F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby - Nick Carraways Self-Interest

Nicks Self-Interest in The Great Gatsby In his novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald portrays a world filled with rich societal happenings and love affairs. His main character, Gatsby, is flamboyant, pompous, and only cares about impregnateing the love of his life, Daisy Buchanan. Nick is Fitzgeralds narrator for the story, and is a curious choice as a narrator because he is of a different class and almost a different world than Gatsby and most of the other characters in the book. Nick relates the darn to the reader as a member of Gatsbys circle, yet he expresses repeatedly his dislike for the man. Nick passelnot relate to Gatsby because of their fundamental personality differences. Moreover, he disapproves of Gatsbys desire to impress Daisy at all costs. However, Nick continues to follow Gatsby because by doing so he can ensure his relationship with Jordan, a celebrity socialite, and because, in a unregenerate way, Nick can use Gatsby to bolster his own self- esteem. Nick expresses his opinion about Gatsby quite clearly I disapproved of him from beginning to end (162). However, he makes this respect at the end of the novel and actually does like Gatsby when he first meets him. I could see nothing sinister about him (54). Nicks image of Gatsby only begins to be tainted once he learns of his relationship with Daisy. Nicks dislike does not stem from jealousy it comes from the fact that Gatsby shapes his life around what Daisy wants. Nick does not see Gatsby as a real person, only as an image set out to please Daisy and conform to what she desires. The epigraph of the novel states Then wear the gold hat, if that will guide her If you can bounce high, bounce for her too, ... ...al element of life, and thus finds Gatsby foolish as he devotes his life to pleasing Daisy. However, Nick links himself with Gatsby so that he can gain in social status and self-regard. Nick wants to be respected, and Jordan gives him much more respect after he becomes Gatsbys friend. Thus Nick keeps up the fellowship to benefit his love life. He also gains self-assurance because he sees himself as Gatsbys only true friend. Thus it is Nicks selfishness that causes him to develop a rapport with Gatsby horizontal though Gatsby represented everything for which I Nick have an unaffected scorn (6). Gatsby becomes merely an object, though he is the character that gives his name to the title of the novel. Gatsby is only great relation to Nicks self-interest. Work Cited Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. Simon and Schuster Inc., New York 1991.