Narrator Techniques

[Unregistered]

Are you sure you read the book, or are you just talking about the movie?

[Unregistered]

Yeah, did you read the book? You sound all about the movie.

[Unregistered]

This is the perfect statement for this book!

[Unregistered]

Yes, both versions have differences from the books. From car colors, to symbolism, some things can get you wrong answers on tests.

[Unregistered]

Just read the book. Only losers take shortcuts.

[Unregistered]

I had the same problem - I had absolutely no idea what was going on after I finished the chapter. I went in and asked my teacher, who has been reading the Greta gAtsby un her class every year for the past 8 years, and she told me that Nick Carraway's character is gay - and he has an affair with Mr. Mckee, who he leaves the party with.

[Unregistered]

The only time that Nick's sexuality needs to be established is when we need to assess his reliability as a narrator. <br>Nick clearly puts Gatsby on a pedastle, but that does not mean that her has a sexual love for him.<br>Does he pair himself with Jordan because Daisy and Tom want him to? Remember, he never quite gets there with Jordan, the athletic woman.<br>The end of chapter two: after the drunken party where Tom breaks Myrtle's nose, Nick leaves the party with mr McKee, who he described as 'feminine'. Mr.McKee leaves his wife, a butch woman, at the party. Nick and Mr McKee are in the elevator, where there are innuendoes.<br>.....(The technical way of saying 'let's not talk about this bit).<br>And then Nick is standing next to Mr McKee's bed, with Mr McKee in his underwear clutching his 'great portfolio' (okay, so this is his photographs).<br>Let's look at Nick's retelling of Gatsby's kiss with Daisy in chapter 6. Gatsby has told Nick about the kiss that happened 5 years previouse. Nick, the narrator, doesn't just tell us about this kiss, he lives this kiss with us! Nick doesn't have a kiss like this in the whole of this beautifull summer of 1922; a young, available man at wild parties.<br>This book is full of innuendoes of Nick's sexuality. Could Fitzgerald have written a book with a homosexual as a central character in the 1920s? I don't think so.<br>Is it important to know Nick's sexuality? Only to establish his reliablity as a characture witness, as we have to trust what he tells us, with him being the narrator.<br>My opinion, anyway, and I haven't seen any film.<br>Enjoyed the book.

[Zakhyn]

I completely agree. It is the same for me.<br>

[marky b]

Many people think that nick was gay, but in fact he was bi-sexual. He had a 'relation' with another man, but he also loves women. In the book, Nick says that he disagrees with everything that Gatsby does, but continues to be friends with him. Maybe Nick is attracted to Gatsby...?<br><br>-marky b-

[Amber]

Okay...the thing about Nick being gay is soooo NOT TRUE. He didnt wake up in the elevator, he woke up in the train station because he had gotten drunk at the party.

[G]

Don't believe the first 2 comments, you will fail any exam if you use those answers. Nick is not gay, nor bisexual. He des get drunk, however does not wake up with Mr. Mckee. He passes out standing up BESIDE the bed, and finds himself occaionally waking up from his drunken state. At one point the photographer is showing him his portfolio, which suggests to the reader that Nick has a welcoming personality and that people are comfortable. He finally wakes up in the train station, alone!

[G]

Yes, there are quite a few differences between the book and the movie. The cars seem slightly different, if you pay attention to that type of detail, but a lot of the quotes were changed by the director to add to the effect of the acting. I highly recommending reading the whole book and pay attention to the little things, like Meyer Wolfsheim's cufflinks and how Daisy, Tom and Jay leave the hotel. The movie version that I saw was actually very different. However watching the movie afterwards helped me piece everything together one last time.

[Todd Sampson]

I took a basic english course my first year at university, and I was rather upset at my professors indifferent approach to "The Great Gatsby". I liked my prof, in general, but he concluded that Fitzgerald does not make his intentions clear, although his poetry is stunning. I agree with you, I think (as far as understand your opinion of Nick's role). <br>I think the most important decision we make when reading the novel will be our final opinion of Gatsby, and I think this is where Fitzgerald is leading us. Nick's father's advice in the opening is important I believe, and if disregarded then the book would appear a bit irrelevant, and addopt the lose your illusions theme, so many people seem to attach to it. In the end Nick begins to accept Gatsby, and I think he realizes we all have illusions and that they are unique due to our character, as well as our experiences, but more importantly he realizes they are irrelevant Yes, we must do what we can to break down our own illusions, but to judge others based on bad judgement is false. <br>In short, what makes men great, is faith. Unbreakable belief and willingness to follow the present cause. Unfortunately for Gatsby, this cause is a love which is dependent on a faithless woman. I found this to be the view of the novel I could support best.

[Unregistered]

Why don't you go back and actually read chapter 2. How could anyone misunderstand what what going on. Nick has already established himself as a reliable narrator, so there is not need to speculate that he is trying to cover up anything.

[Unregistered]

Check the conclusion of chapter two when a drunk Nick visits McKee's place to see his collection of photographs. McKee's in bed, in his underwear, while Nick looks on. There's no hanky-panky, but the situation is questionable.

[Unregistered]

nick is not gay. he is drunk and the guy taking pictures shows him his portfolio. no question about it.

[ben]

I agree man, its a Tuffy, sophomore?

[Kim]

If you actually read the book it talks about him leaving on the elevator but then the end of the chapter says, and i quote "Then I was lying half asleep in the cold lower level of the Pennsylvania Station (that would be a train station NOT an elevator), staring at the morning "Tribune" and waiting for the four o'clock train." What is hard to understand about that?

[Unregistered]

just to let u know that nick does wake up with a man...Mr. Mckee to be exact at the end of chapter 2...the very last page...it says that he woke up the next morning with mr. Mckee, described as being a very feminine man earlier in the chapter, in his underwear stading beside him with a great portfolio.

[Amelie]

I totaly agree with you.<br>I'm a french student and I studied the great gatsby this year for my exam.<br>I saw the film too. I think this novel is the more interesting that I've read since I read english books.The ones who say TGG isn't a great book don't understand the subtility fitz. employed in his novel.<br>That's all!<br>

[Unregistered]

Actually according to what you said. I think that you have never read the book.<br>

[Unregistered]

I assumed that Nick fell asleep on the train on the way home and dreamt that he was next to the bed. But that leaves me with the question; what is the significance of the dream?

[Ashley]

I had a bit of trouble with that part my self.See nick is leaving the party when he passes out at the train station. He wasn't even in the elevator. that is how he left from the party

[Cess]

hum I am french (I learn english for 6 years), I'm 17 and i have to read it for my english class. TGG is a bit difficult but if you really try to understand it you'll discorver a beautiful story with really interesting character! I can understand even I am french so you can understand too! lol

[erin]

i believe Nick is gay, or curious as he describes myrtle as voluptuous and is disgusted by that. he is attracted to Jordan, as she has a boyish like figure, and perhaps Jordans name is significant too, as it can be used for a boy or a girl...just an idea [ignore spelling mistakes} :-)<br><br>also the cinematic techniques used in teh novel work effectively. as at the end of chapter 2 it cuts to the guy in the bed, and yet leaves out what happened from the elevator ---to being in the bed. it allows us readers to think and anayles what is going on. <br><br>think about it. Gatsby is actually great - because that is the way NICK portrays and describes him too us. maybe he has a bias veiw as nick has deeper feelings for him, more than a friendship????<br><br>good luck everyone in your own analyses and SA's etc x

[Unregistered]

Are you sure you did a senior thesis on The Great Gatsby? By your grammer and spelling in your post, you mean when you were a senior in high school, right? If not, it is the perfect example of the decay of the American university system.

[Unregistered]

who cares? if nick were SUPPOSEDLY gay...then fitzgerald would let us know that...he wouldnt keep us wondering.

[Unregistered]

Nick wakes up with Mr. Mckee at the very end of chapter 2. "I was standing beside his bed and he was sitting up between the sheets, clad in his underwear..." Also he talks about Jordan but they never do anything! Not even kiss.

[Unregistered]

nick wakes up with a man (mr mckee) at the end of chapter 2 darling. read the book

[Unregistered]

The book is FAR better than the movie. The casting is terrible, in my opinion. Meyer Wolfsheim is presented as jovial, whereas in the book he is dark and scary. Myrtle is nothing like the curvy woman from the book. Tom doesn't look like he's capable of "enormous leverage" as stated in the book; he's just too small. Mr. Wilson, in the book, seemed to be described as older than he was when shown in the movie Other than the set and costumes, the movie was not even worth watching, it's not true enough to the book for me and leaves important details out. You can't grasp Fitzgerald's true intentions for the novel because you don't get to the characters as well.

[Unregistered]

Excuse me, but how does the comment about the 1970's movie of The Great Gatsby version relate to Nick possibly being a homosexual? As for the movie, yeah, I do wonder if you read the book. Maybe when you compare it to books that have been mangled and cosider this a very 'true' version of the book. The end credits hurt it a lot for me. It ends with Nick sadded and reflecting on Gatsby and after about 10 seconds it comes in with cheerful/jumpy song of the 1920s (it was featured in the book with some of the lyrics cut out for literary purposes). A man just died! It doesn't matter if this is only a fictional story, it just killed all the impact that I *THOUGHT* it was trying to show! Honestly! 8&

[Unregistered]

Excuse me, but how does the comment about the 1970's movie of The Great Gatsby version relate to Nick possibly being a homosexual? As for the movie, yeah, I do wonder if you read the book. Maybe when you compare it to books that have been mangled and cosider this a very 'true' version of the book. Mia Farrow works better for the flighty look compared to the A&E TV movie of this book. Some scenes are cut and some a emphasised. It seems small but they cut out the Owl-Eyed Man at the funeral, who severed a purpose. Perhaps they didn't want him to say it even though I recall that they allowed the word $h!t in the movie...?<br><br>Overall, the end credits hurt it a lot for me. It ends with Nick sadded and reflecting on Gatsby and after about 10 seconds it comes in with cheerful/jumpy song of the 1920s (it was featured in the book with some of the lyrics cut out for literary purposes). A man just died! It doesn't matter if this is only a fictional story, it just killed all the impact that I *THOUGHT* it was trying to show! Honestly! 8&

[Unregistered]

I am confused at the end of Chapter 2 when Nick wakes up with a man(possibly elevator boy).What happened at this scene?

[Sandra]

I have read this book four times so far and seen the movie twice, this book is a beloved classic.

[nicole]

um ok to that comment above where the hell in the book dose nick wake up with a man!!!?? nowhere!!! i have done my senior thesis on this book and theres none of that in Gatsby if you read the book you would know Nick had a small romance with jordan baker!. the movie is so close to the book! like Mia Farrow is the PERFECT!! daisy! like when nick sees her for the first time and she goes iam paralized with happiness! its just like the book! it was a great casting choice along with the rest of the charecters except for myrtle wilson(toms misstress) i think i expected more.

[Anonymous]

I am a High School student who was assigned to read The Great Gatsby for my English class. Though it was a somewhat difficult read, the ending is what made me love it. I thought the way Nick kept from telling Tom that Daisy was the one who was driving when Myrtle got hit was a perfect portrayal of Nick's character. And I think the way Gatsby died sends an obvious message that Money cannot buy happiness.

[Jacinta]

I am a highschool student in Australia. We read The Great Gatsby for English. Although it was a little hard to understand at first I enjoyed it. Fitzgerald is a great author. Books such as this should be read by everyone.

[Unregistered]

I agree that money does not buy happiness. It was a great book with a satifying ending.

[aurelie]

I'm a french student and I read this book for my english class. It was so hard to understand in english that we had to read the french translation! It pretty much shows how was the american society in the roaring ages and how sad it was after the WW1 for people even if they were wealthy... The most striking thing is how the author succeeded to show the bad side of america, the failure of the american dream, and that's great because in other countries, people are used to idealize the usa! The american society used to be unperfect and all in all it still is! A great novel with no "happy end" which makes it realistic!

[Unregistered]

Sorry, not so wonderful, but TGG is perhaps one of the most representative literary works of the 20th century. It is obviously assigned & read in high school & postsecondary English classes to introduce students to a masterful display of various literary techniques in action. TGG has stood the test of time & has earned the distinction of one of the truly great American novels. It's relative compactness appeals to many reluctant readers in classrooms who unfortunately would be intimidated and discouraged by sheer page numbers of longer works. The readers who struggle with TGG would include those whose prior knowledge does not include understanding and appreciation of the time setting, i.e., the Roaring Twenties, and that culture. The "money does not buy happiness" central theme is as relevant today as it was when Mr. F wrote TGG. Perhaps a rereading is in order for you, old sport.

[Sue]

angry that i had to read an American related book in an Australian English class........i was forced to give this book a go.............after reading it....at first things seemed to get more and more confusing..............<br>after finishing this book..........i grasped on the essence of American society.........so another thing learnt....another thing more i can proudly boast i've learnt...............

[Hot Rod]

I think the book was very educational. I really enjoyed because there was a suspense building throughout the book and has you sitting on the edge of your seat. I especially liked Nick because he helps out his best friends even though he he goes against his cousin. He seems not to care about anybody. As long as everybody is he happy he is happy.

[Cat]

Abosolutely brilliant. I read the last paragraph of every novel before I begin it; maybe to tease, maybe for another reason, not sure, anyhow. ...."So we beat on....boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." That is brilliant. I was hooked by that line. Fitgerald is a genius.<br><br>

[Emma]

Im 16 years old and have been required to read this book for school. However i do not understand it as i have had great trouble trying to read it, I loose track of the plot constantly and when we go over things in class i can never recall reading what were discussing! Reading is one of my hobbies and ive had no trouble with classical books before. <br>

[Unregistered]

the great gatsby was one of the worst books i have read. It was boring and didn't seem to even have much of a story line a true representive of the title would be the crap gatsby

[Helen]

I would like to open up a new discussion about Nick being the narrator of The Great Gatsby.<br>As I read through the book I found myself changing my mind about different characters. I guess we are learning as Nick is learning. As Nick changes opinions, then so do we. Nick's experiences are our experiences.<br>Is this what makes it a great book? A timeless book?

[litle miss me]

<br>I had to read this for year 9 work...yes year 9.I think that the language used is a bit advanced for this age, well for me anyhow.At first the book was reallly boring and i just couldnt get in to it, but as i had to read it, i tried my best to get in to it. About on the 5th chapter i found it quite intersesting but still didnt get what was going on sometimes. The settings are always described beauitfully and with great detail. Nearer the end i wanted the book to keep going on, if i have to criticise about anything it would be that there are too many characters in it, i kept getting confused with who was who.

[Unregistered]

I'm a french student of 19 and we have read great gatsby in enlish class. I think it's an interressant novel for who wants to learn about the life during the twenties in America with the Jazz age and how the working class can be confrnted to the hollowness of the upper class. It was the first book I read in english and I enjoyed it even if the autor uses old english sometimes I think this novel accessible for every english learners. Tommorrow I have to tell about a teacher on a extract from the novel and I hope it will be fine. Anne-Claire from Lyon, France.

[Emma]

I read the Great Gatspy in only 1 day. the characters kept me so interested that I could not put the book down. The greatest aspect of this book I feel is how the characters actually felt realand the you began to feel their pain or happiness. And you continually held the ope that Daisy would see how mush Gatsby cared for her eventhough in the back of your mind you knew it was never going to happed. she was too weak.

[Truth]

This book is overrated. I bet Fitzgerald was just making some crap up and coincidently people made all these gay connctions in the book about color and ****. This was one of the most uninteresting book i have ever read. I say this because i find nothing in this book exciting or the least bit interesting. People just overrate this to make themselves feel smarter than the average reader. I bet Fitzgerald is laughing in his grave right now, he was a party animal and a drunken hippy. I can't believe people consider this book to be the best novel ever written. He wasn't the least bit creative. I bet he just wrote about himself the way he imagined he could have been. This book was absolutely boring.

[ThE TuRtLe]

I foun the Great Gatsby to be a good book in terms of the message delivered. It warns people of the corruption in high society and tells the average man that money does not always buy true happiness. This book wasn't the best novel I've read but it was still a good story. I recommend it to all reading this.

[Unregistered]

I agree with those who say that this book should not be considered great or classic literature because of the structure of the plot and the potrayal. Although, I did like the unpredictable ending, Mr. Wilson shoots Gatsby!! Didnt see that one coming

[Unregistered]

Just for what it's worth...<br>I'm sorry for people who cannot appreciate Gatsby--whether the man or the novel. Gatsby, the man, is great, not because of anything he does, but because he refuses to allow himself to be limited by the limitations of reality. When Nick, the realist, gently reminds him that he "can't repeat the past," his response, "Can't repeat the past? Why, of course you can!" is the key to his character. He reminds us of the man pursuing the horizon in Stephen Crane's poem. When the speaker tells the man "It is futile! You can never--," the man cries, "You lie!" and runs on. Gatsby, too, "runs on," believing until (perhaps) the last moments of his life that his dream, ("so close he [can] not fail to grasp it"), must surely come true. Even though Nick "disapprove[s] of him" from beginning to end and sees him as representing "everything for which [Nick has] an unaffected scorn," he cannot help, in the final analysis, realizing and admiring Gatsby's "extraordinary gift for hope." In our world of cynicism and despair, the ability to hope is indeed a gift. Is Gatsby blind in his refusal to see reality? Perhaps; but it is a beautiful, almost holy madness. Like Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha, Gatsby dreams the "impossible dream," and is faithful to it until the end, as he is to his "platonic conception" of himself.<br>

[Unregistered]

At first I didn't know what to think of The Great Gatsby. I read the whole thing without cheating or watching the movie. When I first started reading I was like "Say What?" and it was all just really. . .I didn't care about Nick to tell you the truth. But as I read the Gatsby character began to intrigue me as he did Nick and his fellow party goers. I began to link the characters in different groups. There was the selfish successful people such as Myrtle, Daisy, Tom and party people, then Gatsby was in his own group along with Nick. (Nick is far too mysterious and we can only speculate about his personality but I put him in with Gatsby.) The rich were the ones always taking from others, only caring about themselves. I mean even when Tom went to get Daisy back in the end it was because he needed at least one women to treat like dirt. Whereas Gatsby and Nick had some sense of morals. I think because Gatsby was brought up poor, it made him appreciate alot more what was given to him. I mean you can tell by the end, even though he appeared rich, he never became close friends with anyone except for the drunk and Nick. They were the only ones at his funeral. I know that this might make people angry but its the truth (which is why it will) but American's these day's are strongly protrayed by these "rich" characters. And we wonder why foreigne countries hate us. We're so stinkin prideful! (myself included) That must of been why Nick didnt even want to shake Tom's hand in the end. This book speaks strongly to todays culture as well as the 1920s. xxGodspeed

[thomas]

i'm a french boy..who studied this book for an exam...i think there is an important part of blabla... but when we comeback on this detail..you can see that each one is very important an in a way this book is very complicated...but interesting...gatsby is a good man an he is the symbole that the humans can do everything for the love of a woman...it's amazinggg!!! but in other way...nick make me laugh...he is a miserable man...

[Unregistered]

Is the book any diffrent from the movie I want to know so that I can take some shortcuts

[kerema]

i believe that gatsby was all about good intentions. it does not matter if he got involved in ilegal activities. this shows all the love that gatsby has for his beloved daisy.

[kelby_lake]

As for Nick being gay, it's ambiguous. I don't think that there is an aspect of his relationship with Gatsby that suggests he wants to get into bed with him but there is also no hint of anything sexual in his relationship with Jordan either. It's also interesting that the way Nick describes Gatsby and Daisy's relationship is very childlike. He doesn't indicate any sexual attraction between the two although there must have been.

Whether Nick cannot form sexual relationships because he is recovering from the war, because he's insecure, because he's simply not interested or because he is repressing his homosexuality, is debatable, but it is definitely important to the novel because he accuses Gatsby of living in a dream world and denying the truth, whereas this might be exactly what Nick is doing. He tells Gatsby off for lingering on the past but that's exactly what Nick does in his narration.