The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald has had worldwide acclaim for a little less than a century and has been admired by those everywhere. My opinion of the book, however, is a particularly negative one compared to those of the general public.
While I was reading this novel, I discovered that I dislike many things about it. The characters themselves were not loveable in their strange behaviors. The fallout of the seemingly blooming relationship between Nick Carraway and Jordan Baker especially disappointed me. I assumed that the author would make their partnership flourish since he virtually ruined the marriages of the Wilson couple and Buchanan family. Unfortunately, the author decided to make the narrator (Nick) lightly rude to his prospective lover. This created unwanted awkward tension and butchered any chance of the couple getting back together again. I was also dismayed by Daisy Buchanan’s personality, whose ambiguous romantic love choices disturbingly reminded me of the dull character, Bella Swan, in the book Twilight. While some readers may argue that without Daisy’s flighty attitude towards love there would have been no plot, I feel that the author could have found some way around this obstacle and have made a sufficient conclusion. Also, I felt unattached to the book when Nick would continuously attend parties where there was simply gossip taking place and because of this the plot line remained dull throughout the novel. I believe that The Great Gatsby would have benefitted from a minor alien invasion during one of the slightly mind-numbing sections of the book. It would have alleviated the stress of New York’s social scene and brought the public of affluence to its knees. The pettiness of the wealthy society angered me and I wish there could have been someway to make the people realize that life is not all about money (like an alien invasion).
I would not suggest this novel to any of my friends or acquaintances. I feel that the book did not give me enough powerful insight to the world, like To Kill a Mockingbird and The Catcher in the Rye. Although there was plenty of syntax, diction, and other rhetorical strategies, these things did not have an important impact on me.
I just have to wonder, did you steal this blog entry from my thoughts? All of the things you mention are completely perfect in describing the ineptness (wrongfulness, boring-ness?) of this novel. Relating Daisy to Bella Swan was a very ingenious idea! Though, I do think that you are being rather rude to Bella; at least she turned into a vampire! Nick and Jordan's budding romance was one of the few things I was enjoying in this book. It actually made some of the chapters palatable. Dissolving the romance had the same effect on my interest in the story. "I believe that The Great Gatsby would have benefitted from a minor alien invasion during one of the slightly mind-numbing sections of the book." Very true. Any of the party scenes, or even the scene in Tom and his mistress's apartment would definitely have improved with a little Klingon intervention (Star Trek reference, in case this joke is too nerdy for the masses). Ms. Skywalker, I commend you for your glorious summary of this degrading piece of literature.
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