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‘ Jay Gatsby is too foolish and ridiculous a gure to be seen as a“great” hero’

With reference to appropriately selected parts of the novel , andrelevant external contextual information, give your response to the

above view.

 Jay Gatsby is a diverse, dimensional character and throughout the novel weharbour dierent opinions about him due to the way in which Fitzgeraldsreveals the character to us. mmediately, from the title, Fitzgerald presents theidea of Gatsby as a ‘great! character and one we could consider a hero."owever as the novel progresses this idea is threatened, as Fitzgerald presentsother less admirable aspects of his character and a more foolish and rediculousview of Gatsby could be ta#en.

$ #ey element of Gatsby%s character is his relationship with &aisyFaye'(uchannan. nitially, Gatsby can be viewed as a romantic hero who)sdevotion and admiration to the women he loved could be loo#ed upon as trulyadmirable. We see proof of this possible admiration in Jordan (a#er)s deliveryof the details of their early relationship, *+hat ocer loo#ed at &aisy when shewas spea#ing in a way every young girl wants to be loo#ed at sometimes.-"ere we see Gatsby%s infatuation positively presented and suggests Jay couldfulll the role of a *great- hero. We continue to see Gatsby fulll the role of ahero through the eyes of /ic# as he tries to protect &aisy from +om by waitingin her garden. *%m 0ust going to wait here1all night if necessary.- While thisincidence partly presents Gatsby as &aisy%s hero, valiantly protecting her from

a perceived evil, Gatsby foolishness is also suggested here. +he reader is 2uiteaware &aisy has pic#ed +om over Gatsby and she is at no real ris#. Gatsby,however, remains oblivious to this unwilling to let his dream die, hisfoolishness eradicating his intended heroism. Gatsby%s relationship with &aisyon further e3amination serves to present him as a foolish and ridiculouscharacter multiple times4 such as when we learn *he read a 5hicago paper foryears 0ust on the chance of catching a glimpse of &aisy%s name.- "ere, we seeGatsby feelings towards &aisy as obsessive and unnerving and his actions asover the top and ridiculous which again damages his initial presentation as a*great- hero. +his eect is further established when the two meet and Gatsbydemonstrated the fruits of these labours, * there%s a lot of clippings 6 about

you- Fitzgerald uses this moment to present Gatsby as na7ve and childish,denitely suggesting Gatsby is too foolish and ridiculous to be seen as a greathero. 8everal aspects of the relationship between &aisy and Gatsby echoFitzgeralds own turbulent relationship with 9elda. "ow the couples met, thein:uence of money in the relationship and the element of the chase arecommon to both and the character of &aisy also 2uotes, often verbatim, from9elda%s diaries. ;erhaps through the character of Gatsby, Fitzgerald recognizeshis own mista#es.

 +he ?s, in which Fitzgerald set his novel, was a time of loose morals,e3cess and a lifestyle of pleasure4 which Fitzgerald himself indulged in.

"owever, he chooses to set Gatsby apart from this in several ways. $t Gatsby%sown parties which epitomize the lifestyle of the roaring twenties, he is often

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presented as isolated, a solitary gure, who does not engage the way othersdo. */o one swooned bac#wards on Gatsby, and no french bob touchedGatsby%s shoulder.- n doing this, Fitzgerald presents Gatsby as an icon ofmorality and decency, a respectable and noble character who could bethought of as a hero. Fitzgerald further separates Gatsby from the immoral

society through his aversion to alcohol, *for himself he formed the habit ofletting li2uor alone-. @ven though this was the era of prohibition, alcoholplayed a huge role, especially in the upperAclass social circles who oftenseemed, or were, above the law. Gatsby re0ection of this represents hisre0ection of the whole social scene and presents him again as an upstandingmoral gure who could be thought of as a great hero. "owever, Gatsby everpresent refrain *old sport- indicates a desire to be thought of as rened andhigh society and instead presents his isolation as caused by his inability totruly t into the society in which he only pretends to belong to. Fitzgeralds useof this phrase is also often aw#ward and unnatural ma#ing Gatsby loo# foolishand ridiculous which again suggests he cannot be loo#ed upon as a hero.

Fitzgeralds presentation of Gatsby as the embodiment of the $merican dreamsuggests he is a gure who could be seen as a great hero . +he $merican&ream is a national ethos of the Bnited 8tates, the set of ideals in whichfreedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success no matter yournancial state. Gatsby truly started from the bottom, *his parents wereshiftless and unsuccessful farm people- and through what we initially assumeto be hard wor# he rose to become immeasurably wealthy. With a huge house*a colossal aair by any standard1 a factual imitation of some "Ctel de Dille in/ormandy, with a tower on one side-complimented by his ‘Eoyles Eoyce) and‘a2uaplane.) +his presents Gatsby as a hero who overcame all odds to achieve

success. Fitzgeralds presentation of Gatsby)s bac#ground, however, countersthis. "e describes how he *lived as a young ra0ah in all the capitals of @urope1collecting 0ewels, chie:y rubies, hunting big game, painting a little.- "is story,so unbelievable even nonA0udgemental /ic# cannot believe the words thathave been )worn so threadbare that they evo#ed no image.- +he ridiculousbac#story Gatsby has created threatens the admiration we had for his successand presents him as foolish and na7ve.

Furthermore, Fitzgerald throughout the novel presents Gatsby as slightly out of touch with reality, unwilling to live in the real world. 8uch as Gatsby%srelationship with his parents whom *his imagination had never really accepted1 as his parents at all.- Gatsby seems to inhabit a ridiculous dream world inwhich anything can be achieved if you want it enough. We continue to see thiswhen Gatsby reveals the source of his commitment to &aisy (uchanan *5an)trepeat the past) he cried incredulously. ‘Why of course you can- "e trulybelieves he can erase the years he has spent apart from &aisy and continuefrom the beginning as if nothing had ever happened. +his is a cleardemonstration of Gatsby detachment from reality and his foolishnessregarding so many aspects of normal life, as well as his ridiculous e3pectationsof &aisy. Finally Fitzgeralds presentation of Gatsby after death creates nosuggestion that he was a hero. /ic#s inability to get funeral attendees showsthe fruitlessness of Gatsbys e3istence and the mere illusion of his life.5oncluding our impression of Gatsby in this way, Fitzgerald shows us that asheroic as Gatsbys lifestyle may have often appeared, it was so 2uic#ly reducedto nothing.

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n conclusion, believe despite the many ways in which Gatsby is presented asa hero by Fitzgerald, ultimately his repeated foolishness and ridiculousnessundermines these 2ualities and by the end of the novel he cannot beconsidered as such. Host of these foolish and ridiculous actions are provo#ed

by his infatuation with the unattainable &aisy (uchanan and it is thus ironicshe is also the inspiration of his heroic successes. Gatsby mas2ueraded as agentlemen worthy of &aisys attention but this life of illusion inhabited him fromproperly e3isting and was responsible for his isolation in death. In re:ectionthe character James Gatz created seems ridiculous and his actions foolish,ultimately ma#ing it imposiible to regard Gatsby as a hero.