The Great Gatsby: How Great He Really Was?

A man full of lies, deceit, and disregard for everyone in the way of what he wants, including family, loved ones, and even himself. Although The Title of the book ‘The Great Gatsby’ claims otherwise, jay gatsby, the character that lends itself to the name of the book isn’t all that great. His past is one made of lies and deceit, he chases a past that will never come again and a woman who he can’t have and, He pushes everyone away if they keep him from what he wants without any regard to them or himself.

Jay Gatsby when asked about his past makes up his past and when asked about it, it immediately becomes obvious that he isn’t telling the Truth, or at least all of it. The Past that Jay Gatsby tells you is that he was “the son of the wealthy in the midwest” and that he was “educated in oxford.” The main character, Nick Carraway, points out to the reader that he stutters over when he said educated in oxford and when Nick asks about what part of the midwest he’s from he says san Francisco which isn’t anywhere near the midwest. Many people In the book had a different Idea about where gatsby is from and they would say things such as Mr. gatsby being a “German spy during the war.” Or another conspiracy heard from another woman that claimed that she’d bet “he had killed a man.” These characters Highlight how Mr. Gatsby is shown to be a shady and mysterious man in the book. Between the obvious lies about his backstory, his inability to keep his story straight, and everyone making their own stories about him all relating to something bad happening you can’t trust much that this character does.

Jay gatsby Does a lot of things trying to catch the attention of daisy, a woman already married to Tom, for much of the book. Jay hosts grand parties every Saturday and He tries to set up meetings between him and daisy using any way he can such as his neighbor and her cousin, Nick carraway. Many of his actions are based on trying to impress her, Like the grande parties that Mr. Gatsby stops hosting as soon as he finds out that daisy doesn’t like them. He tries to impress her by lying about his past trying to pretend he is and has been a grand person. All these things simply to manipulate someone in a way to get another man’s wife to love him instead.

Jay Gatsby doesn’t care what his actions or wants do to other characters in the book, many of his actions are harmful and even deadly to characters in the book. In chapter 6 a reporter comes to his door and clears up jay’s backstory through an interview. The Reporter that came to his house in chapter 6 reveals that James Gatz, as we find his legal name to be, came from two farmers in North Dakota, not from an all-dead and rich family in san Francisco. James Gatz leaves his parents at the age 17 with no regard to his parents leaving them behind to work at an old farm. There are more ways than he pushes away people and hurts them to get what he wants such as when he asks Nick to set up an arrangement between him and the married woman that he’s trying to get not thinking about what position that Puts nick in. As well position that puts daisy in with her husband. Finally, in the end of the book, he can’t even help from sacrificing himself at the end of the book for daisy letting George kill him to protect daisy.

Jay gatsby lies about his past, hurts everyone around him and follows dreams that will never come and this is why he is not a very great character. He follows impossible dreams, his relationship with daisy, which are impossible to get to. He doesn’t think of anyone else except for himself like his. Remember to always remember what’s important to you and Not to follow something to such an extreme that you lose everything else you wanted in the process.  

SOURCE