The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is generally considered a literary classic. However, you may also remember it, from several years ago, when it was mentioned in the newspapers because Amitabh Bachchan had a cameo in the 2013 movie. (Although the movie starred Leonardo DiCaprio as the eponymous character, I only knew of the movie because of Big B. Leo fans, please don't get mad...)
I was interested in The Great Gatsby because it was cited in a few sample SAT essays I read a couple of years ago. From those essays, I learned some things about the novel, and therefore when I picked it up to read it, I naturally had some... "preconceived notions".
Now, I had preconceived notions about The Hunger Games, which were dispelled the moment I realised the kids were thrown into an arena- I'd thought the Games were, like, televised gladiator-style fights, but no, it was cavepeople stuff, survive and kill. I was disturbed, yes, but I was expecting action, and that's what I got.
Where am I going with this? See, I was expecting this third-person account of the underworld of a Jazz Age New York City, and how Jay Gatsby fit into that world- so I was anticipating crime and mobster stuff, kind of a 1920s version of The Godfather. Instead I got a narrative by Gatsby's neighbour Nick Carraway about how Gatsby reconnected with Daisy (Carraway's cousin) years after they first met.
Yeah. If you're planning to read it, do not, and I repeat, DO NOT start it with the expectations I had.
Maybe I'm biased. Maybe, since I got something completely different from what I was expecting, I was disappointed. Maybe I just don't have the maturity to appreciate good literature.
Frankly, I didn't really think much of The Great Gatsby.
Set in in the fictional villages of East Egg and West Egg on Long Island, it tells the story of the mysterious Jay Gatsby, a war veteran who rose to riches in the hopes of winning the attention and, by extension, love of his ex-flame, Daisy Fay.
Nick Carraway, also a former soldier in WWI from the same division as Gatsby, moves to West Egg for his job in NYC. Invited by Daisy, his cousin, for lunch, he meets a young golfer, Jordan Baker, whom he starts dating.
Daisy is now married, to Nick's college senior Tom Buchanan, and apparently it isn't a happy marriage. Tom, in fact, has a mistress, Myrtle Wilson, and Daisy is aware of this. So when she meets Gatsby, who is obviously in love with her, again, she falls for him.
And it ends pretty quickly after that. I obviously can't tell you more without "spoiling" the plot, but let's say, with a premise like that, you'd expect an epic smackdown, or a horrifying revelation. Both happen, but nowhere near as dramatic as one would expect.
By the end of the novel, three characters are dead, and Nick quickly wraps up things and goes home, like, I am so done with this place.
To sum up my opinions of The Great Gatsby: it had far less drama than anticipated, it is not light reading, and isn't particularly absorbing.
I would recommend that anyone who reads this is a) in a philosophical state of mind, b) ready to handle the slightly confusing prose, and c) someone who harbours no delusions about the level of drama and action to be found in the novel.
I was interested in The Great Gatsby because it was cited in a few sample SAT essays I read a couple of years ago. From those essays, I learned some things about the novel, and therefore when I picked it up to read it, I naturally had some... "preconceived notions".
Now, I had preconceived notions about The Hunger Games, which were dispelled the moment I realised the kids were thrown into an arena- I'd thought the Games were, like, televised gladiator-style fights, but no, it was cavepeople stuff, survive and kill. I was disturbed, yes, but I was expecting action, and that's what I got.
Where am I going with this? See, I was expecting this third-person account of the underworld of a Jazz Age New York City, and how Jay Gatsby fit into that world- so I was anticipating crime and mobster stuff, kind of a 1920s version of The Godfather. Instead I got a narrative by Gatsby's neighbour Nick Carraway about how Gatsby reconnected with Daisy (Carraway's cousin) years after they first met.
Yeah. If you're planning to read it, do not, and I repeat, DO NOT start it with the expectations I had.
Maybe I'm biased. Maybe, since I got something completely different from what I was expecting, I was disappointed. Maybe I just don't have the maturity to appreciate good literature.
Frankly, I didn't really think much of The Great Gatsby.
Set in in the fictional villages of East Egg and West Egg on Long Island, it tells the story of the mysterious Jay Gatsby, a war veteran who rose to riches in the hopes of winning the attention and, by extension, love of his ex-flame, Daisy Fay.
Nick Carraway, also a former soldier in WWI from the same division as Gatsby, moves to West Egg for his job in NYC. Invited by Daisy, his cousin, for lunch, he meets a young golfer, Jordan Baker, whom he starts dating.
Daisy is now married, to Nick's college senior Tom Buchanan, and apparently it isn't a happy marriage. Tom, in fact, has a mistress, Myrtle Wilson, and Daisy is aware of this. So when she meets Gatsby, who is obviously in love with her, again, she falls for him.
And it ends pretty quickly after that. I obviously can't tell you more without "spoiling" the plot, but let's say, with a premise like that, you'd expect an epic smackdown, or a horrifying revelation. Both happen, but nowhere near as dramatic as one would expect.
By the end of the novel, three characters are dead, and Nick quickly wraps up things and goes home, like, I am so done with this place.
To sum up my opinions of The Great Gatsby: it had far less drama than anticipated, it is not light reading, and isn't particularly absorbing.
I would recommend that anyone who reads this is a) in a philosophical state of mind, b) ready to handle the slightly confusing prose, and c) someone who harbours no delusions about the level of drama and action to be found in the novel.
The movie also featured Peter Mcguire, or the first Spiderman.
ReplyDeleteLes Miserables is a better period drama, as it also focuses on the aspects of history, and not just war as a juggernaut, rarely seen firsthand. While Fitzgerald's work seems like a scalpel compared to the rambling style of Victor Hugo, Hugo was a master wordsmith and one of the best authors who make readers empathize with characters, even in unfamiliar situations. For example, I never really could empathize with Gatsby, although his eccentric behavior may add to the allure of the story. Long story short, The Great Gatsby is a classic example of historical romance as a genre, but it's not the greatest. Also, hi.
Spiderman in West Egg? Sweet. Could've spiced things up a bit.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read Les Miserables, although I'd like to, so I'll take your word for Hugo's writing style. Also, I think The Count of Monte Cristo, which I reviewed some time ago, is a good period drama too, though of course I don't know what it's like compared to Les Miserables.
I do agree that Gatsby was difficult to empathise with. Frankly, I didn't feel much of a connection with any of the characters in The Great Gatsby.
As someone who enjoys historical romance novels, I have to say, I've read better than this that deserve to be called classic examples of the genre.
Looks like we have similar opinions of this book. So are you also wondering why it's considered so good or is it just me?