Rating: 
Summary: One Word to Describe this Book?? GREAT!
Review: Ah... The roaring 20s. A time of splendor, illegal drinking, and scandelous dealings. This work takes the reader back to the great era of pre-depression years. The advertising knowledge Fitzgerald portrays in this novel is represented in his imagery of the opthomologist billboard. Unbeknownced to many, F. Scott was showing the negative impace of advertising on society. Notice the crime and pain caused by the eyes of the billboard. Perhaps without commercials, we would be a much greater nation. The eyes represented a big brother captalistic attitude surrounding the commercialism with that society. Pay close attention to the symbolism in this work. Thousands of high school students read this each year, oblivious to Fitzgerald's dreary prediction to a marketing society. Sadly, it is these young men and women who make it possible for Britany Spears to sell Pepsi... Commercialism and Fitzgerald make a great paper topic. I ought to know.
Rating: 
Summary: The Great Gatsby deserves its accolades!
Review: This has to be hands-down one of my favorite pieces of literature. F. Scott Fitzgerald, part of the "Lost Generation" of writers from the 1920s, very imaginatively describes the egotistical indifference that affluence sometimes generates... and the dangers that hedonistic egocentrism can bring. His depiction of the "haves" and "have-nots" is dead-on accurate- and the naiveté and haughtiness of his "newly rich" characters is hauntingly ingenuous. His metaphorical use of color is outstanding (the blue lawns, the green light, the yellow haze). This is a story of those who have wealth, and those who want it; of the elusiveness and hollowness of the "American Dream" ; of the sad reality that with affluence sometimes comes carelessness-which leads to a life filled with a self-absorbed, wanton, petty emptiness. It's a story of a melancholy romance- where money runs deeper than love, where happiness is forsaken for greed. The ending is perfect- very resonant and very candid. This novel reads fluidly; it is not awkward or superficial- but rather deep and profound and telling. Perhaps Fitzgerald's subtleness and satarization in The Great Gatsby may be lost on some readers- but please don't pass up this gem!
Rating:
Summary: Review: The Great Gatsby
Review: If you are a reader who likes books with a combination of a little mystery and scandal, The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, contains the best of both worlds. I liked the book for a number of reasons such as it had a good over all story plot, and I really like the 1920's and it just so happens that is the time frame for this book. Throughout the book you will find a lot of surprises such as marriages falling through because of a little scandal on the side, and money that comes with no explanation. Gatsby in and of himself has a lot of mysterious features. Even with all his money things still don't happen the best way in the end for him. Besides what might you expect to happen in the book, Fitzgerald gives more. The way he related everything to the twenties really made the book sound so much greater and everything fit in just right. It was not like his details were off because even his terminology is from the right era. As far as not liking the book, there isn't too much to complain about. But like all books, even the greats, this book had its moments. There were parts in the book that I disliked. The way that Fitzgerald ended the book, I personally didn't care for. The ending no matter what way you look at it does not ruin the book. When I reread the ending, it actually didn't seem so bad, and ends up sounding pretty good. So if a mysterious twenties novel sounds good to you, I would highly recommend The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Rating:
Summary: The Gatsby Review
Review: The Great Gatsby, by F.S. Fitzgerald is a tragic love story. Throughout the novel, Fitzgerald is very descriptive and uses many themes to add a deeper understanding of the emotions and trials of the characters. Two major themes are wealth and self-improvement. Jay Gatsby had been in love with Daisy since the two met a month before he was sent to war. Gatsby admired her voice and felt the "stirring warmth that flowed from her as if her heart was trying to come out to (him) in one of those breathless, thrilling words." She had "an excitement in her voice that men who cared for her found difficult to forget." Gatsby loved Daisy's youthful beauty and cherished their limited time together. They devoted themselves to each other and expressed their powerful love. However, one problem existed- Gatsby's social status made him unsuitable for Daisy. Daisy came from a very wealthy family and Gatsby even noticed the "money in her voice." Throughout and after his service in military, Jay Gatsby desperately tried to improve himself and his status so that when he returned his proposal would be accepted. When Jay Gatsby left the military, he began to establish himself with illegal "new money." He met Meyer Wolfshiem, who "raised him... out of the gutter." They were involved in illegal activities such as bootlegging, the unlawful sale of alcohol. They established a series of "drug stores" that provided it to the people. Jay Gatsby also forged counterfeit bonds. Although the sources of his income were illegal, he saw only the quick money that he was making and thought he could win Daisy back with his improved status. Sure enough, when Daisy and Jay were reunited, she was very impressed with his possessions. Oddly, she seemed to adore Jay more when he boasted his multiple silk shirts. She realized that Jay has done well for himself and she fell in love with him and the money. Although Daisy enjoyed Jay's lifestyle, she could not leave Tom Buchanan, her wealthy, arrogant husband (especially when she learned that the source of Jay's money may only be short-term.) Right before Jay Gatsby is killed, he began to realize that Daisy was a selfish being who was too obsessed with money and herself. He also realized that he spent about five years improving himself and becoming a man that he thought would be suitable for Daisy, but now he knows that Daisy was not suitable for him. When Gatsby was murdered, none of his party guests, business acquaintances or even Daisy pay their respects at his funeral. Some had picnics to attend; others were too wrapped up in a business deal at the moment. Daisy's selfish mind ran from the problems she caused and escaped on a vacation with her husband. She sent neither a letter nor flowers to acknowledge Gatsby's death. She did not recognize the trouble and struggle that Gatsby went through to improve himself and to gain her approval. Instead she retreated into her luxuries and forgot the one who loved her. Money distorts the mind and often produces false priorities. Daisy was accustomed to a certain lifestyle and wanted luxuries more than love. She was not able to face realty and often retreated intoher money, which she thought would solve everything. For Jay, it was the idea that he could buy Daisy's love. He soon realized that if someone would not accept you for who you are, then they are not worth accepting. Daisy was in love with money, not Tom or Jay--- "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Evocation of an Era
Review: The Great Gatsby is a document of an era, like the Rosetta Stone -- an artifact that, all on its own, permits us to decipher the words and meanings of another era. In this case the era is the Jazz Age, a time of promise and excitement, especially for young people intoxicated by its novelties. It's no easy thing to capture a moment like that, but Fitzgerald does it with remarkable fluidity, because his writing skills are simply unparalleled. You can open any page of this great book and revel in the sheer artistry of phrasing, the wit, the precision of description. Since it was published it has continually been enjoyed by generation after generation because it is the perfect snapshot of the moment. For an equivalent in later years, On the Road captures the 50's brilliantly. For contemporary times, the very best I've found is the remarkable Love Songs of the Tone-Deaf, which demonstrates ably that the concerns of the Jazz age -- fast living, young people grabbing the world by the throat and giving it a good shake -- are still with us. Great books from great writers, evoking eras perfectly.
Rating:
Summary: The 2d Most Important 20th Century Novel written in English?
Review: When I learned that the Modern Library Board had selected the Great Gatsby as the second most important novel to be written in the English language in the twentieth century, my first reaction was "Uh-oh. What did I miss." So, after twenty-five years, I picked up the novel again. After reading the novel for a second time, even with the Board's lofty ranking always in my mind, my original opinion remained unchanged. Although I have always been astounded by the beauty of some of Fitzgerald's prose, I considered his story of ambition, the "American Dream," and lost love as somewhat trite and predictable. That opinion did not change with this reading. I still saw the plot as being too contrived, the characters too thinly drawn, and his theme of the corruption of the "American Dream" better handled by Dos Passos, Dreiser or even Nabokov. So why did the Modern Library give this novel such a high ranking? I am still unsure. And I might be so presumptuous as to suggest that even Fitzgerald would be surprised; after all, during his lifetime the book nearly went out of print. I guess that many critics, following the lead of Lionel Trilling, see the character of Jay Gatsby as standing for America itself, and the novel as the most American of American novels. Even though my opinion of the novel remained the same after two readings, my overall impression of the author grew. I have always associated Fitzgerald with wealth, as an author with whom I could have no connection. This prejudice affected my reading of Tender is the Night, and has remained for twenty-five years. Now I see Fitzgerald in a more human light, a man haunted by the same desires that drove Gatsby, and like his chief character, a man who could not give up his dreams, or his "old warm world." Both Gatsby and the author lived lives of silent desperation, moving slowly toward thier dreams, passing through the ash heaps of American society under the sightless eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg.
Rating:
Summary: The Great Gatsby
Review: Next to the Sun Also Rises, the Great Gatsby is simply the greatest American Novel written in the 20th Century. And on the last page, the reader will be able to find the finest paragraph of prose to be discovered and enjoyed in any language. If you've never read this book before, you're in for a wonderful suprise. Fitzgerald's imagery and allusions (think T.S. Elliot's "Wasteland") create a subtext questioning of 1920s mores and intellectual fashions that transform this seemingly simple novel into a thoughtful dissertation on life's rewards.
Rating: 
Summary: OK, it [was terrible]...
Review: I absolutely hated this story. All the characters did was moan about their lives and do stupid things. Daisy was a complete waste of oxygen and the rest of the characters just cried. There was no action, no suspense, and no real plot. The story didn't pick up until the end which is, let me remind you, the end. This book should never have written!...
Rating:
Summary: A LITERARY CLASSIC AND STILL GOING STRONG!
Review: This still remains one of my favourite literary classics. "The Great Gatsby" is set in the Jazz Era and is a story packed with many varying components which make it a success: greed, wealth, power, obsession, and along with a love story. The characters of Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan and Tom Buchanan are bold, rich and well created. Jay and Daisy fall in love, but while Jay is serving his country overseas, Daily marries wealthy, egotistical, arrogant Tom Buchanan. Far be it from this minor setback to deter Jay from pursuing his lady love after he returns home. The book has a well-developed plot which holds the reader's attention from start to finish. What particularly interested me about the book (which was also made into a movie,) was the eloquent, magnetic era in which the setting took place. One could not help but be captivated my this extraordinary period which laid many of the stepping stones to our future. You could almost picture yourself sipping tea in a stately mansion or playing polo with the greatest of men. "Great Gatsby" - great book!
Rating:
Summary: A Great American Romance
Review: Nick Carraway spends a summer learning about responsibility and romance as his cousin, Daisy Buchanan, begins an adulterous affair with a long-lost love, Jay Gatsby. This one-sentence plot summary does nothing to relay the considerable issues of the book. We learn that Jay Gatsby has a strong sense of romance--he is a product of the American Dream, where everything is possible as long as anything can be bought. He becomes a product of reputation, a carefully cultivated fictional past, and ready money at a time when established order has suffered a severe jolt from early twentieth-century ennui and loss of faith. Fitzgerald's analysis of shifting societal proprieties remains relevant as we begin our new century, but Jay Gatsby's yearning for a pure, enduring love makes this book timeless. If THE GREAT GATSBY isn't the greatest American novel, it must be in the top ten. I cannot recommend this novel highly enough.
|
