursuing material success, and political dominance poses a danger to the ideals underlying the American dream.

literary analysis essay of the great gatsby

The American Dream

Jay Gatsby is a shining symbol of infinite wealth and prestige for the aspiring affluent. Nick Carraway, the narrator of the story, says that Gatsby has a heightened sensitivity to the promises of life and that there is something magnificent about him. Despite his lack of financial resources, Gatsby aspires to achieve the American dream of fame and wealth (Ghiotto & Wijanarka, 2016). He strives to emulate his platonic ideal and become the perfect god of riches. The American dream may be interpreted in many ways, but Gatsby is preoccupied with material success and completely abandons the idea of building his persona through sweat equity of hard work. One unfortunate result of the American dream, which might be seen as striving for social advancement, is that people like Gatsby end up chasing wealth at the expense of happiness. In other words, Gatsby believes that the world rests safely on a fairy wing and that reality is an illusion. For comfort, Gatsby retreats into his fantasies, where he finds false solace in his idealized vision of wealth and the happiness it purports to provide. Gatsby’s soul becomes as cold as the money he covets when he indulges in such hedonism. Like many Americans trying to achieve the American dream, Gatsby doesn’t realize the dream is about discovering and pursuing happiness, a luxury he can never afford with his money.

The Failure of the American Dream

If the American dream is to find happiness, Gatsby isn’t seeking it; instead, he’s focusing on how he might utilize his wealth to provide meaning to a life that otherwise lacks it. This warped version of the American dream only helps his reputation in a society that initially rejected him because of his poverty (Fälth, 2013). With the brazen, vulgar, and meretricious beauty of riches that has nothing to do with happiness, Gatsby imagines himself as a god who oversees his father’s business. He uses a technique similar to most corporate scandals by taking advantage of the opportunities and engaging in criminal conduct to amass this material fortune (Daier & Ibrahim, 2017). The true meaning of the American dream is lost on Gatsby as the omen fades. As a result of Jay Gatsby’s dishonorable ascent to power, America is portrayed in The Great Gatsby as a land of the wealthy rather than a land of the free. Gatsby’s dream must have seemed so close to him in this imagined America that he could not help but seize it. Gatsby, oblivious to the fact that his chance has passed, is nevertheless enjoying himself financially. Given his distorted perception of reality, he looks for anything that can satisfy his need. When Gatsby’s search for happiness through material means becomes fruitless, he retreats into a bygone era where wealth was more of a dream than cold reality.

literary analysis essay of the great gatsby

With his money, Gatsby tries to make amends for this past without realizing his goals are impossible. He tries to buy the love of Daisy Buchanan, who had rejected him earlier since he didn’t have enough wealth (Bunce, 2015). Although the prospect of winning Daisy back has reduced Gatsby’s number of exciting objects, he ultimately succumbs to Daisy’s more immense attraction to a life of ease and wealth. As ironic as it may seem, Gatsby fails to see the similarities between his obsession with wealth and Daisy’s interest in wealth. Gatsby is crushed by his unwillingness to relinquish his fortune and embrace simplicity, despite his knowledge of the youth and mystery that prosperity imprisons and protects. Gatsby, who has a phony sense of luxury but is truly destitute, pays the price for living too long with a single fantasy and therefore comes to see the futility of his existence. Apathetically, Gatsby accepts this unfairness because he is more interested in maintaining his current standard of living than in righting the wrong. Gatsby cannot regard America as a place of renewal, given his current state of mind (Hodo, 2017). After that, he becomes a boat against the current, borne back endlessly into the past. In the end, Gatsby reluctantly admits that life is simply a dream phrasing the famous nursery rhyme.

Scott Fitzgerald, through Jay Gatsby’s story, clearly shows how life can be sad and unfulfilling if certain aspects of life are ignored while pursuing the American dream. Gatsby’s efforts to achieve his American dream led to an empty and meaningless life despite acquiring wealth. The “Great” Jay Gatsby epitomizes this trope as a guy whose aspirations for wealth ultimately destroy him. The character of Gatsby is used to express that the great American dream is not all it takes to make someone happy. Gatsby’s behavior indicates that people will always have endless dreams, and the class of society does not determine success in life.

literary analysis essay of the great gatsby

  • Bunce, S. (2015). Love and Money: An Analysis of the Great Gatsby. Language . http://www.languageinindia.com/june2015/selvigatsbypaper.pdf
  • Daier, I. A. S., & Ibrahim, A. M. I. (2017). The American Dream Corruption in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research , 5 (4), 344-348. https://www.academia.edu/download/56407848/The_American_Dream_Corruption_in_Fitzgeralds_The_Great_Gatsby.pdf
  • Fälth, S. (2013). Social Class and Status in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2:667768
  • Lindberg, L. (2015). The American dream as a means of social criticism in The Great Gatsby. https://gupea.ub.gu.se/handle/2077/38269
  • Ghiotto, M. F., & Wijanarka, H. (2016). American Dreams Represented through the Color in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. Journal of Language and Literature , 16 (1), 55-62. http://download.garuda.kemdikbud.go.id/article.php?article=491508&val=10038&title=American%20Dreams%20Represented%20through%20the%20Color%20in%20Fitzgeralds%20The%20Great%20Gatsby
  • Hodo, Z. (2017). The Failure of the American Dream in “The Great Gatsby”-Fitzgerald. European Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies , 2 (7), 299-305. https://revistia.com/index.php/ejms/article/view/5963
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literary analysis essay of the great gatsby

The Great Gatsby: Essay Samples

literary analysis essay of the great gatsby

Welcome to The Great Gatsby Essay Samples page prepared by our editorial team! Here you’ll find a heap of wonderful ideas for your Great Gatsby essay. Absolutely free research paper and essay samples on The Great Gatsby are collected here, on one page.

📝 The Great Gatsby: Essay Samples List

Below you’ll find a large collection of The Great Gatsby essay and research paper samples. Feel free to use any of them to inspire your own writing!

  • Gatsby & Nick in The Great Gatsby Essay Genre : Essay Words : 1763 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby
  • Gatsby & Jean Valjean: Compare & Contrast Essay Genre : Essay Words : 1259 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan
  • The Ethicality of an Action Jay Gatsby Genre : Assessment paper Words : 833 Focused on : The Great Gatsby themes Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson
  • The American Dream in The Great Gatsby: Essay Genre : Essay Words : 619 Focused on : The Great Gatsby themes Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson, George Wilson
  • Babylon Revisited & The Great Gatsby: Motifs & Themes Genre : Essay Words : 1216 Focused on : The Great Gatsby themes Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan
  • Time as a Theme in The Great Gatsby: Essay Genre : Essay Words : 896 Focused on : The Great Gatsby themes Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson
  • Daisy Buchanan: Quotes Analysis Essay Genre : Essay Words : 1077 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan, Jordan Baker
  • Female Characters in The Streetcar Named Desire & The Great Gatsby: Comparative Essay Genre : Essay Words : 1639 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan
  • Why Is Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby a Satire? Genre : Essay Words : 680 Focused on : The Great Gatsby genre Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Mr. McKee
  • Jay Gatsby & Tom Buchanan: Compare & Contrast Genre : Essay Words : 812 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan
  • Francis Scott Fitzgerald & His American Dream Genre : Essay Words : 1815 Focused on : F.S. Fitzgerald’s biography Characters mentioned : Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan
  • Jay Gatsby & Eponine from Les Miserables: Compare & Contrast Essay Genre : Essay Words : 812 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan
  • Jay Gatsby and Valjean in ‘Les Miserables’: Comparative Essay Genre : Essay Words : 769 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Nick Carraway
  • Love in The Great Gatsby & The Catcher in The Rye: Comparative Essay Genre : Analytical essay Words : 1059 Focused on : The Great Gatsby themes Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Nick Carraway, Daisy Buchanan
  • The Great Gatsby: Analysis and Feminist Critique Genre : Essay Words : 1365 Focused on : The Great Gatsby analysis Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson, George Wilson
  • Fairy Tale Traits in The Great Gatsby Genre : Essay Words : 1146 Focused on : The Great Gatsby analysis & context Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan
  • The Great Gatsby: Book Review Genre : Book review Words : 701 Focused on : The Great Gatsby context Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan
  • The Great Gatsby: Book Review & Reflection Genre : Essay Words : 587 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson, George Wilson, Jordan Baker
  • Fitzgerald’s American Dream in The Great Gatsby & Winter Dreams Genre : Argumentative essay Words : 1119 Focused on : The Great Gatsby themes Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan
  • Silver & Gold: Color Symbolism in The Great Gatsby Genre : Essay Words : 889 Focused on : The Great Gatsby color symbolism Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan, Jordan Baker
  • Nick as the Narrator in The Great Gatsby Genre : Essay Words : 2473 Focused on : The Great Gatsby characters Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway
  • The Dilemmas of the American Dream in The Great Gatsby Genre : Essay Words : 687 Focused on : The Great Gatsby themes Characters mentioned : Jay Gatsby
  • Political Satire in American Literature Genre : Essay Words : 788 Focused on : The Great Gatsby genre Characters mentioned : Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby
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Study Guide Menu

  • Short Summary
  • Summary (Chapter 1)
  • Summary (Chapter 2)
  • Summary (Chapter 3)
  • Summary (Chapter 4)
  • Summary (Chapter 5)
  • Summary (Chapter 6)
  • Summary (Chapter 7)
  • Summary (Chapter 8)
  • Summary (Chapter 9)
  • Symbolism & Style
  • Quotes Explained
  • Essay Topics
  • Essay Samples
  • Questions & Answers
  • F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Biography
  • Chicago (A-D)
  • Chicago (N-B)

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Intrigues of Myrtle Wilson in “The Great Gatsby”

This essay about Myrtle Wilson in “The Great Gatsby” explores her role as a symbol of aspiration and the destructive nature of the American Dream. It delves into her desperate pursuit of wealth and social status through her affair with Tom Buchanan, highlighting the consequences of betraying one’s true self. Myrtle’s tragic demise serves as a critique of 1920s materialism and moral decay, emphasizing the emptiness of superficial desires and the importance of staying true to oneself amidst societal pressures.

How it works

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” is a literary treasure trove filled with complex characters, vivid imagery, and profound themes. Among the many figures that populate this iconic novel, Myrtle Wilson stands out as a symbol of aspiration, desire, and the elusive pursuit of the American Dream. Through her character, Fitzgerald provides a lens through which to explore themes of social mobility, identity, and the destructive power of obsession.

Myrtle, married to George Wilson, the owner of a shabby garage in the Valley of Ashes, finds herself disillusioned with her lackluster existence.

She yearns for a life of luxury and sophistication, a desire that ultimately leads her into a tumultuous affair with Tom Buchanan, a wealthy and arrogant man trapped in a loveless marriage. Myrtle’s infatuation with Tom represents her desperate attempt to transcend her social station and access the glamorous world of the East Egg elite.

However, Myrtle’s pursuit of material wealth and social status is ultimately her undoing. Despite her efforts to assimilate into Tom’s privileged circle, she remains an outsider, forever relegated to the periphery of high society. Her tragic demise at the hands of Daisy Buchanan, Tom’s wife, serves as a stark reminder of the consequences of chasing after illusions and betraying one’s true self.

Yet, while Myrtle’s fate may be bleak, her character is far from one-dimensional. She embodies the contradictions and complexities of human nature, oscillating between vulnerability and defiance, longing and resentment. Despite her outward bravado, Myrtle is fundamentally insecure, seeking validation and acceptance in all the wrong places.

Furthermore, Myrtle’s character serves as a critique of the rampant materialism and moral decay that permeated 1920s America. Her relentless pursuit of wealth and status mirrors the superficiality and emptiness of the Jazz Age, where appearances often mattered more than substance. Through Myrtle, Fitzgerald exposes the hollowness of the American Dream, revealing it to be nothing more than a mirage that promises everything but delivers nothing.

In conclusion, Myrtle Wilson’s role in “The Great Gatsby” extends far beyond that of a mere supporting character. She embodies the aspirations and disillusionments of an entire generation, serving as a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked ambition and the seductive allure of the American Dream. Her tragic journey underscores the timeless relevance of Fitzgerald’s masterpiece, reminding readers that the pursuit of happiness is often fraught with peril and that true fulfillment can only be found by staying true to oneself.

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  1. The Great Gatsby Essay Examples

    Excellent. 2 pages / 990 words. Prompt Examples for "The Great Gatsby" Essay Character Analysis: Analyze the character of Pammy Buchanan in The Great Gatsby, exploring her role in the narrative and how her presence reflects aspects of her parents, Tom and Daisy. Symbolism and Themes: Discuss the symbolism of Pammy...

  2. The Great Gatsby

    The story of the novel, The Great Gatsby, revolves around a young man, Nick Carraway, who comes from Minnesota to New York in 1922. He is also the narrator of the story. His main objective is to establish his career in the bonds. Nick rents a house in West Egg on Long Island, which is a fictional village of New York.

  3. The Great Gatsby Study Guide

    In the final years of their marriage as their debts piled up, Zelda stayed in a series of mental institutions on the East coast while Fitzgerald tried, and largely failed, to make money writing movie scripts in Hollywood. The best study guide to The Great Gatsby on the planet, from the creators of SparkNotes.

  4. A Summary and Analysis of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby

    The Great Gatsby is the quintessential Jazz Age novel, capturing a mood and a moment in American history in the 1920s, after the end of the First World War. Rather surprisingly, The Great Gatsby sold no more than 25,000 copies in F. Scott Fitzgerald's lifetime. It has now sold over 25 million copies. If Fitzgerald had stuck with one of the ...

  5. The Great Gatsby: Full Book Analysis

    The Great Gatsby is a story about the impossibility of recapturing the past and also the difficulty of altering one's future. The protagonist of the novel is Jay Gatsby, who is the mysterious and wealthy neighbor of the narrator, Nick Carraway. Although we know little about Gatsby at first, we know from Nick's introduction—and from the book's title—that Gatsby's story will be the ...

  6. The Great Gatsby: Mini Essays

    As a man, he dreams of Daisy, and for a while he wins her, too. In a world without a moral center, in which attempting to fulfill one's dreams is like rowing a boat against the current, Gatsby's power to dream lifts him above the meaningless and amoral pleasure-seeking of New York society. In Nick's view, Gatsby's capacity to dream ...

  7. The Great Gatsby

    The Great Gatsby is F. Scott Fitzgerald's third novel. It was published in 1925. Set in Jazz Age New York, it tells the story of Jay Gatsby, a self-made millionaire, and his pursuit of Daisy Buchanan, a wealthy young woman whom he loved in his youth. Commercially unsuccessful upon publication, the book is now considered a classic of American fiction.

  8. The Great Gatsby Analysis

    Analysis. Last Updated September 5, 2023. In The Great Gatsby, appearances often conceal and distort reality. This fact is due in large part to Fitzgerald's use of a first-person narrator, Nick ...

  9. The Great Gatsby: A+ Student Essay: The Automobile as a ...

    Leaving Gatsby's party, a drunken buffoon crashes his car and loses a wheel: The man's status symbol exposes him as a weak fool. Though beautiful, Gatsby's leather seats heat up and burn him toward the end of the novel. A speeding car is responsible for Myrtle's death, and Jordan Baker describes her ruined love affair in terms of ...

  10. The Great Gatsby Analysis: What Does It All Mean? ️

    Read an analysis of The Great Gatsby. The Great Gatsby is a short novel, just nine chapters, each built around a party scene — though the final "party" is, of course, a funeral. The story itself is about a poor boy from a farming background who becomes fabulously wealthy.

  11. The Great Gatsby: Essay Topics, Questions, & Ideas

    3,361. Welcome to The Great Gatsby Essay Topics page prepared by our editorial team! Here you'll find a large collection of essay ideas on the novel! Literary analysis, themes, characters, & more. Get inspired to write your own paper! We will write a custom essay specifically. for you for only 11.00 9.35/page.

  12. The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald

    The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald was published in 1925 in New York City. It is considered to be Fitzgerald's best and most famous novel.It depicts the lives of characters entangled in the New York City social scene, in dangerous love affairs, and endless wealth.Narrated by Nick Carraway, a man whose life mirrored Fitzgerald's own, he takes the reader into the mysterious world of Jay ...

  13. The Great Gatsby: an Analysis of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Classic Novel

    This essay aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, including a summary of the story, literary analysis, evaluation of the book, and a conclusion. "The Great Gatsby" was first published in 1925 and is set in the Roaring Twenties, a time of excess and decadence.

  14. The Great Gatsby Essays and Criticism

    Gatsby's open critique, already in use by poets of the time, is the most blatant yet, beginning an almost century-long tradition of social commentary in American literature. The Great Gatsby set ...

  15. The Great Gatsby Literary Analysis Essay [877 Words] GradeMiners

    The ideals of financial freedom, success, and happiness make up the American dream. However, F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby book takes a different look at the American dream, analyzing how some people misuse it to suit their egotistical needs (Lindberg, 2015).

  16. The Great Gatsby

    Themes from The Great Gatsby. 1. Disillusionment of the American Dream. In "The Great Gatsby," F. Scott Fitzgerald meticulously portrays the disillusionment of the American Dream through the lives of his characters. Jay Gatsby, the embodiment of this dream, chases the illusion of wealth and success to win back his lost love, Daisy Buchanan.

  17. The Great Gatsby: Study Guide

    The SparkNotes study guide for The Great Gatsby has consistently been the #1 guide on our site for many years running, which is a testament to the novel's immense and enduring popularity among teachers and readers. Explore the full plot summary, an in-depth analysis of Jay Gatsby, and explanations of important quotes in The Great Gatsby.

  18. The Great Gatsby: Essay Samples

    Here you'll find a heap of wonderful ideas for your Great Gatsby essay. Absolutely free research paper and essay samples on The Great Gatsby are collected here, on one page. We will write a custom essay specifically. for you for only 11.00 9.35/page. 808 certified writers online.

  19. The Motif of Carelessness in The Great Gatsby

    The motif of carelessness is also represented through selfishness of the characters and their actions. Many people in The Great Gatsby seem to be blinded by the love they have for someone and this results in them putting their feelings first rather than others in the story. Take Gatsby for example he desires and tries to be with Daisy for years ...

  20. The Relevance of The Great Gatsby in American Literature: [Essay

    Published: Feb 12, 2024. Written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and published in 1925, "The Great Gatsby" is widely regarded as a masterpiece in Fitzgerald's body of work. It has become a classic in American fiction and has been read and reread by countless readers. The novel serves as a benchmark for readers, authors, and contemporary writers alike ...

  21. Intrigues of Myrtle Wilson in "The Great Gatsby"

    Essay Example: F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" is a literary treasure trove filled with complex characters, vivid imagery, and profound themes. Among the many figures that populate this iconic novel, Myrtle Wilson stands out as a symbol of aspiration, desire, and the elusive pursuit

  22. Literary Context Essay: Modernism & Realism in The Great Gatsby

    In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald blends the intense symbolism and figurative language of modernism with the social and psychological believability of realism. Realism was a literary movement that originated in the mid-nineteenth century. Realism seeks to depict the world and people as they really are. Realist writers employ specific details and ...

  23. The Great Gatsby Research Paper

    The Great Gatsby offers a saddening critique of the American Dream and what it represents. By illustrating the moral decay of the wealthy elite, Fitzgerald uncovers the hollowness of materialism and the superficiality of social status. High school juniors can gain extremely valuable lessons from this angle, Fitzgerald says.

  24. The Great Gatsby Literary Devices Analysis

    The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a classic novel that has captivated readers for generations. One of the reasons for its enduring appeal is the author's skillful use of literary devices to enhance the storytelling and convey deeper meanings. In this essay, we will analyze the use of literary devices in The Great Gatsby, including symbolism, irony, and foreshadowing, to ...

  25. The Great Gatsby Tone Analysis: [Essay Example], 551 words

    The Great Gatsby Tone Analysis. The Great Gatsby, a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a work of literature that delves into the decadence and moral decay of the American Dream during the 1920s. The focus of the essay is on the novel's tone, which is characterized by a sense of nostalgia and melancholy.