Blog about Dreams, Symbols (including colors) and evolving characterization. Have any of your perceptions or understandings changed? How? Why? Use textual evidence to support your claims and make a comment on a least one other person's post. Remember, the goal is to discuss, not just make a claim. FUN!
I feel as though the American dream of love has become very prevalent in chapters 5-7 (Mrs. Stein you said chapters 5-7 in class so why does this say 5-6 on this blog?! I'm afraid I'm going to give stuff away from chapter 7). Anyways... Tom comes to the realization that he truly loves Daisy and wants to "treat her right" once he is educated of her and Gatsby's "love" for each other. This sets off an arguement between Gatsby and Tom while they are out, as they verbally fight for Daisy's love. Meanwhile Nick is somewhat realizing his affection for Jordan. Gatsby's character is truly evolving because the reader loses sympathy for him in this chapter, as he is rude to his servants; waking one of them from sleep to play the piano for Daisy even though the servant pleads not to because he has no practice. Also, Jay Gatsby is boastful about the fact that Daisy loves him, and when she hits Myrtle in the road, he shows no signs of concern for Mrs. Wilson's death. Rather he is consumed with the idea of making sure Daisy gets away with the murder, and stands outside her house over night to be sure that Tom doesn't give her a hard time. A symbol in this chapter would be the heat that Nick so vividly describes. He described the heat at the beginning of the section of reading as dreadfully hot and intense,the "hottest day of the summer" in fact. This heat is a symbol in the way that it foreshadows the heated argument between Gatsby and Tom. The use of the colors in these chapters- "pink suit, red eyes, yellow car, rose colored walls, etc..." all support this. It also symbolizes the "heated" death of Mrs. Wilson. Tom is left feeling alone after the dispute between him and Gatsby, along with Myrtle's death, as Fitzgerlad makes apparent: "There is no confusion like the confusion of a simple mind, and as we drove away Tom was feeling the hot whips of panic. His wife and his mistress, until an hour ago secure and inviolate, were slipping precipitately from his control" (Chp. 7).
ReplyDeleteCrystal M
HI! I agree with you about the weather and the heat foreshadowing the heated argument that Gatsby and Tom have about Daisy. The author put a lot of emphasis on stating how hot it was and how sunny it was and that was a great build up to what was to come.
DeleteMarissa H
I really like how you connected the part about the heat as weather/heat of the argument between Tom & Gatsby but mainly the aspect of the red colored rose walls (I never noticed that!) The rose colored walls and pink suit seems obvious to portray anger, but I'm not so sure I understand the pink suit, maybe it's a purposeful combination between white and red? --Symbolizing Gatsby & Daisy's honorable love for each other, but shamefulness because they're sneaking behind Daisy's husband?
Delete-Gayatri
I like the comparison between the heat of the day and the heat of the argument between Tom, Daisy, and Gatsby. It could also be said that Myrtle's death was connected to the same heat, it says that her shirtwaist was still damp from perspiration while she was lying dead in the road. Her death is connected to the heat.
DeleteJosh
Crystal!!!! Fancy seeing you here haha!!!!
DeleteWell then! I happened to be skimming your blog post and I must say your work is impeccable. Truly a masterpiece, I think we might have a new American author to add to the list for the class! Haha!
But on a separate note, when you say that Tom says he wants to treat Daisy better...do you really believe him?! Crystal, do you think that Thomas truly wants to treat her better or do you think he's just saying that our of jealousy and frustration because he feels her slipping a way. I mean...you know what they say "You can't teach an old dog new tricks" Haha! You know what I mean though?
I'd love to hear back! Chat in class about upcoming blog posts so we can prepare?
Wonderful, job, truly.
~ David ~
I feel like I don't like Gatsby. I think he is a phony and really creepy. and mean! When Tom and Gastby were arguing and Tom asked if he went to Oxford, Gatsby had to change his lie and say he only went there for 5 months. He didn't share that part with Nick or Jordan earlier, so he is lying somehow. When Daisy went over to Nick's house for tea, and Gastby was there, he was so nervous about seeing her. When they all went to Gatsby's house later, so he could show it off to her, Gatsby told her that he would watch the green light at the end of her dock every night. CREEPY! First of all, if i was Daisy, I would be creeped out. Why would you watch her house? Weird weird. And he's mean! He hit a woman with his car and killed her, but he only seems to care about Daisy and how she's feeling. I guess that's nice and all, but HELLO you just ran someone over with your car. NOT COOL! & yeah there are are lot of colors being talked about. On page 92 it says, "While we admired he brought more and the soft rich heap mounted higher- shirts with stripes and scrolls and plaids in coral and apple-green and lavender and faint orange, with monograms of Indian blue. Suddenly, with strained sound, Daisy bent her head into the shirts and began to cry stormily." Clearly something is up with colors and how it made Daisy cry.
ReplyDeleteMarissa H
I agree with the fact that Gatsby is creepy too! But, I don't thin Gatsby was the one who hit the woman named Wilson on the street, it was Daisy. Gatsby says on pages 143-144 that Daisy lost her nerves while driving, but that he would take the blame for Daisy.
DeleteAnd I like how you incorporated Daisy crying at the colors of Gatsby's shirts! It's clear that she was crying tears of joy because she found out that the man she loves is rich enough to buy cloth from expensive material, but I liked how Fitzgerald made the colors of his shirt pale such as "lavender," "faint orange," "coral," "apple green," etc. It really emphasizes the sorrow!
-Gayatri
I like how you incorporated color into your writing well done.
DeleteTROY
I don't think I like Daisy; her American dream pertains to living a life of luxury, with minimal effort. Her original love belonged to Gatsby, and she said she would wait for him until the end of the war, when he served. However, she meets Tom and in comparison his extreme wealth to Gatsby's poverty, she broke her promise. Now, "with enchanting murmurs, Daisy admired this aspect [of Gatsby's house] or that of the feudal silhouette against the sky, admired the gardens, the sparkling ode of jonquils, and the frothy odor of hawthorn and plum blossoms and the pale gold odor of kiss-me-at-the-gate" (90). It seems that Daisy is falling for Gatsby (yet again) only for his riches. The "gold odor" that is described is the rich smell of Gatsby's mansion, and it seems like this affluent smell is the only reason why she has a "kiss-me-at-the-gate" feeling towards Gatsby. Daisy also displays frivilous attitudes. She shows her daughter to friends like an attractive object. Daisy says to her daughter, "'. . . your mother wanted to show you off" (117). In my opinion, Daisy is actually quite cold and has no real emotions; she loves for wealth.
ReplyDelete-Gayatri
I agree, Daisy does seem to be a gold digger in a sense. She has been falling for the guys with the money and the marvels. She seems to enjoy the life of luxury so much that she cannot even hold out her promise to someone who is serving in the army...shallow. Love the idea!
DeleteI don't like her either she hit Myrtle with the car on purpose! I also think she is toying with Gatsby, I'm guessing she is going to stay with Tom. Also I think Tom and Daisy might set Gatsby up to be arrested.
DeletePaige
Gold odor is also an example of synaesthesia! Do you really think she hit Myrtle on purpose? I always picture as caught up in a powerful, emotional moment, reconnecting with a first love, and maybe some bad luck. Maybe that's just wishful thinking.
DeleteI feel as though Gatsby is relieved and happy that he confronted Daisy and reunited with her but he seems to have some doubts. Although he is over joyed that she is marveling at his house when he explains that he could always see her green lantern at the end of her dock he goes into a state of thought. “It had occurred to his that the colossal significance of that light had now vanished forever…Now it was again a green light on a dock. His count of enchanted objects had diminished by one” (98). This indicates that maybe his imagination carried his away and he played the meeting with Daisy up way too much. Now instead of living in a world of imagination and waiting for his love he has met her and the fantasy is over. The once significant light that symbolized his yearning for Daisy was not just a light at the end of the dock that contained no mystery or fantasy as it once did. The light is now a light, he knows how it feels to meet her now and maybe it did not reach the standards of his imagination or maybe he does not know how to feel knowing his great obsession has been confronted.
ReplyDeleteI almost picked this quote! I think it is really telling of Gatsby's personality and his internal strifes. I also think that your reasoning can connect to the American Dream in general. So many immigrants came over to America in hopes of a better life, but most just ended up in poverty and jobless. It just goes to show that rich or poor, struggles are always being felt between a person and their own "Manifest Destiny"
Delete~Shayna :)
I agree with you both. I think there's also this thing we humans do, which is to want what we cannot have, and in doing so build it up to big proportions, and then the let down if you should achieve it....well, it coule be great. Do you think Gatsby and Daisy CAN be happy together?
DeleteThroughout the course of the novel, I've had mixed feelings about Gatsby. At the beginning, I really wanted to see the best in him, only because he had to deal with so many rumors that were being spread about him, mostly about how and where he got his money, and what school he attended. But I am slowly beginning to realize that Gatsby is pretty much a phony jerk! He was extremely cocky and presumptuous when he "knew" that Diasy would come to Nick's house with no objection, and that they would hit it off again instantaneously. But when the moment finally came for Gatsby to see Daisy again, he transformed into a self-concious and timid version of himself. While most would view these feelings as stereotypical nerves, I see it as cowardice. Gatsby's outward appearance reveals his true colors, which is made extremely prominent beginning in chapter 5. For example, when Gatsby first got to his neighbor's house, "An hour later, the front door opened nervously, and Gatsby, in a white flannel suit, silver shirt, and gold-colored tie, hurried in. He was pale, and there were dark signs of sleeplessness beneath his eyes" (84). For a man who is Oxford educated and extremely wealthy, one would think that he would be calm, cool, and collected. But, he is just the opposite! F. Scott Fitzgerald's choice to detail Gatsby's clothing choice is interesting to me, because it aids in the demonstration of Gatsby's split personalities. The gaudy gold and silver colors, to me, represent egotism and a superciliously lavish lifestlye, while the "dark signs" suggest that Gatsby has a dark side to him that has not quite been revealed yet. It will be interesting to see how Gatsby is characterized for the rest of the novel, but I really don't think that my opinion of him will change again!
ReplyDelete~Shayna
I agree with your description of Gatsby as presumptuous. He seems to expect people to act a certain way. They throws elaborate parties with people that always act the same. While he claims to surround himself with interesting people, he takes no care for who is there, apart from Daisy. He supposedly has accumulated this wealth for her, but if they were actually so much in love, I don't see why he would have needed it.
DeleteThis is interesting. WE can see that he doesn't need to be wealthy, but remember the letter Daisy got before her wedding? That scene reveals that Daisy did care about money....She was younger than, however, so maybe she wouldn't have the same expectations now, especially since money bought her Tom--and he's pretty terrible. But, she has a sweet house. She's living the dream...except for the love bit.
DeleteIn these chapters, Gatsby loses his appeal to his fellow characters, and to the reader. The mystery about him is lost in the pathetic details of his life. His love for Daisy, which has remained constant for years, seems very sad when you see that Daisy doesn't care so much for him as for money and selfish ambition. He doesn't truly see her clearly, it's more his dream of her, his ideal. I think his pink suit shows that he is faded in all respects, much like pink being a faded red. Interestingly, the light of Daisy's room is pink as well, and she has also faded in these chapters.
ReplyDeleteJosh
I agree shes a gold digger
Delete- Adam
I think they're both pursuing what they want the other person to be instead of what they actually are (if that makes sense). Gatsby and Daisy are projecting their fantasies onto each other and they're both going to end up unhappy.
DeleteIn chapters 5 and 6, we see Gatsby in a new light. We also find out that Nick is a very tolerable friend. He agrees to help Gatsby out in many occasions, even though after he helps Gatsby, he is disregarded. The mystery behind Gatsby's past is now gone and we realize that he is just using people to get to Daisy, whom he has high expectations for. His dream is to be with her yet when he gets her he will not be satisfied. They "love" each other for all the wrong reasons, most of which being for money. This shows the flaws in the higher classes of society. The lower classes experience more true love, because money is not as important in their eyes.
ReplyDelete- Adam
Well, George loved Myrtle, but she didn't seem to care for George, so I don't think we can safely say that poverty stricken folks love more/better/truer...
DeleteGatsby seems to think he can use his wealth to get people to do what he wants. He tries to pay Nick for the meeting with Daisy, he throws extravagant parties for people he doesn't know, and "There was a story that [the brewer]'d agreed to pay five years' takes on all the neighboring cottages if the owners would have their roofs thatched with straw" (88) to match Gatsby's house. I think this will be Gatsby's downfall when he realizes he can't buy real relationships.
ReplyDeleteI think, rather than that, Gatsby's trying to use money to buy his idealized image of Daisy (superimposed onto real-life Daisy), or at least the past, in which Daisy hadn't met Tom yet (from what Carrawary says about Daisy, I think she'd be really easy to woo over with money and repute). Either way, I agree that Gatsby will ultimately meet his downfall.
DeleteAt this point in the novel, I have this mixed feeling abut Gatsby. The entire reason he got into what seems to be criminal actions, is to prove to the woman he has faithfully loved that he can be successful and take care of her. It's admirable that Gatsby has so much love for Daisy, and nothing lies in his wake like laws or Tom. I feel bad because Daisy,the woman Gatsby devoted his life and was willing to take the blame for after she hit Myrtle is just in it for the wealth and status. It's ironic that their love is made because of all the wrong reasons and their too enamored with the "dream" of them together to see the truth.
ReplyDelete-Trey
I think you are spot on about the reason Gatsby got involved with illegal business; in order to prove to Daisy that he can be successful. However, I do not feel that it is admirable that Gatsby has so much love for Daisy because he has that love for all of the wrong reasons. Nice vocab though Trey!
Delete-Crystal
Gatsby and Daisy are too caught up on the idea of what could have happened in the past, if the conditions were right. They were happy together for the time being, but Daisy was not happy with the idea of not having money. Five years later, now that Gatsby wants to rekindle their love, they both have this strange notion that they can forget about what has happened since they parted ways, but I don't see them being happy in the long run if they were to just leave. Gatsby tells Nick, "Can't repeat the past? Why of course you can!" as he continues to relive his memories of Daisy. Even though there is no way they could recreate what they had in the past, how could either of them be satisfied reliving things that they already did anyway? Daisy has had an entire life in those five years (and clearly she was hurt by Tom's relationship with Myrtle), while Gatsby put all of his efforts into dreaming up how the two of them could be reunited.
ReplyDeleteYeah I agree Gatsby has idealized his relationship with Daisy way too much. He seems to be living in the past and can't accept that things have changed.
DeleteMitchell
Hey der,
ReplyDeleteTowards the beginning of the section, I started to become annoyed with Gatsby. I feel as though yes, he is in love with Daisy and it's emotionally grueling to live life without her in his arms but I'm starting to sense the "creepiness" factor that everyone seemed to mention in class. I think Gatsby moved from hopeless romantic to incessant nag, almost forcing Nick to make a meeting for him and Daisy. Something I also noticed was that for years Gatsby has been waiting and waiting for the day to come where he is able to hold Daisy in his arms again, to be able to blink his eyes and for her to still be there - but is his compassion real? I feel as though he loves the IDEA of daisy, not the reality of her. I feel as though later in the novel he's going to become more prevalent on keeping the image he had in his head from the way rather than the true Daisy, whom (I agree with other blog posts) is showing severe signs of the gold digger disease. She does seem to be on the pursuit of a life filled with luxury, although I do truly believe she is unhappy in her marriage with Tom. "'They're such beautiful shits,' she sobbed, her voice muffled in the thick folds, 'It makes me sad because I've never seen such-such beautiful shirts before" (98). I can't help but feel as though that emotion is fake, or somewhat embellished through her acting. I don't feel as though a shirt, no matter how beautiful would make her cry. I believe she is milking the fact that Gatsby is hopelessly in love with her, utilizing his desire to fuel her own hidden innuendoes.
WELL yeah thats all ok ya
The typo is funny....such beautiful shits....I thought I must have missed it! But it's shirts...You should see this scene in the movie....it DOES feel REALLY fake. Maybe she's acting how Gatsby wants her to because she feels guilt?
DeleteHi David! i love you.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, I found myself to be very captivated by your comment referring to Gatsby as becoming an "incessant nag." You truly seem to amaze me every time you blog. It's sad to think that you might be correct when you say Daisy has gold digger disease :( I knew someone years ago who suffered from that illness. Also, when you put your quote from Daisy in.. you said "They're such beautiful shits!" instead of shirts**!! DAVID ~ how inappropriate! Also, the fact that you think Gatsby is in love with the idea of Daisy is gripping to me; I never looked at the situation in that light! Def going to talk more in class about that one.
--Crystal A. Molloy
TYPO!!!! Honest mistake I swear,
DeleteThanks for your addition to my recent blog post for American Literature (H)
U rock!!!!
Stay strong && remember to always be true to who you are
Señor Azzariti ~
I officially do not like Daisy at all. Although she claims she loves Gatsby I believe she still loves Tom. Daisy even confesses that ,"I did love him (Tom) once-but I loved you (Gatsby) too" (140). She seems to be leading Gatsby on. Also the car she hit Myrtle with was yellow which might symbolize her cowardliness in respect to standing up to Tom and leaving him.
ReplyDeletePaige
I never realized how awkward a person Gatsby was until I read this section. The way Nick described his meeting with Gatsby was pretty bad: "For half a minute there wasn't a sound. Then from the living room I heard a sort of choking murmur and part of a laugh followed by Daisy's voice on a clear artificial note...A pauses; it endured horribly" (91). Then Nick gets to be dragged along on Gatsby's ostentatious tour of his house which, for some reason, included showing her his piles of colorful shirts to Daisy's amazement (and for some reason she started sobbing). Then in chapter six he agrees to go along to a dinner party some woman invited him to even though she clearly does not want him to go, so when he goes into the house they ditch him. Gatsby's obsession with Daisy is getting creepier too. When Nick tells him that he cannot repeat the past he denies it and "[looks] around wildly as if the past were lurking here in the shadow of his house, just out of reach of his hand" and promises Nick that he will make everything like it was before.
ReplyDeleteI agree with how Gatsby is becoming more and more creepy. He has changed as a character and all he wants in life now is to impress Daisy and he will do anything. The idea that he is stuck in the past is so true and his dreams have not changed since he was in love with daisy from before the war.
DeleteAmy Barton
I actually read the preface in Great Gatsby, and when I read chapter 5, I was reminded of a theme it had mentioned: time. If we compared Carrawary's accounts of Daisy to Gatsby's infatuation with her, it is clear that Gatsby's perception of Daisy seems to be idealized to the time he met her some years ago as a soldier. In effect, Gatsby is chasing the past, trying to catch up with the Daisy from back then. When Daisy and Gatsby meet, Gatsby knocks over the clock, symbolizing how he wishes to stop time and recover the past. However, (although it's Gatsby himself who catches it) the clock doesn't fall, representing Gatsby's inability to accomplish the past. The second instance I found was when Carrawary described Gatsby as "running down like an overwound clock". Based on my experience, an overwound clock doesn't run, and similiarly, Gatsby is no longer keeping track of the present, but rather, stuck in the past. This could also be foreshadowing Gatsby's relationship with Daisy. Like the overwound clock, Gatsby may no longer be able to exist in the present, which would include being able to properly be with the present Daisy as well.
ReplyDeleteTommy, so nicely said. I grew up with a clock you had to wind, and it gets really tight and hard to move when you are winding it, and if you do it too hard, it does break (sadly). Someone who is wound up is usually too excitable to be fully aware, and I think that even at the end of Chapter 7, he still has his head in the clouds....
DeleteAfter reading the last three chapters of the novel I have come to like Gatsby less and less. At first, he seemed quiet and reserved, but when he wants to try to get a date with Daisy he will pay whatever it takes to get what he wants. In the beginning it didn't seem as if he liked to throw is money around, but when it came to Daisy it changed him and I didn't like the change. He does however, mention the green light he used to see at the end of Daisy's dock every night before he went to bed. He used to think of how happy they would be together. Now, the green light is a constant reminder of what he can't have. Fitzgerald, is seen once again using color to highlight an important facet of the book. The relationship that cannot be between Daisy and Gatsby is highlighted in green. Which could be seen as Gatsby's envy.
ReplyDeleteTroy
it seems like we have contrasting views on Gatsby. it is interesting that you have come to like him less and less. you do provide good pieces of evidence for reasons to dislike him but i feel it is a good area to dig deeper on for both sides of the arguement.
DeleteThese last three chapters have showed a different side of Gatsby's character. He becomes very fond of Daisy, and tries to get with her, and shows his shallow personality trying to get what he wants and he will do whatever it takes to get it. In chapter six, when we learn about Gatsby's past working conditions, it gave me a different perspective of him. I thought it was interesting how Gatsby went from a janitor to this rich man. The evolution of Gatsby's character shows how money and loathing can change's one's perspective on life.
ReplyDelete-Kate Sears
My perception of Gatsby changed after hearing the background information of his prior life. After hearing of his interactions with Dan Cody, it became apparant why he acted like the way he did during his parties. He was affected by Cody's alcoholism and therefore does not drink himself. That, for me, made him seem less and less creepy at his parties and justified his actions. Also, when Gatsby's mistress did not allow him to inherit the money from Dan Cody, it explains why Gatsby has spent his whole life trying to gain as much money as possible and that is why he is so rich now.
ReplyDeletethe symbols that i keep on seeing during the story are of colors weather and season. during the beginning of the story the weather and temperature is mild it is like a nice spring day in early april there isn't much going on with the weather and there isn't much going on in the story. during the climax though it is the hottest it has been all year long. Due to the middle of summer months and the death of Gatsby there was an extreme change in the story along with the weather. Lastly in the end of the book after the death of Gatsby it is cold outside and i believe it begins to rain as well as if mother earth is mourning the death of Gatsby and an innocent man. Tom is just a rotten character who is a hippocrit over Daisy's love affair and also a arrogant and cocky person.
ReplyDeleteAnother symbol that i continued to see during the story was that of color there are 5 colors that i continue to see, even though i finished the book, that bring out connections to real life things yellow i constantly see dealing with wealth but also death it was the color that kills myrtle yellow cocktail music amd lastly, we’ve got Daisy, who is only called "the golden girl"
another color is white which represents the innocence I noticed that Daisy’s car, back before she was married, was white. So were her clothes, the rooms of her house, and about half the adjectives used to describe her her white neck white girlhood
BLue which i remember seeing alot with gatsby his gardens are blue, his chauffeur wears blue the water separating him from Daisy is his blue lawn mingled with the blue smoke of brittle leaves in his yard. His transformation into gatsby is sparked by cody who buys him among other things a blue coat
Green is the color of plants and trees and stuff so life and springtime and other happy things I also saw that the green light can definitely be seen as green being hopeful as being the future as being vitality and freshness that there is hope in gatsbys future
Brian carens
As most people have said i do not like Gatsby anymore. He was always kinda sly and kept to himself but once he saw daisy again and wanted her more he became creepy. I think his character is becoming too obsessed with the past. This leads to dreams because he would look at the green light at the end of daisy's dock and think of what they had when they were younger. He always dreams about the past they had and how he was so upset when she married someone else. He does not think about how people have changed and how daisy has changed. He is so stuck in the past that he will do anything to get daisy back. I think the green light symbols that Gatsby has time to go and get daisy. green as in go is the light telling Gatsby that she is right there across the water and that he just needs to go get her. But when he tries to get her he is still stuck on what they had and not reality and he becomes creepy towards her. I dont like gatsby he needs to let the past go and try to make a new life for himself.
ReplyDeleteAmy Barton