Product Description

"He talked a lot about the past and I gathered that he wanted to recover something, some idea of himself perhaps, that had gone into loving Daisy. His life had been confused and disordered since then, but if he could once return to a certain starting place and go over it all slowly, he could find out what that thing was . . ." The Great Gatsby (1925), F. Scott Fitzgerald's masterpiece, stands among the greatest of all American fiction. Jay Gatsby's lavish lifestyle in a mansion on Long Island's gold coast encapsulates the spirit, excitement, and violence of the era Fitzgerald named `the Jazz Age'. Impelled by his love for Daisy Buchanan, Gatsby seeks nothing less than to recapture the moment five years earlier when his best and brightest dreams - his `unutterable visions' - seemed to be incarnated in her kiss. A moving portrayal of the power of romantic imagination, as well as the pathos and courage entailed in the pusuit of an unattainable dream, The Great Gatsby is a classic fiction of hope and disillusion. This edition is fully annotated with a fine Introduction incorporating new interpretation and detailing Fitzgerald's struggle to write the novel, its critical reception and its significance for future generations.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #680001 in Books
• Published on: 1999-09-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 180 pages

About the Author
Ruth Prigozy is Professor and former Chair of English at Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York. She has edited Fitzgerald's This Side of Paradise and is co-editor of the F.Scott Fitzgerald Newsletter.

Customer Reviews

A Dangerous Look Backward . . . At The Future
"So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." These are the last words in the novel, and sum up its theme. Our minds (like moths to the light) are drawn irresistibly to the most wonderful moments we have experienced. Our mistake is then to build our future around them, not realizing that they can never be recaptured. In pursuing the past into the future, we deny ourselves the real potential of the future.

The Great Gatsby is developed in novel form around the story line of a Greek tragedy. Nick Carraway, Gatsby's neighbor, is the narrator, serving the role of the chorus. This choice of structure creates a marvelous reinforcement for the book's theme. The novel is constricted by the tragic form, even as Gatsby's future is by his immobilization by the past. If you like that sort of irony, you'll love The Great Gatsby.

Nick knows both Gatsby (his neighbor in West Egg, Long Island) and Daisy Buchanan (his cousin who lives in East Egg, Long Island). Daisy knew Gatsby before he was Gatsby and before meeting Tom, her husband. Gatsby has made himself into a rival for Daisy over the five years since they have last seen each other, and makes his play for her again through Nick about mid-way through the book. Daisy and Tom's responses shape the tragedy that is this story. I won't say more because it will harm your enjoyment of the novel.

The story itself is somewhat dated by the romantic perspective of the Roaring Twenties, and few will read it for the instant connection they will feel with the characters. Why would someone want to read this book? I see three reasons. The first is to explore the theme of moving illusions about the future built from the happiness of the past. The second is to see a fine example of plot development. There are no wasted words, actions, and thoughts. The third is to enjoy the language, which is beautifully expressive. For example, consider the book's opening sentence: "In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since." Fitzgerald goes on one sentence later to give you a clue about how to read the novel. "He didn't say any more, but we've always been unusually communicative in a reserved way, and I understood that he meant a great deal more than that."

These are not characters you will find uplifting. "They were careless people, Tom and Daisy -- they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness . . . and let other people clean up the mess they had made."

Why did Fitzgerald create such characters? Precisely, because he did not approve and did not want you to approve. 'Everything that glitters is not gold' is another way of summing up the lessons of this novel.

Why should someone not read this book? A reader who wants to be inspired by positive examples will find little to uplift oneself here. Someone who wants a story they can personally identify with will likely be disappointed. A student of how to create love and happiness will mainly find out how to create heartache and unhappiness. So the book is not for everyone.

After you have read the book, I would encourage the self-examining reader to consider where in one's own life the current focus is dominated by past encounters rather than future potential. Then consider how changing that perspective could serve you and those you love better.

A beautiful book
I'm 15, and just finished The Great Gatsby for the second time. I didn't read it because of an English class or because I had to - it was entirely by choice I picked up a copy, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. What struck me is how subtle the story is - on reading it the first time, I was left under-whelmed, but after returning to it again a few months later I can genuinely see why everyone loves it. It's lovely, descriptive narrative brings to life the sights and sounds of 'The Roaring Twenties' a story that exposes the materialistic and corrupt heart at the centre of the glittering 'jazz age'. Gatsby, Daisy and Tom are all flawed but fascinating characters - beautiful, wealthy and popular, but also superficial, cruel and greedy. Intriguing, certainly, likable, no. All in all, an interesting, poignant read, that I would recommend to my friends.

Gasby is the best summary of the Roaring 20s around today.
I am a senior in high school and was assigned The Great Gatsy to read for english class. There was nothing quite like sitting down and thinking about what the true meanings in this book really are. There are stories of triumph, sacrifice; love and hate; rich and poor, and many others. Each character has their own story, and each intertwines with another. The Great Gatsby is an amazing work of art with incredible stories clashing different types of people to give the essence of a great era in our history. I highly recommend it to anyone.