LIT CIRCLE NOTES
Chapters 6-9
Zane Austin
Chapter 6
Illuminator
“He wanted nothing less of Daisy than that she should go to Tom and say: "I never loved you." After she had obliterated four years with that sentence they could decide upon the more practical measures to be taken. One of them was that, after she was free, they were to go back to Louisville and be married from her house—just as if it were five years ago.”
I chose this quote because it is very important for the story. It tells you what is really going on in Gatsby’s head. Now you know that he’s in love with Daisy and has been for a long while. It’s interesting because he’s clearly not accepting life as it is, even though it’s been years since Tom and Daisy got married. It says a lot about Gatsby and his personality. Maybe that he’s immature or thinks he can change anything in the world – even other people and their choices.
Discussion Notes
• By now it’s clear that Gatsby is in love with Daisy
• Gatsby actually lied about his past – turned out his name is actually James Gatz
• Why would he lie?
• Seems like Gatsby was lying to get on Nick’s side
• Some random guests show up to Gatsby’s house after Daisy is gone – one of them is Tom
• Gatsby goes around entertaining the guests
• He’s aggressive towards to Tom the whole time – saying things like “I know your wife”
• He’s saying these things because he thinks he has Daisy secured for himself
• The guests invite Gatsby to dinner – but then as he gets
Gatsby loved Daisy with all of his heart yet it was not the Daisy he met that captured his heart, but the illusion of Daisy. Daisy’s love for Gatsby is by far one of the grandest illusions that is mistaken for reality. For nearly five years, from the day he had left for WW1, Jay had his heart set on marrying Daisy upon his arrival. He returned to the United States, built up his million dollar fortune, and expected that he would be soon be with Daisy forever: “‘It was a strange coincidence,’ I said. ‘But it wasn 't a coincidence at all.’ 'Why not? ' 'Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay. ' Then it had not been just the stars to which
Tom is God knows where after Daisy gave birth to their daughter illustrates how loveless and unhappy Daisy and Tom marriage is.
True love is seen through a relationship of two people. Love exists when two people give all their trust, loyalty, and support to one another. Now imagine finding out all of the love and loyalty was false? Betraying a loved one can make someone capable of things they didn’t even know they were capable of. Betrayal is the breaking of a trust that produces moral and psychological conflict within a relationship amongst individuals. In The Great Gatsby, characters pursue in the action of having an affair and the result of betraying their loved ones. In the book, The Great Gatsby, the concept of true love is portrayed in a way that negatively affects the characters.
Gatsby and Daisy had met years prior, but ended up going their separate ways. However, Gatsby remained in love with Daisy and longed for her affection. The two reconcile, and Daisy starts seeing Gatsby outside of her marriage with Tom. In this, Daisy is leading Gatsby on by making him believe he will attain his ultimate dream: a life with her. However, Daisy knows deep down she will not leave Tom for Gatsby. This is proven when a confrontation about the affair sparks between Tom and Gatsby, and Daisy attempts to defend Gatsby and stick up to Tom, but ultimately fails and retreats back to her husband. “Her frightened eyes told that whatever intentions, whatever courage she had had, were definitely gone” (Fitzgerald 135). Daisy’s carelessness shines through in leading Gatsby to believe she would abandon Tom for him, but fails to follow through. She recklessly broke the heart of the man who had been in love with her for many
“She never loved you, do you hear he cried. She only married you because I was poor and she was tired of waiting for me (Fitzgerald 139)”. Tom is married to Daisy (Lisca). Even though daisy is marring Tom, Daisy has feeling for Gatsby (Lisca). Tom and Daisy relationship is wrong because they are married. People may say that Tom and Daisy does not love each other. When it was
“Well he must certainly have strained himself to get this mangerie together” (pg 107). Indeed Gatsby strained himself for Daisy, the wealth, and the name. He is so driven to get this respect and social status that comes with old money but unfortunately it is something he will never have. Tom Buchanan, Daisy’s husband is also obsessed with Daisy and rambles on to Gatsby about her when Gatsby shouts, “I know your wife!” (pg ). Gatsby has a raging addiction to Daisy and after Tom gets on his last nerve, he breaks down and tells him everything he had planned and dreamed for with Daisy almost 5 years
Analysis: Fitzgerald uses ashes, fire and dust to represent the unachievable desire for the great American Dream. Fitzgerald uses the character George Wilson as a voice of many who live in the valley of ashes to get away from the filthy place, he said “i’ve been here too long. I want to get away”. This show through Wilson's hardest efforts to achieve his dreams he is still stuck in this dump. It speaks to the lost expectations and dreams of individuals who have neglected to satisfy the American Dream.
Motifs are repeated images or symbols that reoccur in stories to suggest a theme. In literary works, motifs are often used produce other literary aspects such as mood, theme, and foreshadowing. They are a crucial literary technique that writers use to create and convey themes. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the narrator, Nick Carraway, relives the story of his stay in the luxurious yet corrupt East, specifically New York. Various motifs and symbols can be found in the story and illustrate key themes to the reader. In the novel The Great Gatsby, the motif of being on the outside and inside works to create the theme of wealth and class throughout the novel.
tries to take Daisy away from her current husband Tom. He tries anything he can just to get close
When Tom claims that Daisy actually does love him, he suppresses her opinion by putting words in her mouth to aid his argument. Tom perceives the need that he must speak for his wife as if she can not speak for herself. Also, Tom claims that Daisy obtains “foolish ideas,” and that she “doesn’t know what she’s doing.” He implies that she is crazy and it is understandable that she fools around because of that. This reflects the misogynistic views men had towards women in this time period as they silenced women with their opinions to prove their
The film the great gatsby has many hidden themes. The character Nick carraway sees the theme take place in the film. Whether it be Jay gatsby and people at his party or,daisy and tom. The main theme of the movie was perception vs reality. There are three main scenes where the perception of a character isn't the showing his reality.
"I love you now—isn't that enough? I can't help what's past." She began to sob helplessly. "I did love him once—but I loved you too." (84) Gatsby's obsession with her seems shockingly unilateral, and it is clear to the reader that she will not leave Tom for him. You can also see why this confession is a blow to Gatsby. He has dreamed of Daisy for years and sees her as his one true love, while she not even can marshal her love of Gatsby over her love for Tom. Gatsby is too desperate and obsessed, and does not understand that he must move on as it is impossible to get back Daisy. This can also be explained by Daisy’s as we get an insight at her real feelings. As she sad in the quote, she loved them both, and to her those were equal loves. But, she has not put that initial love with Gatsby on a pedestal the way Gatsby has. Unlike Gatsby, Daisy is more tragic, a loving woman who has been corrupted by greed. She chooses the security of money and comfort over real love, and therefore he will never get back
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is a story that has many different themes. Fitzgerald shows the themes that he uses through his character’s desires and actions. This novel has themes in it that we deal with in our everyday life. It has themes that deal with our personal lives and themes that deal with what’s right and what’s wrong. There are also themes that have to do with materialistic items that we deal desire on a daily basis. Fitzgerald focuses on the themes of corrupted love, immorality, and the American Dream in order to tell a story that is entertaining to his readers.
Tom takes advantage of this situation and manipulates Daisy to completely depend on him. Daisy has spent her whole life being used to someone telling her what to do, and her relationship with Tom is no different. Even right after they got married, “If he left the room for a minute she’d look around uneasily and say: ‘‘Where’s Tom gone?’ and wear the most abstract expression until she saw him coming in the door” (77). Daisy relies solely on Tom and is “uneasy” without him around. Her dependence on Tom reflects not only his hyper masculinity, but how little he cares about Daisy. Despite this, he knows Daisy will never leave him, and pushes their marriage to the brink by having multiple affairs.
While some may argue that Tom really loves Daisy, Lois Tyson argues otherwise, saying : “Tom’s relationships with women, including his wife, reveal his desire