Friday, July 2, 2010
The Great Gatsby Chapters 6-9
In the preface to The Great Gatsby (Simon and Schuster 1992 edition), Matthew J. Bruccoli writes, “ The Great Gatsby does not proclaim the nobility of the human spirit; it is not politically correct; it does not reveal how to solve the problems of life; it delivers no fashionable or comforting messages. It is just a masterpiece.” Discuss the many parts of this quote in terms of the characters and the plot. Is it a masterpiece? Explain.
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The Great Gatsby is not a warm story or a book that explains the victories and triumphs of men, it simply the American life cut down to its bare form there is no poof or fluff it is just cut and dry, it tells it like it is. There is no part in which the nobility of the human spirit is expressed, no one character is truly a good person just like in our own lives everyone has their own secret sins and dirty deeds that make them human and the story plays on this truth that no one is truly perfect. Tom struggles with his adultery against his wife and it takes him to the brink of losing his marriage. Nick sees all the sins of others going on an yet he says nothing and even though he committed no crime he is just as guilty as all the others because he kept his mouth closed and would not warn his brethren about the dangerous roads they were taking. Gatsby was a man who came buy his riches illegally and was a fraud he gathered all his wealth around him to make himself feel rich when truly on the inside he was a poor man without the love of his beloved Daisy. It is not politically correct because the American Dream is proved false, because it is not generally accepted that if you are poor and lonely you can have happiness or if you are rich and powerful you can’t possibly be sorrowful. The story does not show how to solves life’s problems or the actions to take when hardships arise it simply gives an example of problems that occur to people and shows not how to get out of hard situations but shows the reader that real world problems are out there and truly do exist in everyone’s life not only the poor but also the rich. Even though the world mask its evils with a protective blanket of sweet promises of bliss and pleasure if you live a successful life, the story shows that no life is perfect and that no one no matter how wealthy or meager can stop the worlds evils from entering their lives. There are no happy endings only real world pain and suffering of the human spirit. Nick never falls in love with Mrs. Baker, there is nothing between them and they never talk to each other ever again. Gatsby was wrongly accused and murdered for something he never did, Gatsby beloved Daisy ran off with her low down husband that knows no other thing than to cheat on his wife and everything that Gatsby has spent his life working for is tossed out the window. Mr. Wilson is left in pieces after his wife’s death and becomes a mad man seeking revenge on the wrong person and eventually takes his own life after he kills Gatsby and feels that justice has been served. The Great Gatsby is truly a masterpiece because there are no others like it. It truly captures the life struggles that every human encounters and it does not offer some cliché dream of delight and heartwarming enchantment that so many books are based off of. It offers truth and nothing else it is reality in its rawest form and this in and of its self is what sets this book apart as a masterpiece of literature.
ReplyDeletePreach it, Moose!!! Good job!
ReplyDeleteI found The Great Gatsby to be a novel with a rather truthful outlook on life. In my opinion, this statement shows a lot of truth referring to this work. Though it comes off as a literary piece full of cold and dry simple truths it is indeed a masterpiece within itself. The Great Gatsby shows life in its truest of colors and reveals life’s imperfections. It is visible that these imperfections lie within all of the characters; or more so how the imperfections lie within us all. Each character faces their own struggles and own moments of weakness; each character holds their own stature in life. Gatsby was a man with a successful life who was generally living the “American Dream.” Though he was labeled as a man of such he was a lonely man who tragically ended up just the same. Tom and Daisy hold no moral conduct, they rely on their money to act as a shield for them; not facing any of their problems in life with any form of courage or bravery. Mr. Wilson was drove mad by the infidelity of his wife which led to the death of Gatsby and him taking his own life. The characters actions in this novel all played off of each other and affected one another in ultimately negative ways. One point I think the novel was very clear of pointing out was how the American Dream has become a quest for money. The novel doesn’t sugar coat any details in life; there is nothing comforting delivered throughout this book, but more so a real and raw look at what life is really all about. So many books read have the traditional happy ending with good guys and bad guys; acts of courage and triumphs over evil. This book holds none of these elements which is what ultimately sets it apart from other novels.
ReplyDeleteDo you think it is a masterpiece, or do you think that such a label is going a little too far?
ReplyDeleteI do consider it a masterpiece because of how factual it is involving life. It is very straight forward and shows life the way it is wiht all it's imperfections. I think it's truth is what makes it a masterpiece to me.
ReplyDeleteI like that answer!
ReplyDeleteThe Great Gatsby does not a happy ending story and is not a very exciting book to read but it's more of the truth and can be rather compared to our society today and how it really is. It does not proclaim the nobility of the human spirit. Gatsby was a fraud in how he got his money and since he loved being rich I don't think he would have ever gave up what he had for true happiness and be poor. It definitly does not reveal how to solve the problems of life. When Nick knew about the affairs and all the was going wrong he never even tried to put a stop to it until everything came to the worst he had only told Gatsby to forget about Daisy but still wasn't much of advice when Daisy had moved on. They never had anything encouraging to say to each other but rather vile and ugly to each other just to get their way. Tom had a lover in New York yet Daisy did'nt try to find her and make a big deal out of it but when she and Gatsby had something between each other Tom became outraged instead of talking calmly to his wife about it and being positive he was always negative. Also when he told Wilson his car was Gatsby's instead of telling him the truth that it was his but Daisy and Gatsby were driving it. It's sad to believe that our society today is just as cruel. Instead of trying to solve their problems in life the characters all seemed to be either running away from it or getting around it. I honestly don't see The Great Gatsby as a masterpiece because a masterpiece is a person's greatest work and there was nothing amazing about the characters life and they didn't create any kind of work of art that was good. They did not create excellence of any kind but rather destruction. Even though I also agree with Katelyn that the book could be a masterpiece of the truth, I still wouldn't consider the book a masterpiece.
ReplyDeleteWoh...you are a harsh critic!
ReplyDelete