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| Nick Carraway |
These
pages of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, made me aware of
something that I had not really realized until this point. Throughout the
entire book, narrator Nick Carraway has been describing the wild, fantastic parties
of the great and mysterious Jay Gatsby. All of Long Island, plus many people
from other areas of New York flock to the Gatsby Mansion to have a great time
and enjoy the entertainment. However, I have just determined that
unfortunately, most of the people attending the parties are just taking
advantage of Gatsby. Even more disappointing is the concept that these
party-goers know they are mistreating Gatsby, yet they just do not seem to
care. As mentioned earlier, the majority of the attendants never see Gatsby
during the party, as they have just come for the free alcohol and extravagant performances
rather than for the company of a friend. Furthermore, it is mentioned that half
of those who join in the parties have not even received an invitation, yet they
come regardless of that fact. If any of these people really cared at all about their
host, he would be sought out during his get-togethers and would be thanked for
the great evening he provided. It upsets me that these people are so shallow
that they would take advantage of another just for a fun evening, and
especially that they do not see a problem with doing it. They make no attempt
to get to know him, regardless of the number of parties they have attended, and
if this says anything about the rich and powerful of the twenties decade, I am
glad that I do not have to cooperate with people so inconsiderate and selfish.
It is Carraway that actually puts together that others visit Gatsby only for
the benefits, stating, “he [Gatsby] would be uneasy anyhow until he had given
them something, realizing in a vague way that that was all they had cane for,”
(Fitzgerald, 100). At some point, I believe Gatsby is going to realize what is
going on, stop the parties, and then his guests will begin to realize how much
they actually did appreciate him.
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