Title: The Great Gatsby
Author: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Date of Publication: 1925
Cultural Context: The book takes place during the 1920's, the decade in American history as the "roaring twenties." This book epitomizes many of the characteristics of the time period, after the eighteenth amendment, the sale of alcohol became prohibited, but this movement, known as the temperance movement, did not achieve the goals they had wished to solve, instead, they worsened the situation. The crime rate during this period was somewhat high, and the organized crime rate was incredibly high, with many criminals going into the smuggling business(alcohol), Jay Gatsby is an example of these types of business dealings, with his "meetings" with Meyer Wolfsheim. The book also portrays the twenties accurately by giving examples of how many people were becoming wealthy, very wealthy, and how because of that, a new definition of the word 'party' was established.
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby
The Great GatsbyPlot Summary: Although told from the view point of Nick Carraway, the story essentially has two plots, one revolving around Nick, the other around Jay Gatsby. The story beings with a introduction of Nick's past and then an explanation of why Nick moved out east to New York, to learn and make money in the bond business, and to move on in his life from the confining small town that he lived in as a youth.
When he arrives in New York, he ends up living next to Jay Gatsby, a former soldier who is deeply in love with Daisy Fay, a cousin of Nick's. Daisy invites Nick over eventually and they eat, and Nick meets Daisy's husband, Tom Buchanan. Nick is quite perplexed at how meaningless their lives seems to be. When Nick leaves he feels somewhat uneasy and disgusted by the lifestyle they live, and in particular Tom,