The Great Gatsby

Plot summary of The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby is a novella that is set in 1920s New York, specifically Long Island in 1922, in a period known as the Roaring Twenties.

This is all key to the context of The Great Gatsby, which captures this period from the perspective of an author who lived through it. The novel is about a mysterious, wealthy man called Jay Gatsby, but is narrated by the much quieter character Nick Carraway.

Nick and Jay Gatsby are neighbours in an area called West Egg in Long Island. This is mostly home to people who come from 'new money'; that is, those that have made their money themselves and have not inherited it. Nick and Jay Gatsby soon become friends but, despite the grand parties that he hosts in his mansion for New York's elite every night, it is clear that Gatsby has something to hide.

These secrets are revealed gradually to Nick as the novel develops. Much of this is helped by his relationship with Jordan Baker, a beautiful and aloof golfer. She is a close friend of a woman called Daisy Buchanan, who also happens to be Nick's cousin.

It becomes clear, through Jordan's investigations, that Gatsby hosts these grand parties in the hope that his teenage sweetheart, Daisy, will attend. Daisy lives across the lake in East Egg with her arrogant and brutal rich husband Tom Buchanan. East Egg is where those that come from 'old money', or inherited money, live. They tend to look down on those in West Egg.

Nick reintroduces Gatsby and Daisy and the two appear to fall back in love. Daisy cheats on Tom with Gatsby, and Gatsby truly believes that she will leave Tom and start a new life with him.

But things are not so simple. Tom Buchanan discovers Daisy's adultery and in a dramatic confrontation scene, Daisy admits that she loves both Gatsby and Tom. It is now unlikely that she will run away with Gatsby as he had hoped. It was revealed earlier in the novel that Tom has been cheating on Daisy with a local woman, Myrtle Wilson, who is married to his mechanic, George, a harsh and abusive man. As you may be able to guess, this story does not have a happy ending and Gatsby does not get the girl.

On their way back from the hotel in New York where the confrontation had taken takes place, Daisy drives into Myrtle. Nick learns that Gatsby intends to take the blame for this because of his devotion to Daisy despite all that has happened. Before Gatsby can do this, Tom tells George that Gatsby hit Myrtle and George then assumes this is the man Myrtle has been having an affair with.

Fig. 1 - The yellow car is a symbol of the reckless and destructive behaviour that comes with wealth and privilege. The image above is the model from The Great Gatsby 2013 film.

In a case of mistaken identity, George shoots and kills Jay Gatsby, ending both his life and all that he represents. Nick is devastated by this, unlike everyone else who surrounded Gatsby, Daisy included. He holds a funeral for him and then leaves New York. Nick has become disillusioned by how fake everyone in Gatsby's life was and feels as though they have abandoned a man who was naive but well-meaning.

Who are the main characters in The Great Gatsby?

Key themes in The Great Gatsby

The main themes in The Great Gatsby are the American Dream, love, money, and corruption.

The American Dream

This is one of the most important themes in Fitzgerald's novel. The American Dream is the idea that in America anyone can succeed through hard work, regardless of background and circumstances. America is the 'land of opportunity'. The Great Gatsby questions this idea in its treatment of Gatsby. Jay Gatsby believes that, despite his poor background, he can have everything he wants: wealth, success, and, most importantly, Daisy Buchanan.

But he has none of these things in the end. Even though he has become very wealthy through illegal activities, he is still looked down upon by those that are part of 'Old Money', like Tom and Daisy. This is exemplified by Tom's referral to Gatsby as 'Mr Nobody from Nowhere' (Chp. 7). To be thought of in this manner is Gatsby's greatest fear and serves to prove that no matter how much money he has, he is still regarded as below the aristocrats. Gatsby never attains the same status as them and ends the novel by losing his life.

Love and dysfunctional marriages

The Great Gatsby is full of examples of unhealthy relationships. Tom and Daisy Buchanan cheat on each other yet remain together, Myrtle cheats on George who is also abusive, and Gatsby begins an affair with Daisy while aware that she is married. Even Nick Carraway, in his relationship with Jordan Baker, eventually becomes disillusioned with her and breaks off the relationship because she too has abandoned Gatsby.

The relationship that is the driving force of the novel is the one between Gatsby and Daisy, and this too is problematic. Gatsby's love for Daisy is really closer to an obsession. Nostalgia is very important in The Great Gatsby and this is a key trait of Jay Gatsby's. He is obsessed with the idea of a young Daisy; but this daisy no longer exists.

Money and corruption

As we have already mentioned, many characters in The Great Gatsby can be divided into old (inherited) and new (earned) money. But money is a corrupting influence in this novel. Tom, Daisy, and Jordan are from the established aristocracy. They lack empathy and often look down on those who have new money or no money. Their money has made them snobbish and allows them to believe they can do what they please with few consequences.

Jay Gatsby is also not innocent. He is from new money and not snobbish, but he has gained his wealth through illegal means. Nick meets Meyer Wolfshiem in New York, a man Gatsby has done business with, an untrustworthy and dangerous man.

This insinuates that what Gatsby is involved in is a world of criminality. The parties that Gatsby hosts with his money also allow New York's wealthy to pursue hedonistic pleasure, which is not portrayed positively in the novel.

Fig. 2 - The Great Gatsby criticises the American Dream and shows how pursuing such a dream can destroy relationships and people.

Literary devices in The Great Gatsby

Literary devices are important in any analysis of this novel:

The unreliable narrator

We know that The Great Gatsby is narrated retrospectively from Nick Carraway's perspective. But just how trustworthy a narrator is he? On the first page of the novel, Nick tells us that he is 'inclined to reserve all judgements' which suggests that he is unbiased. But why is he so insistent about this, and are there indicators that this isn't entirely true? If Nick has written this story then he has also written the title The Great Gatsby. This suggest some kind of bias.

The deep care Nick develops for Gatsby is most obvious in the wake of Gatsby's death. He is devastated and cannot remain in New York any longer. This obviously strong friendship calls into question the truthfulness of the story Nick tells.

Symbolism

Fitzgerald uses quite a lot of symbolism in The Great Gatsby.

The most important symbol is the green light at the end of Tom and Daisy's dock. Jay Gatsby often spends his days gazing at it from his house opposite theirs; Nick once sees him reaching for it with an outstretched hand. The green light represents Gatsby's longing and dreams of gaining Daisy and, more broadly, perhaps represents the effort to fulfil the American Dream. However, he fails to reach both it and Daisy.

The Valley of Ashes is a desolate industrial wasteland between New York City and West Egg. The valley symbolizes the moral decay and corruption of the American Dream. It represents the failure of the capitalist system and the emptiness and despair that lies beneath the surface of the Roaring Twenties.

Another symbol is Gatsby's bright yellow car. It represents how the new rich spend their money. It is a gaudy car that those from old money, like Tom, judge. This shows that Gatsby is not used to having wealth and also shows his naivety.

The car is first introduced in Chapter 3, when Gatsby arrives at Nick's house for lunch in his 'gorgeous car, a monstrous length with triumphant hat-boxes and supper-boxes and tool-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of windshields that mirrored a dozen suns.' The car is described as a 'circus wagon' and a 'death car' due to its garish yellow colour and its sheer size.

How has The Great Gatsby contributed to English Literature?

The Great Gatsby was not commercially successful. However, it saw a revival in the mid-20th century and went on to become one of the most well-known novels of the century. It has been adapted for film and is still popular today.

Perhaps the most important contribution The Great Gatsby made to English Literature was its critical and nuanced exploration of the American Dream. This is still a very popular theme in American literature and Fitzgerald breaks it down and exposes the issues it possesses. This can be seen in Gatsby's idealism and Daisy's abandonment of him.