The Great Gatsby

3 Pages 711 Words

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is set in the 1920’s during
the Jazz Age. Nick Carraway is a man in his late twenties residing on West
Egg island in Long Island, New York living a “normal” life. That is, until he
meets his mysterious neighbor, a wealthy man named Jay Gatsby. He is a
man of mystery, living in a mansion that is constantly full of people, music,
and fun. Nick’s “normal” life gets thrown topsy-turvy when he gets involved
in the life of this extraordinary millionaire. Marred by jealousy, cheating,
and lying, Nick begins to feel the essence of living a glamorous life in the
‘20’s. He showed this when he said, “Everyone suspects himself of at least
one of the cardinal virtues, and this is mine: I am one of the few honest
people that I have ever known.”
All along, I felt sorry for Nick being dragged into more and more
tragedy, but I especially felt bad for him during one instance. His friend
Daisy was married to Tom, but Tom was having an affair with Mrs. Wilson
and Daisy had a thing for Gatsby. Daisy and Gatsby were driving home from
town after an argument amongst the group of friends when they passed the
Wilson’s gas station. Mrs. Wilson ran out to Gatsby’s car, because they were
driving Tom’s car, and was hit. Mr. Wilson went positively crazy, and Nick
felt torn by his mixed feelings towards his supposed friend Gatsby. “I
disliked him so much by this time that I didn’t find it necessary to tell him
he was wrong.” Gatsby’s insensitivity brought on by his lifestyle made Nick
despise him. This is the part where I think Nick really started opening his
eyes to how Gatsby really was.
This book really displays how the life of an important person is,
especially in that time period. At first, Nick is awed and drawn in by the
glamour and prestige, but he eventually figures out for himself how rough it
really was. Although this book was set back in the...