The novel opens with several ambiguous statements about
Gatsby:
Only
Gatsby, the man who gives his name to this book was exempt from my reaction--Gatsby who
represented everything for which I have an unaffected
scorn.
And later, Gatsby is
described as having an "extraordinary gift for hope, a romantic readiness such as I have
never found in any other person and which it is not likely I shall every find
again."
Then we learn that "Gatsby turned out all right at
the end" but that there was "foul dust" that "floated in the wake of his
dreams."
In these opening statements about Gatsby we learn
that Gatsby was a dreamer, an optimist. He is one who is different from the rest of
Nick's acquaintances, and that even though he possessed less than admirable qualities
(for which Nick had unaffected scorn), he ultimately was all
right.
These references are somewhat vague and paradoxical,
but we are intrigued by these statements and alert when we find out that the mansion
next-door to Nick's is Gatsby's. We are well aware now of the fact that Gatsby is very
wealthy, but by the end of the chapter, Gatsby becomes a figure shrouded in mystery as
he stands upon his lawn looking out to the bay "hands outstretched" toward the "dark
waters" and the green light across the water. This mystery was earlier alluded to when
at the Buchannans' Jordan mentions Gatsby's name, and Daisy repeats it questioningly,
indicating some connection that Gatsby may have with Jordan and possibly with Daisy,
connections later confirmed by the events of the story.
No comments:
Post a Comment