The End...

Every year I read this book and love the ending. Not that I love the fact that the book is ending. Rather, I love the drama, meloncholy, glim hope, and questions that the ending produces. Just like Gatsby's parties, Gatsby's death is a spectacle soon to be forgotten. Some of you have written about the disappointment apparent in Fitz's voice, and I can't help but agree with you. No one knows the real Gatsby, not even his father! He, too, is enamored with Gatsby's house and wealth, thinking of Gatsby as "'a great man. A man like James J. Hill. He'd of helped build up the country'" (176). Little does he know that Gatsby's money - obtained illegally, by the way - is really all a ploy to win over a girl. Not that Gatsby's dream is anything to scoff at; it just isn't about altruism or philanthropy. Wolfsheim won't come to the funeral, neither will Tom or Daisy (obviously, but let's talk about this in class), Klipspringer, Jordan, or any of his myriad partygoers who used him time and time again. I know I've said this before, but I love the way Fitz distances his readers from Gatsby, almost as if we were his partygoers way back when. Through Nick's eyes, we think we know Gatsby, but how much do we really know? How much does Nick really know? And why does Owl Eyes come to the funeral? What does he think he knows to compel him to tag along? I think we do have an idea of what Nick said in Chapter one: "Gatsby turned out all right in the end; it is what preyed on Gatsby...that temporarily closed out my interest in the abortive sorrows and short-winded elations of men" (6 - 7). Obviously, dying is not "all right." What Nick means instead is that Gatsby had a dream and he stuck to it until the bitter end, which is more than can be said for most characters in this book. Fitz ends the book talking too of the American Dream: the Dutch sailors seeing Long Island for the first time, Gatsby's green light. I'd like to discuss this last line in class. Does Fitz think the dream is now impossible, like "boats against the current" (189), or does Fitz believe the dream still is possible, only hard to obtain, needing honesty, integrity, and wisdom to win over? Either way, we cannot fight against the past. It makes us who we are, whether we like it or not. And if we get so lucky as to be successful in this world, we cannot forget or erase the memories of our past. Gatsby tried it, and his dream was irrevocably shattered. I want to thank you all for participating in this blog project with me. I always have fun with a forum on which I can let me true thoughts be known with time and space - stuff that I don't always get around to in class. I hope you've been reading, and I hope to see some more posts out of the rest of you. When writing on the final chapter, wrap up with a few thoughts on the nature of this project. What did or didn't you like about it? Any suggestions for the future? Finish strong!!

Holding On...

We find Gatsby's mansion at the beginning of chapter eight not the lively, vivacious, rowdy palace full of interesting and amoral individuals; no, we find it bare, empty, and desolate, much like Gatsby's heart. He tells Nick a story of how he met Daisy and found himself surprised to fall in love with her. Nick says that he "took what he could get, ravenously and unscrupulously - eventually he took Daisy one still October night, took her because he had no real right to touch her hand" (156). Daisy represents to Gatsby something impossible, a lifestyle of wealth and innocence, protection and ignorance. She represents all that he saw in Dan Cody and more - money, grace, but without the hang-ups. Fitzgerald calls her Gatsby's "grail" (156). It's the idea of wanting what he cannot have. She is "out of his league," but he becomes obsessed with her, on a number of different levels. One, she is beautiful and young and fresh, but more importantly, she represents everything that he did not have growing up, a lifestyle that he longs to be a part of. And if we have learned anything from this book, it's the fact that different classes don't mix. Daisy stays with Tom - as empty as that marriage is - because they are cut from the same cloth. She cannot ever be with Gatsby because he isn't one of her kind, even if he does have the money now. When I introduced the book earlier, I told you that Fitzgerald is critiquing the American Dream in his novel. We see that critique at work in chapter eight. As individuals, we have the ability to educate ourselves, make money, and become success stories, but we cannot ever change where we come from, and unfortunately, among these upper-classes, that seems to be all that matters. That is why the idea of being an "Oxford Man" is so important to these rich people. An Oxford graduate is more than rich and successful, he has class! Gatsby is caught in the trap of thinking he can transcend social classes with money. Yeah, he went to Oxford, but he isn't an "Oxford Man." In fact, we find out in chapter eight that he didn't even want to go there. He really wanted to be back home with Daisy. He doesn't realize that he came from poor roots, and will remain there, at least in the eyes of the East Eggers. He is hanging on to a dream that no longer exists. Poor guy. I'd like to hear your opinion on this matter. Do you think that Fitzgerald believes the American Dream is dead? Or is it only dead for those out East with so much money that dreaming isn't even on their radar anymore? How about life today? Does the dream still exist through hard work and perseverance, or does Fitzgerald's assertion that one cannot transcend class still ring true? Chime in!!

Gatsby's Reality

Daisy didn't like the party, so Gatsby doesn't do parties anymore. Anything to please her, and it seems to be working. We now know - our suspicions confirmed - that they are having an affair, but I'm not quite sure it's everything we had chalked it up to be: true love, romance, real companionship. Frankly, it seems as if Gatsby is hanging on for dear life. He meets Daisy and Tom's daughter, and Nick says of Gatsby: "I don't believe he had ever really believed in its existence before" (123), proving that maybe this world that Gatsby envisioned himself livingin  with Daisy is utopian, a figment of his imagination. He is trying to do everything to reverse time, take him back five years when life with Daisy was brand new. Only this time he would have all the money in the world. If he could only recreate that, then life would be perfect. The presence of Daisy's daugher then becomes a major reality check. Daisy has a life beyond Gatsby. She hasn't waited around for the past five years, and although Gatsby has her again temporarily, she is be no means "his." We have to ask ourselves if Daisy is really going to give up her family for a man whom she loved in the past. Is true love all that important to her? Better yet, does she even have true love with Gatsby? For now though, he has her, although with everything that happens in this chapter it looks like his chances are diminishing with each passing hour. Let's see what happens...any comments on Tom and Gatsby's row (argument)? What does Tom do to undermine Gatsby's credibility? Who wins the argument in the end, and how?