Our club's big debate on 'The Great Gatsby' made me rethink my whole approach

I always argued Gatsby was a tragic hero, but during our meeting in Sarah's living room, someone pointed out a line from chapter 3 about his smile. It hit me that I'd been ignoring how the book itself frames his obsession as hollow, not noble. Has anyone else had a key quote completely flip their view on a character?

3 comments

3 Comments

shanec6116d ago

Yeah, it's funny how that works. I see it all the time with people in real life, not just books. Someone seems so sure of themselves, but then you notice one small thing they do or say that shows they're just really lost. @jessica921's point about Holden being scared, not cool, is a perfect example. We build people up in our heads before we really look at the details.

ross.christopher16d ago

Holden's the narrator, not the author.

jessica92116d ago

Oh totally! That's such a good point about Gatsby. I had the same thing happen with Holden Caulfield from Catcher in the Rye. I used to think he was just this cool, misunderstood rebel. Then I really read the part where he talks about the museum and how everything should just stay the same forever. It made me see he's not just angsty, he's actually really scared of growing up and the world changing. It flipped my whole view of him from someone I admired to someone I just felt bad for.