As I stated in the last question, I found that the parts of
the book that I enjoyed the most were those that I had enjoyed previously. They
struck me just as much (if not more) the second time around. One of my favorite
quotes is when Daisy says to Nick “I hope she’ll
be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little
fool” (Fitzgerald 21). I believe this gives the reader their first real
insight into Daisy’s mind. It shows that she views women as subservient to men,
which largely influences the way he conducts her life. This also really
reminded me of Hamlet, as he took a similar view of women, such as when
he told Ophelia that she should marry a foolish man.
Another passage that really
struck me was: "That's my Middle West . . . the street lamps and sleigh
bells in the frosty dark. . . . I see now that this has been a story of the
West, after all—Tom and Gatsby, Daisy and Jordan and I, were all Westerners,
and perhaps we possessed some deficiency in common which made us subtly
unadaptable to Eastern life" (Fitzgerald 184). It didn’t stand out to me
because of any literary elements, but rather because I felt I could relate to
it. Next year I’ll be attending Tulane University in New Orleans, and I know
it’s going to take some adjustment to get used to the culture. I’m excited to
live in such a vibrant city, but at the same time I can’t help but wonder if my
New England raising will make it harder for me to adapt.
I think that quote by Daisy you mentioned is interesting. I think you're right in that it definitely reflects how women are seen as subservient. Also though, I think it foreshadows Daisy's mindset-- she feels subservient, like she has lost her voice. Down the line when she is given the decision to decide between Gatsby and Tom, she doesn't stand up with conviction, and by not making a direct choice, she winds up staying with Tom. Then, Daisy never confessed to the hit and run or showed up to Gatsby's funeral when he died-- essentially Daisy set Gatsby up for failure by not speaking up. Daisy's view on where women stand served as a self-fulfilling prophecy for her, and I think her lack of voice definitely contributed to Gatsby's demise.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree Holly! This quote sets a good precedent for the mindset that Daisy takes in those situation. She definitely doesn't step up to the plate and take responsibility, and her indecisiveness impacts those around her negatively.
ReplyDeleteI'm not so sure that the Daisy quote so much shows that she sees women as subservient to men more than it shows that she believes that this is the social norm of the time period. She believes that the best way for a woman of the time to deal with the choices and situations that they will inevitably be faced with is to act like and be a fool. In this way she is also stating how she wishes that she were a fool and were not able to see all of the obvious signs of Tom cheating on her. She wishes that she were able to be in blissful ignorance of the whole situation and thereby better able to deal with it.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of favorite passages thought these are both excellent choices. One of my favorite is towards the end of the book in Nick Carraway's reflection, "And as the moon rose higher the inessential houses began to melt away until gradually I became aware of the old island here that flowered once for Dutch sailors' eyes- a fresh, green breast of the new world. Its vanished trees, the trees that had made way for Gatsby's house, had once pandered in whispers to the last and greatest of all human dreams; for a transitory enchanted moment man must have held his breath in the presence of this continent, compelled into an aesthetic contemplation he neither understood nor desired, face to face for the last time in history with something commensurate to his capacity for wonder." (last page). This, for me, is the best example of Fitzgerald's writing and how it can help the reader to better understand the meaning of the poem by communicating the feelings of the writer and the narrator when they were contemplating the same meaning.