The great Gatsby, a novel by F Scott Fitzgerald, is narrated through one of the characters in the text., The use of this perspective can greatly affect our reading of the text.
The Great Gatsby is primarily a love story. The narrator, Nick Caraway, moves east where he is caught up in the dealings of those around him. His neighbor, Jay Gatsby, is trying to win the heart of Daisy, whop is married to Nick's college friend, Tom Buchanan, who is having an affair with Myrtle Wilson, the wife of a gas station attendant.
The grave of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda Fitzger...
The cover of the first edition of The Great Gatsby...
The Great Gatsby (1926 film)The mere first person narration would not affect our reading of the text if we could believe Nick's early statements that ""I'm one of the few totally honest people I know"" and ""I'm inclines to reserve all judgments."" In this second aspect, particularly, he shows himself to be very judgmental and partial. For example, he does not think it right that Jordan Baker, the ;'woman golfer,' should cheat in a mere golf game, but he overlooks he shady business dealings, associations with organized crime and speakeasies of Jay Gatsby.
Because the first person narrative is limited in perspective, some of the facts we hear from Nick may have been distorted or even lies. For example, one day Tom drags him along to Myrtle's apartment in New York. While he is there, he gets drunk, so this is a prime area for distortion of facts. Another time is towards the end of the novel, where Daisy runs into Myrtle in Gatsby's car. Lots of what we hear is gossip and second hand news, also distorted or changed by media persons or innocent bystanders. We also cannot overlook the possibility of a direct lie in the novel. The text deals with murder, affairs, material love...