While reading the first five chapters of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, I have noticed many things. I’ve noticed that there is a lot of relationship drama. Daisy is married to Tom, but in chapter two, we meet Tom’s mistress, Myrtle- his “woman in the city.” Myrtle is married to George Wilson, a gas station owner in the Valley of Ashes. Nick, the narrator of the story, is Daisy’s cousin and is Gatsby’s neighbor. Gatsby is in love with Daisy and in chapter 5, the the 2 of them meet for the first time in 5 years. It is very awkward at first, but by the end of the gathering, they’ve re-kindled their love for each other. All of this love triangle craziness is, I think, a symbol of the love craziness going on in the 1920’s time period. I think this represents not only love, but the craziness of the decade in general.
I’ve also noticed how he uses the settings of the book to represent some aspects of the 1920’s. The East Egg represents the people of the time who were born into money and the West Egg represents the people who earned their money- whether it be through business, gambling, etc. This is important because money was a huge deal during the 20’s. The Valley of Ashes represents the downfall of American Society.
In my opinion, people who live in the West Egg, in a way, represent American Dream. They are “new money” which means most of them, have been in a low social class, and have worked their way to the top. After all, that is the American Dream to many people, isn’t it? Doing whatever it takes to get to the top.
The Great Gatsby is a very interesting book and I have really enjoyed reading it so far. I hope to find it even more entertaining as we continue reading.
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