Great Gatsby

A detailed Summary of Great Gatsby

Besides being a great novel, The Great Gatsby is a very symbolic book, not to

mention it's many themes and meanings. This paper will discuss three of the major

themes as well as some of the symbols, and try to explain the ending of the book.

One of the first themes that comes to mind when one reads this book is the

theme of position. This includes class, wealth and social standing. It is apparent that

position is a large factor in this novel and time period within the first few chapters of

the book. Nick is a middle class mid-westerner who moves to West Egg. Gatsby is

rich, but he is only "new money" and also lives in East Egg. There is a position that

he strives for and he wil do almost anything to achieve this. The Buchanans and

however live in West Egg and are "old money". Even though they may have less

money than Gatsby they have a better social standing. East and West Egg , as well as

the water that seperates it are symbols in this book which strenghten this theme. The

water seperates East and West Egg and creates a barrier between them much like social

standing and wealth creates a barrier for the charachters in this book.

Another theme of the novel is the theme of carelessness. Nick refe

charachters passivley. Significantly enough Myrtle's death and Tom's affair, some of

Gatsby achieves his wealth, and buys himself popularity, but that green light, which

dream Gatsby had, but the purity of the American dream is something of the past.

dreams. Fitzgerald finishes the novel with a final note on Gatsby's belief system.

harmfull when they meet other careless people like Nick meeting the Buchanans.

Jordan at first and on occasion but the next day he'll completely ignore her, showing

Nick too can be just as careless and false as the rest of them . Nick acts intrested in

as Gatsby infused Diasy with the meaning he sought to achieve in his own life, early

live an irresponsible lifestyle and consequence is only an after thought. "They were

explorers, soilders and patriots infused America with their own dreams and values.

reflection of the water and therefore a constant reminder of the barrier between

was like long ago when it was new and unspoiled. The green light represents the pure

Approximate Word count = 858
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Miscellaneous

join now Save Paper

Saved Paper

Save your papers so you can locate them quickly!

"Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
Jack M.
"With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
Brian P.
"I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
Sara J.
"I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
Rachel W.
"I love this site!!!"
Marie N.