Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby

James Gatz, better known as Jay Gatsby is the main character in The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This novel is a story about Gatsby, and his relentless pursuit of his one and only dream and goal: Daisy Buchannon. Gatsby and Daisy met in 1917, five years prior to the setting of the novel. The fell in love immediately and spent countless hours together. After a month, Gatsby, at the time a lieutenant, was summoned to go off and fight in World War One. That moment marked Gatsby’s loss of Daisy. Ever since that day Gatsby has constantly been trying to re-catch Daisy. Gatsby’s pursuit of Daisy somewhat resembles the pursuit a knight has in a holy grail. Knights pursue the holy grail with endless fervor and devotion. Often a knights quest of a holy grail becomes religious and spiritual, due to the qualifications the knight must maintain in order to obtain the grail. Gatsby even compares his quest for Daisy to the quest of a grail:

[Gatsby] found that he had committed himself to the following of a grail. He knew that Daisy was extraordinary but he didn’t realize just how extraordinary a “nice” girl could be. She vanished into her house into her rich full life, leaving Gatsby-nothing. He felt married to her, that was all. (156)

Gatsby thinks of himself as committed and married to Daisy. Marriage is both a spiritual and religious bond between two people. For Gatsby to use this comparison for his relationship with Daisy is crazy considering that they are not even together, and demonstrates what Gatsby thinks of Daisy. Gatsby even dedicates every waking hour of his life to his pursuit of Daisy. Gatsby during the entire novel is committed and obsessed with his larger than life goal of regaining Daisy’s love and is willing to do anything for it.

Gatsby’s tale with Daisy begins with his falling in love with her in 1917. But a month later he was shipped off to go and fight in World War One. Gatsby’s desire to return to Daisy and continue their love began to effect everything he did, starting then. Gatsby tried endlessly to be released, by making wrong decisions in the war in a desperate hope that they would get him sent home. Instead of being sent home he remained in the war until the end and was then transferred to Oxford as a sort of compensation for giving his time to fight. And although he so desperately wanted to return home, he was forced to continue to Oxford. It was at Oxford that Gatsby received a letter from Daisy that informed him that she had married another man, Tom Buchannon. Shortly after this news Gatsby returns home and begins his quest at all costs for Daisy. Daisy and Tom move to East Egg to start their lives together, while Gatsby is living in Chicago. While living so far away from Daisy constantly looks for anything that would bring him closer to her. “‘Look at this,’ said Gatsby quickly. ‘Here’s a lot of clippings-about you’”(93). Gatsby went through all the Chicago newspapers to find any articles or clippings about Daisy that could help him reach her. His craving for her could almost be considered insane. He stalks her and follows her, and everything he does is for her. It’s sort of like he sold his soul to her and is now stuck to her forever, but it is entirely voluntary. Anyone would find this dedication un-healthy but for Gatsby it is his only reason for living. So Gatsby decides to go after Daisy and continues his pursuit to West/East Egg, Long Island.

Gatsby moves to West Egg, the town right next to Daisy and across the sound. But don’t overlook that as just an attempt to be nearer to Daisy. His house is right across the sound and from his backyard he can see her house. The novel formally begins with Nick moving into West Egg next-door to Gatsby’s place , and Nick sometimes sees Gatsby gazing out at Daisy: “-he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and far as I was from him, I could have sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward-and distinguished nothing except a single green light... that might have been the end of a dock”(21). Nick is correct about his assumption of the green light. It does