In chapter 4 of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, we actually get to learn personal details about
Jay Gatsby himself, and I think we were probably all thinking the same thing: finally!!
While I did hope we would have the privilege of learning more about his
character soon, I have to admit I was a little surprised about how direct
Gatsby turned out to be in revealing these personal details of his life. I
always wondered whether or not Gatsby was aware of all the rumors that clouded
everyone’s perception of him, so I was very intrigued when Gatsby told Nick
that he didn’t want Nick to form a bad opinion of him based on the rumors he
was sure to hear from others. However, despite the fact that Gatsby has
revealed many things about himself, I still find many aspects of his
personality to be mysterious or not fully revealed. For example, Gatsby has
admitted that he is not very good at making friendships, but I wonder if this
is because he moves around so frequently that he doesn’t even bother, or perhaps
because close relationships are just too painful for him due to the tragic loss
of everyone in his family. Also, I was very intrigued by the story which Gatsby
told about his promotion to be a major in the Allied Army of World War I due to
his elimination of many German divisions in the Argonne Forest. He claims to
have been decorated by every Allied government, even little Montenegro. Gatsby
then shows Nick how he keeps his little decoration from Montenegro in his
pocket at all times, and I think this speaks volumes of Gatsby’s character, for
it shows that he values the circumstances of sacrifice and pain. While the decoration
from Montenegro may have been the least glamorous and the least distinguished,
the people of Montenegro suffered greatly in the war, so giving him that medal carried
a lot more emotion behind it. I think Gatsby values this because of the own
suffering he has endured within his own life. As the story continues to unfold,
I hope we learn more about the personal emotions and feelings of Gatsby as well
as ascertain the role that the shady Mr. Wolfsheim will play in the story.
The medal Gatsby received from Montenegro made me think
of the Olympic medals which Olympians are receiving right now.
On an
entirely different note, I noticed while reading this piece of The Great Gatsby that Fitzgerald
incorporated a great deal of the literary terms from our packet into his
writing. For example, when Nick is listing all the people who attend Gatsby’s
parties, he uses a simile when he describes the Blackbuck family as a group of
people who flipped their noses up like goats, which shows how they found
themselves to be superior to everything and everyone that surrounded them. Nick
Carraway himself points out an interesting occurrence of juxtaposition in Mr.
Wolfsheim’s speech when he transitions immediately from telling a story of his
friend’s murder due to a shady business deal to asking Nick if he was looking for a business
connection. Fitzgerald also uses personification when he describes how Gatsby’s
smile had the capability of comprehending the struggles of others; additionally,
Fitzgerald employed onomatopoeia when he remarked, “I heard the familiar ‘jug-jug-spat!’ of a motorcycle…” (Fitzgerald,
68). Of course, Fitzgerald’s elevated diction and flawless imagery have once
again intermingled to produce a beautiful description such as that of Gatsby’s
car: “It was a rich cream color… swollen here and there in its monstrous length
with triumphant hat-boxes… and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that
mirrored a dozen suns” (Fitzgerald, 64). Lastly, although I may not be able to
assign this technique to a literary term, I think it is important to note that
Fitzgerald casually includes Myrtle Wilson into this section of the book by
having Nick notice her working outside her husband’s shop as Nick passed
through the valley of ashes in Gatsby’s car. I strongly believe that Fitzgerald
included this reference to her in order to remind the reader of the critical
piece of the plot that is Tom and Myrtle’s affair because this issue will come
into play again soon. As Nick heads off for tea with Miss Baker, I am
interested to see what Gatsby’s favor of Nick will be and if it will have any
connection to Tom Buchanan and Myrtle Wilson.
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