Who is Gatsby?

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is arguably one of the most well known books in English literature. From its amazing symbolism to its compelling story, The Great Gatsby has many reasons why it is as famous as it is. The most obvious source of it's greatness lies within the character the book is named after: Jay Gatsby. Aside from being a mysterious wealthy man who throws extravagant parties and lives in West Egg, who is Gatsby and what is his legacy?

Gatsby was born to simple farmers with the name of James Gatz. Gatsby always believed he was destined to be more than just a simple farmer, so he left home in search of becoming someone worth more. He meets a millionaire named Dan Cody with whom he begins his new identity as Jay Gatsby and from who he learns how to be a gentlemen. After the end of World War 1, Gatsby returns to America after learning that his old girlfriend, named Daisy, who he had been keeping in touch with during the war was now getting married to a wealthy man. He arrives in America to learn that the couple had already left on their honeymoon. This is when Gatsby decides to amass his own fortune so that he can win Daisy back. It is suspected that Gatsby achieves his fortune by bootlegging and organized crime, but this is never confirmed. With his new money Gatsby buys a house located directly across the bay from Daisy's house and throws extravagant parties in an attempt to bring Daisy over to him. Daisy never attends any of the parties, but when Gatsby learns that Daisy's cousin, Nick Caraway, is his new neighbor, Gatsby asks Nick to help him bring Daisy to him.

With Nicks help, Gatsby finally gets to be reunited with Daisy. Soon after, Gatsby accompanies Nick, Daisy and her husband Tom into New York. While in a hotel suite, Tom confronts Gatsby about the affair he is having with Daisy. Gatsby urges Daisy to renounce her love for Tom and declare that she never loved him. Daisy comes to the conclusion that she loves them both. While driving Gatsby's car on their way back home, Daisy hits and kills Tom's mistress, Myrtle. Tom knowing that it was Gatsby's car who killed Myrtle but not knowing that it was Daisy who was driving, tells Myrtles husband George that it was Gatsby's car who killed her. George visits Gatsby's house and kills him. Gatsby gets blamed for the murder and the affair that Tom had with Myrtle. Thus, to the world he was given the legacy of a murderer and adulterer.

Despite what the world thought of him, only one person knew about the true person who Gatsby was: Nick Caraway. During his time with Gatsby, Nick grew an affection and admiration for him. He was the only person who knew of Gatsby's true poor origins. He knew that Gatsby tried so hard to become a somebody. It is revealed when Nick recounts Gatsby's past that Gatsby always believed that he was destined to become a somebody. He didn't want his legacy to be that of a poor farmer that nobody knew. Gatsby began his transformation into a somebody the moment he changed his name from James Gatz to Jay Gatsby. From there he worked so hard in an attempt to become somebody important and known. He only succeeds in becoming a somebody to Nick. To Nick, he had the legacy of a Son of God. Gatsby thought of himself as someone who was born poor but would become someone very well known, much like Jesus Christ.

During the short time that Nick knew Gatsby, he grew an admiration for the commitment and ambition that Gatsby had. Gatsby was able to be fully committed to one thing without a single doubt: reaching Daisy. He spent so much time and effort in an attempt to reach the green light that sat at the end of Daisy's dock. All of his money and time was committed to getting Daisy back. Gatsby was so committed in fact that he felt married to her. Marriage is one of the ultimate commitments that may happen in ones life. Yet, despite not being married to Daisy, and not seeing her for 5 years, Gatsby continuously feels completely devoted to Daisy. This commitment isn't only seen in Gatsby's relationship to Daisy, but also in the story of his life. All his life, Gatsby is devoted to becoming more than what he was born into. He knows that he is the "Son of God" and nothing will ever be able to dissuade him from that. Giving up on something is common amongst the common man. In fact, many people wouldn't stay committed to one person for as long as Gatsby was committed to Daisy. But Gatsby is not the common man. He is great. Giving up and impossibly are two words that don't exist in his world. No matter what the task is, he will find a way to achieve it. He is the Son of God and for him, nothing is impossible.

Gatsby is also described by Nick as a living personification of hope. Gatsby doesn't need others to give him hope because he radiates hope like a star radiates light. His ambition and commitment all feed off of the hope that Gatsby radiates. The hope that he will one day reach his dream. It doesn't matter if his dream is already lost in the past, his eternal flame of hope will feed him with enough desire to reach into the past and change it. Nick constantly tries to save Gatsby by dissuading him from his folly dream, but nothing can destroy Gatsby's hope. This blinding hope is what leads Gatsby to his death.

Seeing that Gatsby had all of these great human qualities, it's hard not to label him as great. Sadly, he had so much hope, commitment, and ambition that nothing could stop him from making choices that would eventually lead to his death. So even though his legacy to Nick is great, his legacy to the world is anything but great. So how can we be great both to the individuals that know us and to the world around us? We can learn from Gatsby. Gatsby spent most of his life chasing one dream. Even though Nick told him that Daisy was unreachable, Gatsby believed that he could go into the past and change it. Because he is the Son of God, Gatsby believed that anything is possible. I think Gatsby's initial mindset is great for anyone who wants to succeed in life. To reach your goals, you need to be ambitious, committed, and hopeful. You also need to believe that you can do it.

Where Gatsby failed is when he could not see that he was chasing something he could never catch. Gatsby kept chasing, and chasing, and chasing, forever thinking that one day he will reach his goal. If he didn't reach it today, he can try again tomorrow, and so on. We need to have the same drive as Gatsby when chasing our goals and putting things to our name, but we also need to know our limits and the limits of the world around us. We cannot continuously chase unrealistic dreams for our whole lives. It is impossible to achieve every goal we wish to achieve. Similarly when building our legacies, we also need to realize that we can't always achieve everything we want to be remembered for. We need to become accustomed to failure and be able to learn and grow from it. Gatsby couldn't give up on his dream that it cost him his life. And at his funeral, Daisy didn't even send him a flower. Gatsby essentially wasted his life chasing something that wasn't there. His relationship with Daisy was long gone. We must learn to move on from the past as well and not chase ghosts. We must aspire to be great like Gatsby, but at the same time, humble and aware of our own weaknesses.

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Gatsby

Gatsby and Daisy

Green Light

Gatsby Death