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Allusions In The Great Gatsby

Decent Essays

As told by infamous author Carlos Fuentes, “There is no creation without tradition; the 'new' is an inflection on a preceding form; novelty is always a variation on the past.” This idea is expertly shown through F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway’s persistent use of Christian allusions within their respective novels, The Great Gatsby and The Old Man and the Sea. In these two classic novels, the authors intertwine the fictional stories and characters with that of Christian symbolism and allusions, as a reflection of their own religious faith. This is demonstrated through the imitation of Jesus Christ and the New Testament in the Bible in The Old Man and the Sea, the reflection and results of leading a non-Christian life as shown through …show more content…

Scott Fitzgerald alluded to Christ and the importance of Christian values in yet another way, by not holding his protagonist - Jay Gatsby - to the same glorified being as Christ, like how Hemingway depicted Santiago. Instead, Fitzgerald used the moving and tragic tale of Gatsby’s life to impose wisdom upon his readers as to the consequences of chasing after earthly rewards rather than that of eternal rebirth through Christ. This idea is executed on page 103 of Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, “... and I said ‘God knows what you’ve been doing, everything you’ve been doing. You can fool me but you can’t fool God!’” (Fitzgerald 103) Through this quote, the reader bears witness to Fitzgerald’s desperation to warn everyone of God’s power and authority, and how exposed everyone truly is under the eyes of God. Fitzgerald uses this quote to reflect the infamous line written in the Bible in the book of Hebrews 4:13, “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” (Bible 4:13) Fitzgerald also displays the influence of his religious beliefs on the characters and plotline of the book, through the horrors and hardships Jay Gatsby faces, especially later on in his life, as a consequence of his relentless pursuit of earthly, meaningless material possessions such as wealth and fortune and fame instead of what Fitzgerald believed he should be chasing… eternal life with

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