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The Great Gatsby Narrator Analysis

Decent Essays

A narrator is a character who recounts the events of a novel. These characters narrate the novel in their point of view and how they perceive the events that occur. Their narration may be unreliable due to bias and dishonesty. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway, a first person narrator, tells the story through his point of view and interprets the events and characters in the novel. Nick is an unreliable narrator because he is biased on his interpretations of the characters and the events that occur, like Gatsby’s death. For example, he speaks negatively of Tom throughout the novel, and speaks highly of Gatsby due to their relationship. Nick's interpretation of Gatsby’s death is seen as unreliable because Nick’s morals change, and he focuses the event on himself.
Nick’s interpretations of the characters in the novel are biased due to the relationships he has with them. Nick describes himself as “one of the few honest people that [he has] ever known” (Fitzgerald 59). Nick desperately tries to prove that he is reliable and trustworthy, showing that he is insecure. Early in the book, Nick shares the piece of advice that his father gave to him when he was younger. He says, "Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone . . . just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had . . . I'm inclined to reserve all judgments" (1). Nick’s desire to be an authentic narrator, compels people to trust him and his side of the story.

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