For my internal assessment, I have chosen to review The Great Gatsby by F.

Scott Fitzgerald which was published in 1925 and is regarded as one of Americas most prominent novels. The novel focuses on the American Dream ain the 1920s and it explores the attainability, purity and eventual tainting of the dream through the protagonist, Jay Gatsby. It also critiques the society of the roaring twenties, showcasing the excessive greed for wealth, corruption and loss of social and moral values of Americans in the era. Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was born September 24th 1898 in St Paul Minnesota. He studied at Princeton University but neglected his studies and eventually joined the Navy, where he was assigned duty in Montgomery, Alabama. There he met 18 year old Zelda Sayre whom he met and fell in love with. As they belonged to separate social classes Fitzgerald had to obtain social status in order to marry Zelda. Fitzgeralds relationship with Zelda thus provides the content for his novel and is paralleled in Gatsbys obsessive pursuit of Daisy, which is indeed the central focus of the novel.

The Great Gatsby is narrated by the first person narrator, Nick Carraway, who provides the readers with a perspective on the character of Gatsby. According to critic Perosa, Nick Carraway is the perfect narrator. He presents a dual perspective to the readers as he is both within and without the entire cycle of the novel. Nick describes Gatsby saying there was something gorgeous about him as an attempt to bring magnanimity to his character. The plot of the novel centres on Gatsbys overwhelming desire to recapture the love of Daisy who is married to Tom Buchanan. Through Gatsbys relentless pursuit, the novel moves from the reunion to eventual tragedy via a series of events.

The most preeminent theme contained in The Great Gatsby is the American Dream. Initially, the American Dream was derived from the founding fathers that created the Declaration of Independence which states that All men are created equally endowed by the father with the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. In its most rudimentary concept, the American Dream involves a person aspiring towards prosperity, success and increased social mobility through hard work. Thus, Gatsbys life becomes a metaphor for The American Dream as he strives to acquire wealth, success and acceptance into aristocratic society for the love of Daisy. She is like his Holy Grail as he describes one of their past meetings saying She blossomed for him like a flower and the incarnation was complete." Daisy emulates everything that Gatsby lived for, with her voice being described as full of money. According to critic Fahey, Gatsby ... has lived not for himself, but for his dream, for his

vision of the good life inspired by the beauty of a lovely rich girl. However, she also represents the frailty and how easily tainted the American Dream has become as she quickly withdraws her declared love for him. Critic Lockridge cited that His dream is an abstract idealism, but it becomes rooted in the material rather than transcend it. The use of this motif therefore highlights the endless pursuit of the American dream by generations as well as the tumultuous upheavals of Gatsbys emotions.

In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald employs the pervasive use of symbolism. The Valley of Ashes is located between West Egg and New York and is described as A fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens and Where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke The descriptions suggest the sterility of the inhabitants and the toll modern society has taken on those that are unable to access the American Dream. Fitzgeralds use of intertextuality is also present when he alludes to T. S Elliots poem The Wasteland. In this poem Elliot focused on the eventual emptiness of society after World War I and this is echoed in Fitzgeralds novel. Another significant symbol in the novel is the eyes of Dr T.J Eckleburg which suggest the eyes of God watching over the moral and social degradation of the people. Nick states we walked back a hundred yards along the road under Doctor T.J Eckleburgs persistent stare, suggesting the consistent brooding and vigilant judgement. Hence the use of symbolism serves to define the thematic concerns of the novel.

Motif is also an important technique utilized by Fitzgerald. The main motif in the novel is the green light from Daisys house which represents Gatsbys hope, optimism and desire to rekindle the past relationship he had with Daisy. The first time Nick sees Gatsby he states, he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, andI could have sworn he was trembling. distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock. Gatsbys focus on this green light reveals his obsessive desire for Daisy and is also associated with the green breast of land the original settlers encountered upon their arrival in the New World, symbolizing optimism and hope. Nick states Gatsby lived for the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us, suggesting the elusiveness of the dream. Also he states, It eluded us then, but thats no matter- tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther suggesting that despite the unattainable nature of the American Dream, generations will continue to pursue it. This technique serves to highlight Americas and Gatsbys persistent desire to regain the past.

Additionally, contrast is effectively utilized by Fitzgerald in the novels setting.

The

communities of West Egg and East Egg signify the class dichotomy in the period. East Egg contains materialistic, careless and selfish upper class people as typified by Tom and Daisy when Nick states They were careless people, Tom and Daisy they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together and left other people to clean up the mess they made. Meanwhile, West Egg contains people that are vulgar, ostentatious and lacking social taste as depicted by Gatsbys wild parties. The East Eggers have old inherited money meanwhile West Eggers are Noueve riche, those who have recently acquired wealth and therefore are overindulgent. West Eggers are not able to adapt to the sophisticated aristocratic lifestyle and so are not socially accepted. Thus the use of contrast highlights the hollowness, insensitivity and selfish attitude of the upper class throughout the period of the 1920s.

Irony is also an essential technique employed by Fitzgerald in the novel. The title of the novel itself stands as an ironic aspect as it presents Gatsby as being a magnificent character. Though the novels title is The Great Gatsby, the protagonist, Gatsby, is presented as being ultimately flawed and the tile is merely used to add magnanimity to his character. Additionally, it is also ironic that although Gatsby is presented as being flawed and earning social status via illegal means, he proves to be very devoted in doing so by interminably pursuing his dream. Professor Arthur Mizener states In so far Gatsby represents the simplicity of heart Fitzgerald associated with the Middle West, he is really a great man; out of Gatsbys ignorance of his real greatness and his misunderstanding of his notoriety, Fitzgerald gets most of the books direct irony. Also, irony is apparent in the fact that after throwing numerous parties for countless invited and uninvited guests no one came to Gatsbys funeral. Therefore, the use of irony highlights the selfishness and uncaring attitude of society.

Another critical technique applied by Fitzgerald is colour imagery which includes the colours white, yellow and pink. White is used to imply purity and innocence in the novel. It is associated with Daisy when she speaks of her white girlhood and They were both in white which implies her innocence and purity. The use of the colour yellow is to represent the corruption, tainting and contamination of the dream. It is used to describe the yellow car, yellow cocktail music and two girls in yellow dresses to suggest corruption of both

Gatsby dream and the American Dream. The yellow car also suggests the destruction caused by modern societys greed for wealth. Pink is also used to signify Gatsbys innocence and naivety as Tom declares An Oxford man! Like hell he is! He wears a pink suit. This naivety obstructs Gatsby from adapting and being accepted into aristocratic lifestyle. Hence Fitzgeralds use of colour imagery accentuates the purity and innocence of characters as well as the tainting of the dream.

In addition, pathetic fallacy is another crucial technique utilized by Fitzgerald. Upon the reunion of Gatsby and Daisy pathetic fallacy is ever-present in examples such as pouring rain, stopped raining and twinkle bells of sunshine. These instance of the use of pathetic fallacy coveys the change in Gatsbys mood and provide a sense of hope as he has reached near to achieving his dreams. Additionally, in chapter 7 pathetic fallacy is used to signify the climax of the novel. The use of Hot! Hot! Hot! and broiling symbolizes the climatic tension and conflict among the characters. Also the thick drizzle at Gatsbys funeral suggests the solemnity and sadness of the moment. Fitzgerald to create mood and atmosphere. Thus, pathetic fallacy is used by