Fitzgerald Creates an Aura of Mystery Around Jay Gatsby
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- Category: English: Novels
- Date Submitted: 02/02/2010 11:21 PM
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The novel, “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, creates an aura of mystery around the character of Jay Gatsby from the very beginning. Many things suggest that Gatsby is both great and mysterious, including the title of the book, his delayed speaking role in the book and the way people speak about him. Although he appears to be and is referred to as mysterious and great, Gatsby appears to be normal and he may be described in this way because of the way people speak of him.
One reason that Gatsby is portrayed to both Nick and the reader as mysterious are the rumors about him. Before Nick actually meets him face to face, Nick is unsure about Gatsby. The only thing he knows about his neighbor is that he is extremely wealthy and he throws extravagant parties every fortnight. The first rumor Nick hears is at the first of Gatsby’s parties that he attends. He is with Jordan and two other girls, who begin gossiping about Gatsby. One of the girls say they heard that Gatsby killed a man, while the other one disagrees with her and says that he was a German spy during the war (pg. 48). In chapter 4, a group of young ladies talked about Gatsby, calling him a “bootlegger” and also said that he killed a man who found out he was the nephew to von Hindenburg (pg. 65). This demonstrates the fact that many people know very little about him, and that many negative rumors about Gatsby are floating among the party guests.
Even though the book is named after Gatsby, Fitzgerald doesn’t physically introduce him to Nick until Chapter 3. The title, “The Great Gatsby”, has the reader wondering about what makes Gatsby so great from the very beginning. Leaving the reader with only an image and different rumors about him, Gatsby becomes a very mysterious and concealed character in the beginning. Once Nick goes to Gatsby’s party, he realizes that the guests know little about him and it was hard just to find Gatsby. Nick finally meets Gatsby at the party but when they are talking,...
One reason that Gatsby is portrayed to both Nick and the reader as mysterious are the rumors about him. Before Nick actually meets him face to face, Nick is unsure about Gatsby. The only thing he knows about his neighbor is that he is extremely wealthy and he throws extravagant parties every fortnight. The first rumor Nick hears is at the first of Gatsby’s parties that he attends. He is with Jordan and two other girls, who begin gossiping about Gatsby. One of the girls say they heard that Gatsby killed a man, while the other one disagrees with her and says that he was a German spy during the war (pg. 48). In chapter 4, a group of young ladies talked about Gatsby, calling him a “bootlegger” and also said that he killed a man who found out he was the nephew to von Hindenburg (pg. 65). This demonstrates the fact that many people know very little about him, and that many negative rumors about Gatsby are floating among the party guests.
Even though the book is named after Gatsby, Fitzgerald doesn’t physically introduce him to Nick until Chapter 3. The title, “The Great Gatsby”, has the reader wondering about what makes Gatsby so great from the very beginning. Leaving the reader with only an image and different rumors about him, Gatsby becomes a very mysterious and concealed character in the beginning. Once Nick goes to Gatsby’s party, he realizes that the guests know little about him and it was hard just to find Gatsby. Nick finally meets Gatsby at the party but when they are talking,...