The Great Gatsby Point Of View Analysis
Danielle Buck
11AP Francis
April 4, 2014
3rd Period
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is told in first person through the eyes of Nick Carraway. The primary story is regarding Jay Gatsby and his devotion to his dream. Other stories, also told through Carraway’s eyes, include Tom’s reconciliation with Daisy, Nick’s own relationship with Jordan, and Nick’s evolving friendship with Gatsby. Nick is only able to tell these stories through his limited omniscience. At times, he is able to narrate scenes despite not being present. Although the story is told in the first person, Nick is able to easily become part of the wallpaper. His major character trait—reserving judgment—allows him to be almost an "invisible" narrator. Ultimately, if the reader were to lose Nick’s point-of-view, there would not be an understanding of the evolution of his character. Nick is the reserved, unbiased character until the end of the book when he suddenly has opinions about everybody. …show more content…
However, he has personal connections with the other characters. Therefore, even if he believes that he is providing the reader with an impartial story, it is psychologically impossible for him to do so due to the fact that everything he says is delivered via his own subconscious biases and filters. For this reason, I do not believe that Nick was consistently a truthful narrator. For example, it is not always the best thing to believe what you are hearing from someone who has been drinking. However, he was reliable the majority of the
11AP Francis
April 4, 2014
3rd Period
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is told in first person through the eyes of Nick Carraway. The primary story is regarding Jay Gatsby and his devotion to his dream. Other stories, also told through Carraway’s eyes, include Tom’s reconciliation with Daisy, Nick’s own relationship with Jordan, and Nick’s evolving friendship with Gatsby. Nick is only able to tell these stories through his limited omniscience. At times, he is able to narrate scenes despite not being present. Although the story is told in the first person, Nick is able to easily become part of the wallpaper. His major character trait—reserving judgment—allows him to be almost an "invisible" narrator. Ultimately, if the reader were to lose Nick’s point-of-view, there would not be an understanding of the evolution of his character. Nick is the reserved, unbiased character until the end of the book when he suddenly has opinions about everybody. …show more content…
However, he has personal connections with the other characters. Therefore, even if he believes that he is providing the reader with an impartial story, it is psychologically impossible for him to do so due to the fact that everything he says is delivered via his own subconscious biases and filters. For this reason, I do not believe that Nick was consistently a truthful narrator. For example, it is not always the best thing to believe what you are hearing from someone who has been drinking. However, he was reliable the majority of the