F. Scott Fitzgerald and Gatsby Change
Some readers are irritated by Nick Carraway as a Narrator. What is your view of Fitzgerald’s use of Nick Carraway as a narrator?
Some readers can be hugely irritated by Nick as a narrator because he can be seen as lacking insight and very unperceptive ultimately this makes the reader feel wary about trusting Nick. He cannot give an accurate account of what has happened between Gatsby and Daisy before he met them. To make up for his lack of information, he turns to other sources such as Jordan Backer and Gatsby himself. At various points in the novel, Nick’s conversations with other characters serve to inform the reader about events that took place before Nick’s involvement in the story. In chapter IV, Nick listens to Jordan Baker describe the history of the romance between Gatsby and Daisy. However he uses direct speech and para-phrases what she has said so how do we know what we hear is accurate.
The reader can bear Nicks intoxication of Gatsby to a certain extent but then it becomes quite aggravating. Nick romanticising of Gatsby creates doubt in the readers mind, if he is so engulfed by him why would he ever seen Gatsby in a negative way. His feeling towards Gatsby change throughout the novel. He is very interested in him because of the mysterious atmosphere he receives. Nick’s opinion of Gatsby may colour his narration and therefore distorts the reader’s view of him. The reader cannot be sure whether this distorted view leads the reader to view Gatsby worst or better than he is. He is so engulfed in Gatsby’s amazing persona that he may not give an accurate account, as he is blinded by his admiration or even love.
It could be easy for a reader to become exasperated because he is always sympathetic towards Gatsby, never admitting that he has acted wrongly. He is too deeply involved in events and relationships. Therefore he is biased; he is drawn to be more sympathetic towards Gatsby, and negative and sarcastic towards Tom Buchanan. Nick’s positive attitude
Some readers can be hugely irritated by Nick as a narrator because he can be seen as lacking insight and very unperceptive ultimately this makes the reader feel wary about trusting Nick. He cannot give an accurate account of what has happened between Gatsby and Daisy before he met them. To make up for his lack of information, he turns to other sources such as Jordan Backer and Gatsby himself. At various points in the novel, Nick’s conversations with other characters serve to inform the reader about events that took place before Nick’s involvement in the story. In chapter IV, Nick listens to Jordan Baker describe the history of the romance between Gatsby and Daisy. However he uses direct speech and para-phrases what she has said so how do we know what we hear is accurate.
The reader can bear Nicks intoxication of Gatsby to a certain extent but then it becomes quite aggravating. Nick romanticising of Gatsby creates doubt in the readers mind, if he is so engulfed by him why would he ever seen Gatsby in a negative way. His feeling towards Gatsby change throughout the novel. He is very interested in him because of the mysterious atmosphere he receives. Nick’s opinion of Gatsby may colour his narration and therefore distorts the reader’s view of him. The reader cannot be sure whether this distorted view leads the reader to view Gatsby worst or better than he is. He is so engulfed in Gatsby’s amazing persona that he may not give an accurate account, as he is blinded by his admiration or even love.
It could be easy for a reader to become exasperated because he is always sympathetic towards Gatsby, never admitting that he has acted wrongly. He is too deeply involved in events and relationships. Therefore he is biased; he is drawn to be more sympathetic towards Gatsby, and negative and sarcastic towards Tom Buchanan. Nick’s positive attitude