Topic #5: Personal Review

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald has an amazing story. The book was thrilling to read as there were many varying types of characters and plot twists around every corner. However, The Great Gatsby as a whole was not unique from other novels. There are hundreds of books where in the end, a very significant character dies; for example, in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Dumbledore-a beloved and awesome wizard- is killed and betrayed by Snape. In addition, the characters in The Great Gatsby on the other hand are pretty linear, never really changing. To me, there was little sensational about the book and it was rather plain through many of the chapters

            However, the book was captivating in the few chapters that were amusing. Gatsby’s extravaganzas were amazing; chockfull of imagery, analogies, and thought-provoking events. The characters were in the very least, interesting to start. In one of the very first scenes, the narrator introduces Ms. Baker and Daisy and Tom Buchanan. Initially I was rather confused by the three; however, at the end I was rather intrigued by the trio. The way the characters act is perplexing; for instance, the ease of which Tom’s affair is discussed. By definition, affairs are shameful; the guilty avoid talking about it from fear of criticism and questioning. But immediately after despite barely reuniting, Tom takes Nick to meet the very woman that he is having an affair with. How is it possible that even with an apartment where the affair takes place that the spouses of the two do not recognize or question where the oney or time has gone.

This book had many different plot twists, that despite its commonality to other novels, it stands out as expertly written with a plot that would only work for this specific situation. I commend Fitzgerald for his wit and humor in creating a novel that kept me hooked through the entire book.

Topic #4: Text Connections

Nick Carraway within The Great Gatsby is seen as a character that has many social problems and can be considered very similar to that of Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. They both have many internal issues that seem to conflict them on a daily basis and can cloud their judgment. Within Catcher in the Rye, Holden has an extremely hard time with his self-image. He tries to create a mask of manliness by going to bars to drink and by buying prostitutes. Holden has many social issues and therefore cannot mentally operate similarly to the average person, shown by extremely detailed flashbacks that are abruptly interrupted by a switch to a different subject as if the event was unimportant or irrelevant. Holden had been attempting to ignore his feelings by overshadowing them by doing "adult" things. However, it is obvious that despite the attempts to hide them, Holden still expresses his sentimental feelings toward past events. Similar to Holden's social problems, Nick cannot wrap his mind around romantic love. Early on in the novel, Nick describes explicitly the relationship between his cousin Daisy and her husband Tom and mentions that he notices a lack of romance between the two; Later saying he barely knows them at all. This in itself in perceived as wrong because Nick had gone int extreme detail in describing the couple, but then claims he knows very little. With this in mind, the similarity between Nick and Holden is the seemingly uncaring nature for the people and events occurring are around them. Nick cares nothing for Daisy and Tom and Holden cares nothing for anything around him; they seem to undermine their care for certain aspects in life, but still occasionally show their own internal weaknesses. In the end, it is prevalent that throughout The Great Gatsby Nick's inability to express his emotions is similar to that of Holden's within the Catcher in the Rye. 

Topic #3: Syntax

• “He literally glowed; without a word or a gesture of exultation a new well-being radiated from him and filled the little room” (89).

Through this example of syntax, Jay Gatsby's joy easily surfaces. After five years, Gatsby is able to familiarize himself with the women he loved and to experience how much she has changed. Prior to being reunited with her by Nick, Gatsby worries that Daisy does not return his affections because she is already married to another man. However, when Gatsby learns that his love is returned, he is immediately filled with feelings of bliss and comfort.

• “They were gone, without a word, snapped out, made accidental, isolated, like ghosts, even from our pity” (135).

This example of unique syntax demonstrates the chaos of emotions released, and it describes the emptyiness of Gatsby after the snapping of Tom. The short choppy phrases illustrates how the relationship bonds between Daisy and Gatsby- once very much in love with each other- now is one-sided as Daisy is gradually losing love for Gatsby and he is desperately holding on to his memories. Their feelings for each other have been suppressed from the realization of admitting their love aloud for everyone to hear. The desperate tone is prevalent as the two, Daisy and Gatsby, leave the room in a quiet manner and head for Gatsby's car to return home.

Topic #2: Diction

 While describing Gatsby’s lavish parties, Fitzgerald displays the extravagance and shenanigans of the parties and the attendees. Fitzgerald describes the transportation methods by stating that the "Rolls-Royce became an omnibus, bearing parties to and from the city” (39). "Bearing” something is often associated with having to carry something for an extended period in time. When it is stated that the car was “bearing” people, Fitzgerald implies a feeling of painstaking actions, creating a tone of carelessness or heartlessness. When showing the preparation for Gatsby's lavish parties, Fitzgerald explains that “Every Friday five crates of oranges and lemons arrived from a fruiterer in New York–every Monday these same oranges and lemons left his backdoor in a pyramid of pulpless halves” (39). The work done on the Pyramids of Egypt were extreme and took many years. The pyramids consumed the lives of many and it is now only seen as an amazing view for traveling tourists. To compare the preparation for the party to that of the back-breaking work conducted on such pyramids adds to the sense of defeat felt by working for hours to accomplish something that you will never be able to enjoy to the fullest. How does someone in modern ages describe people as “deplorably sober” (52)? Fitzgerald's statement seems awkward as it is not horrible to be sober; however, in order to fit in with the masses, the people would need to extremely intoxicated to be part of the "in" group. His fake mockery of the sobriety of the few implicitly shows his abhorrence for those that have lost their inhibitions and have a lost moral faith in those that choose to drown their sorrows or toast to their dreams. F. Scott Fitzgerald skillfully weaves a sense of moral responsibility by showing the loss of morals throughout his famous novel.

Topic #1: Rhetorical Strategies

• Litotes–“In consequence I’m inclined to reserve all judgements, a habit that that has opened up many curious natures to me and also made me the victim of not a few veteran bores.” (1)
• Alliteration–“I bought a dozen volumes on banking and credit and investment securities and they stood on my shelf in red and gold like new money from the mint, promising to unfold the shining secrets that only Midas and Morgan and Mæcenas knew.” (4).
• Simile–“In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars.” (39).
• Polysyndeton–“In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars.” (39)

          In F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby, the various uses of rhetorical strategies allow Fitzgerald to tell the story of Gatsby in a unique and sophisticated style. Told from the perspective of Nick Carraway, the scene before and during one of Gatsby's lavishly thrown parties, Fitzgerald states “At least once a fortnight a crops of caterers came down with several hundred feet of canvas and enough colored lights to make a Christmas tree of Gatsby’s enormous garden” (40). With this statement, the author shows exemplary control of his writing  by including multiple strategies into one sentence. He starts with a hyperbole of strange proportions "a crops of caterers came down", and by alliterating the statement, he further emphasizes the amount of caterers that had arrived. Furthermore, the second hyperbole characterizes Gatsby as an extravagant man, while showing Fitzgerald's ease in setting the scene for the novel. The early novel is characterized primarily by the use of excess rhetorical strategies within one sentence. Near the beginning of Chapter 3, the setting is expertly described when Nick narrates "at high tide in the afternoon I watched his guests diving from the tower of his raft, or taking the sun on the hot of his beach while his two-motor-boats slit the waters of the Sound, drawing aquaplanes over cataracts of foam" (39). The stage is magnificently set when one can imagine the excitement and mess of people congregated at the Gatsby Estate. The amazing stage-setting writing and explicit descriptions is only the tip of the iceberg when analyzing the style in which Fitzgerald writes.