Gatsby and Symbolism

                                     In my personal opinion Gatsby is the most important character so far. He is mysterious, eye-catching, and interesting. I believe he is the most important character because of his sense of life style. His life is believed so fantastic and excited that it becomes unrealistic at some point. For example,  in chapter four he tells the narrator, Nick, not to get the wrong idea based upon the rumors of his life. Yet on the same page in the book Gatsby lies to Nick about his education. This makes me wonder; why would he lie about something as simple as his schooling when people lie about these crazy adventures he has had in the past. Honestly I don't think that the people who speak of Gatsby's life mean to lie. It seems like a game of telephone. Someone probably started with the truth and told someone else. When that person told someone else what they heard the story becomes altered and continues on this cycle until the original story and the current "rumor" differ completely.

                                     Gatsby's character and life style is very symbolic at times. It is symbolic how he lies to Nick after his education when his life is already known as a crazy and unrealistic. Another symbolic element associated with Gatsby is money. His flaunts his money to create a fake prosona in order to keep up with "his" life style. His money is also a symbol of the power he has over many people. In this story money can control people as easy as oxygen. People will bend over backwards to become associated with someone of wealth and power. For example, Tom's affair with a underclass mechcanic's wife, Murtle Wilson. Gatsby's life is symbolic in itself. Be it between money and wealth or the fact of life to make your own personal ego grow.

The Great Gatsby Chapter One

                          My first impression of The Great Gatsby is that the novel is confusing. It seems to jump around from character to character. Not so much the narrator, but the description of the other following characters: Daisy, Tom, and Jordan. It is hard for me to follow the plot and to get in-touch with the characters. I wish that the plot was more "black and white", meaning easier to follow and not such a headache to read:/, so far I don't care for the book because of how complex it is in some parts. I hope it becomes easier to read and follow as we get further into the story. The colors and symbols that have shown up in the book quite frequently are the color white and the symbol of light.
                           Nick is the narrator of The Great Gatsby. Is a simple man who goes to visit his distant cousins in the first chapter. They all attended Yale University together many years ago. Differing from Tom and Daisy, Nick himself is not rich. His parents, however, are very rich and have financed his trip from the west side of the country to the east. "I'm a bond man" (page. 10) This meaning that he is involved greatly in the stock market and is attempting to become rich on his own. Daisy is Tom's wife who doesn't react in the way normal women would today to certain situations. For example, her husband is having an affair with a woman in upper New York. Even knowing the fact that her lawfully wedded husband is being unfaithful she refuses to confront him and lives as if nothing is out of the ordinary. "What do people plan?"(pg. 11) This meaning that she is also a woman who lets her intelligence go/be unfulfilled because money can apparently replace anything that matters. Tom is a business man who is having an affair with an upstate woman (New Yorker) she frequently calls Tom's house, looking for him, so she can talk with him.  " I hate the word hulking, even in kidding" this statement shows he is an angry man who is very unhappy and unfulfilled in life. He is unhappy, so he results in having an affair. He is angry, unhappy, and desperate to seek happiness somewhere. Jordan is Daisy's best friend. She is the one who tells Nick about the affair that Tom is having. She tried to tell Daisy, but being well aware she refuses the truth. Jordan is a very upfront woman who won't take anything from anyone if she doesn't want to. "Tom's got some woman in New York" (pg. 15) She is very aware of this as is the rest of the family/house hold. She doesn't hide the truth, but won't throw it in peoples faces, unless they ask.
                         

Do we have a blog for this week?

Hi Ms.Gilman I didn't see a blog for this week, so I'm assuming that we don't have one this week. Have a nice evening.

My Anticipations...I wasn't able to get on my blog this weekend...my sign in wouldn't work:/

                          I predict that the book will have a large amount of alcohol smuggling, because of the research we did on the prohibtion. Following the prediction of large alcohol quanties, I also predict that the book will have many drunken gangsters. The research showed that once alcohol was banned in our country many crime groups formed together to illegaly import the substance of  "insanity". Not only do I predict high uses of alcohol, I also predict that women will fight for more rights as human beings. Once World War I began women began to lose their husbands to injuries and death.
                          The fact that women could/did lose their husbands so suddenly they had to find work and along with work they wanted more rights. Women wanted people to give them the rights that working men had. They had to create and maintain a home for themselves and or their children. My research also showed me that women fought strongly for what they thought. I also learned about the Jazz Age. The economy was doing very well during this time period also (the 1920's). The citizens during the Jazz Age were living confortable and they were extremely into celebrating life, before the depression hit....not that they had a clue though.