The Great Gatsby and Me
Just recently, another movie has been released of The Great Gatsby, a 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald. While most artists do not enjoy success in their lifetimes, in stereotypical fashion, one has to die before their work is appreciated for its themes and depth of scope. This novel (and subsequent film adaptations) deals with the themes of idealism, resistance to change, social class, decadence, and excess which takes place in the Jazz Age (the 1920s in America between World War I and World War II). Of course just such things can be applied to any decade or social changes; and, in the great tradition of nostalgic twenty year cycles, Fitzgerald's novel was rediscovered in the 1940s for just such accomplishment and has since been applied to every high school English class and has been read by millions since.
For the sake of redundancy the plot is as such : The narrator is a guy named Nick who has moved to New York for a job to work as a bond salesman. While renting a house on Long Island in the fictional neighborhood known as West Egg, Nick finds himself living next door to a mysterious millionaire named Jay Gatsby who throws lavish parties. Nick travels across the river to another fictional neighborhood called East Egg to visit with his cousin Daisy and her husband Tom. As the summer progresses, Nick receives an invite to one of Gatsby's parties and accepts, where he meets the elusive Gatsby, a young, attractive, rather aloof man. He said he and Daisy from the East Egg house had a romantic encounter many years ago and hopes that they can somehow rekindle the great love that he had for her so long ago. He spends nights staring across the river to the East Egg house seeing a green light, longing for someday, somehow being able to find Daisy again and make his dream come true. Gatsby tells Nick that his extravagant party lifestyle was an attempt to attract Daisy to come to the house. Sure enough, his ploy eventually works and Daisy does attend one of his parties. They meet again, begin an affair, and all seems wonderful for a few weeks. Then Tom confronts Gatsby, telling him he knows what is going on, and Gatsby confirms it. Yes, it's true, he says, and Daisy is now to tell Tom that it is he that she has loved since they first met so many years ago. Daisy, however, does not confirm this. Tom assures Gatsby that she will never leave him because of their history together, and Daisy says something along the lines of "Well, I love you now, isn't that enough?"
At the time, I did not quite understand it save for the fact that Gatsby had been living in a fantasy world for years and she had broken it. Today, however, there was so much that I have experienced that made that statement particularly hurtful. People are shallow of course, I can admit that I can be as well. I wish, however, that I was that same person way back when, life seemed simpler. That might be nostalgia talking as well. I thought I had found the The One, he didn't. I feel like Gatsby, looking at that green lantern across the way in constant hope that someday, somehow he would see the light and come back. But he's not coming back. I was like Gatsby once, in a fantasy world, denial, believing that it would be alright and someday it would be again. But it isn't. I lashed out at him when I heard from him again after seven years of silence last fall, and he blocked me. It brought it all back, that's what it felt like.
Why this deep sorrow after so long? It hurts still, you'd think it was just yesterday. How can I break down in tears over it again while hearing that Johnny Mathis song "What'll I do?" The void still exists, it hurts still which I tried to fill with others who couldn't, wouldn't be the same thing that he was. I'm broken in a million little pieces still, pretending I am not to others. Must move on.
For the sake of redundancy the plot is as such : The narrator is a guy named Nick who has moved to New York for a job to work as a bond salesman. While renting a house on Long Island in the fictional neighborhood known as West Egg, Nick finds himself living next door to a mysterious millionaire named Jay Gatsby who throws lavish parties. Nick travels across the river to another fictional neighborhood called East Egg to visit with his cousin Daisy and her husband Tom. As the summer progresses, Nick receives an invite to one of Gatsby's parties and accepts, where he meets the elusive Gatsby, a young, attractive, rather aloof man. He said he and Daisy from the East Egg house had a romantic encounter many years ago and hopes that they can somehow rekindle the great love that he had for her so long ago. He spends nights staring across the river to the East Egg house seeing a green light, longing for someday, somehow being able to find Daisy again and make his dream come true. Gatsby tells Nick that his extravagant party lifestyle was an attempt to attract Daisy to come to the house. Sure enough, his ploy eventually works and Daisy does attend one of his parties. They meet again, begin an affair, and all seems wonderful for a few weeks. Then Tom confronts Gatsby, telling him he knows what is going on, and Gatsby confirms it. Yes, it's true, he says, and Daisy is now to tell Tom that it is he that she has loved since they first met so many years ago. Daisy, however, does not confirm this. Tom assures Gatsby that she will never leave him because of their history together, and Daisy says something along the lines of "Well, I love you now, isn't that enough?"
At the time, I did not quite understand it save for the fact that Gatsby had been living in a fantasy world for years and she had broken it. Today, however, there was so much that I have experienced that made that statement particularly hurtful. People are shallow of course, I can admit that I can be as well. I wish, however, that I was that same person way back when, life seemed simpler. That might be nostalgia talking as well. I thought I had found the The One, he didn't. I feel like Gatsby, looking at that green lantern across the way in constant hope that someday, somehow he would see the light and come back. But he's not coming back. I was like Gatsby once, in a fantasy world, denial, believing that it would be alright and someday it would be again. But it isn't. I lashed out at him when I heard from him again after seven years of silence last fall, and he blocked me. It brought it all back, that's what it felt like.
Why this deep sorrow after so long? It hurts still, you'd think it was just yesterday. How can I break down in tears over it again while hearing that Johnny Mathis song "What'll I do?" The void still exists, it hurts still which I tried to fill with others who couldn't, wouldn't be the same thing that he was. I'm broken in a million little pieces still, pretending I am not to others. Must move on.
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