Maybe it’s just me, but I felt like this book had no actual plot. Perhaps I’m missing a huge part, or I’m not picking up on the symbolic arrangements in the book, but it seemed like an easy and somewhat boring read. I felt like Fitzgerald did not build up to the excitement of the climax of the book, and when the actual ‘climax’ happened, per say, it ended just as quickly as it started. I felt as if one moment Gatsby was in no way connected to Daisy besides through Nick, and then all of a sudden it turns out they've known eachother for years. It felt like I didn’t know much about Gatsby until after he died, which made me a little sad because he was one of the semi decent people in the book.
It was hard to imagine this book taking place in the 1920's, so when it talked about how it was okay for a man to have a 'mistress,' that took some getting used to for me. I wish I could connect more to Gatsby or Nick, and then perhaps I could connect more to the story itself. I did, however, feel bad for Gatsby when no one came to his funeral. And also It was sad how Nick called person after person and still no one showed up to show their respects towards Gatsby. Gatsby seemed like a relatively nice guy, so it was strange that no one came. Wolfheim had said he did not want to get tangled up in those kinds of affairs, but for the others, I couldn't figure out why they didn't go. It was also sad how Gatsby did so much for Daisy. He was determined to go into the Army and earn a lot of money to solely impress her. He went through so much trouble to 'woo' her and to spend time with her, only to get shot in the end--because of her.
For this book, I used the interact with the book annotation because I knew that I needed to try and connect with the storyline as much as I could to pick up on the little things. It actually helped me stay focused and it helped me transition through the scenes a lot smoother. I would read this book during my off time at work and several people who would see the book would ask me how I liked it. I told them that it was okay, but person after person would tell me to stop reading it—that it was a “waste of time.” I didn't think it was necessarily a waste of time, and it didn’t seem so bad while I was reading it, but once I finished it, I was apathetic about Fitzgerald's story. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it.
I've heard that a lot too! I don't think it's a waste of time, but I think Fitzgerald is writing about a different time period and that's hard to get sometimes. I think he did have a point--we'll talk about it more in class, but getting through it is half the battle!
ReplyDelete