Personal Review
After reading The Great Gatsby, I like the book. I would not say it is my favorite book, but I enjoyed the book. One of my favorite aspects of the novel was how F. Scott Fitzgerald was able to employ language. I thought his style was masterful done, and his rhetorical strategies added a new dimension to his style. Fitzgerald was very good in evoking not just imagery, but very vivid imagery. I believe Fitzgerald’s manipulation of language in the novel is one of the best I have seen before.
The plot of the novel was well constructed, but it was not enticing enough for me. At times, the novel could be in so many different areas that it could be hard to follow. There was some conflict in the novel, but I believe more between Daisy and Tom and Gatsby would make the novel more alluring. I did not understand why Fitzgerald was so vague in describing Gatsby’s illegal business ventures. I wish Fitzgerald could have elucidated that.
What I did enjoy about the novel were the characters. I enjoyed reading the maturation of Gatsby from a small town boy in North Dakota, to a man reaping the rewards of living the lavish lifestyle in New York City. It was very satisfactory to see Tom as the antagonist of the novel, I disliked because he was a jerk the entire novel. But, his attitude added conflict making me want to read more. For some reason, I found Jordan interesting, even though she was very snooty. When it comes to Daisy, I have mixed emotions about her. I liked when she confronted Tom about their relationship and when she rebuilt her relationship with Gatsby. Yet she could be very week, and I loathed it when she ran away with Tom instead of going to Gatsby’s funeral. After reading the last chapter, I felt bad for Gatsby and it made me enjoy his character more. Overall, The Great Gatsby was an enjoyable read.
I very much agree with you that the way Fitzgerald writes can easily confuse the reader as to the nature of Gatsby's occupation. In my own opinion, I think it would have been beneficial to have Gatsby's corruption exposed so to allow for further character development. Either way, I am glad you addressed this.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the true accomplishment Fitzgerald had with this novel was with his choice of language. The way he was able to describe situations in a way that one would not normally choose to do so was very impressive.In my opinion, the author's use of language was more impressive than his plot development, as the development was on the slow side.
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