Tuesday, January 11, 2011

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald - a story of trust,class, and wanting

I have read a while ago that F. Scott Fitzgerald  penned a masterpiece writing "The Great Gatsby", and  I can confirm that there's a reason that it's considered one of the very best American novels. It was a quick read - I couldn't put it down simply because it was written marvelously and everyone could relate to it.

Although,  written in 1925, is a fictional tale that takes place during the American Jazz Age. The story is set in the eastern U.S. and follows the journey of a young man named Nick Carraway. The hero of his story, which frames the novel, is the legendary Jay Gatsby - a legend in his own mind. Although Carraway's narration is often heavily biased and unreliable, what emerges are the stories of a set of aimless individuals, thrown together in the summer of 1922. Daisy Buchanan is the pin that holds the novel together - by various means, she ties Nick to Jordan Baker, Tom Buchanan to Jay Gatsby, and Gatsby to the Wilsons. 
The way Gatsby is depicted paints two portraits of one man, a man who has everything; a fabulous mansion, money, cars and all of the other worldly possessions one can hope for, and the other; a man who has everything but what he desires most, the love he would give everything up for. In the end, Daisy and friends are revealed as nothing more than snobbish drunks.
From the book we learn that often the desire for something is better than actually having it and that one true friend is infinitely more important than a multitude of acquaintances.
This is a brilliant novel and I recommend it to everyone. "The Great Gatsby" is a timeless classic.

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