F. Scott Fitzgerald has made a real masterpiece here. Out of all the books so far, I think I liked this one best and not because it was only 180 pages and not 500 pages. We see in this novel the sad truth that if you are popular it does not necessarily mean that the people you are around really like you, though. This book was very interesting as well from when Nick Carraway goes over to Tom and Daisy's house at the start of the novel to how Tom is cheating on Daisy to the funeral of Jay Gatsby at the end of the novel. It had quite an interesting twist in the ending because I do not believe that anybody was guessing that Gatsby was going to die. This is why the character I found most interesting was of course Jay Gatsby since you could say he was the most important person in the novel.
Gatsby is a rich man who throws huge parties every weekend, and people show up who he has no idea who they are. His life is full of mysteries of what his actual business is to why he is friends with the man who rigged the World Series. His name it not even Jay Gatsby. Even still, the most interesting thing about him in this novel is his love of Daisy Buchanan. After five years apart, he still pursues after her even though she is married. He even dies because of Daisy since she actually ran over Mrs. Wilson, not him. In my opinion, I wish Gatsby would have won over and gotten Daisy because Tom did not love her. He had a mistress in Mrs. Wilson. Tom did not even seem to care for his wife until Gatsby showed feelings for her. I believe Gatsby was a good man that deserved better in life. He had everything a man could dream for except the love and his life and he died without her.
I believe there are many themes in this novel, but the one that stood out to me the most is what I said earlier in this blog. Even though you throw the best parties and you seem to be the most popular person there ever could be, it does not mean that people like you and care for you. You see this with Gatsby's funeral. Only his true friend, Nick Carraway, shows up along with Gatsby's father, that is all. Gatsby's parties attracted hundreds of people who would stay at his house for countless hours and none of those people showed up for his funeral. Not even his true love, Daisy, shows up to his funeral. I think this is really sad. Gatsby really leaves a lasting impression on Nick that he will never forget in this novel. Gatsby was just a man looking to rekindle the love he once had with Daisy and sadly he dies trying.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Grapes of Wrath Blog
I believe "The Grapes of Wrath" shows us how hard life really can be. We think of life back then as simple, but this novel really contradicts that with the story of the Joad's and people who moved out of the "Dust Bowl" in general. Having to move around everywhere just to work for next to nothing was the only way the Joad's were able to survive. This would be a terrible way to live, but every farmer seemed to have to do this. Nobody liked the "Okies" in California and we see how terribly they are treated from the mean cops to the crooked car salesmen to the people who want to pay the workers two and a half cents for a box of peaches that were picked. The conditions for the workers were terrible, but they made it through it somehow.
The character I find most interesting in the novel is Jim Casy. At the start of the novel, he is a man who is lost I guess you could say. He is trying to make sense of his situation of not being a preacher anymore and he is looking for answers of if his actions of when he was a preacher were right. Towards the end of the novel, I believe Jim Casy has found himself. He knows that he should organize the workers and he dies for that purpose. Jim Casy is such an inspiring man that he leads Tom Joad to do the same job he was attempting to do when he was killed, organize the workers. Jim Casy was very inspiring and a good leader to the workers and to Tom Joad. Jim Casy was a hero to the "Okies".
I believe the theme of this novel is how a group of people, specifically the people from the "Dust Bowl" that moved to California, must adjust to their surroundings in order to survive. If they do not adjust, they and their family have no chance for survival because there will be no money for food or a sufficient living space. People moved from Oklahoma because the bad conditions for crops contributed to them losing their farms to the banks. They thought conditions would be better in California, but they were not. You could describe every possible job opportunity as a riot in California because so many people needed jobs. This is why you could say the theme of the novel is having the perseverance to adjust to the California way and finding a job.
The character I find most interesting in the novel is Jim Casy. At the start of the novel, he is a man who is lost I guess you could say. He is trying to make sense of his situation of not being a preacher anymore and he is looking for answers of if his actions of when he was a preacher were right. Towards the end of the novel, I believe Jim Casy has found himself. He knows that he should organize the workers and he dies for that purpose. Jim Casy is such an inspiring man that he leads Tom Joad to do the same job he was attempting to do when he was killed, organize the workers. Jim Casy was very inspiring and a good leader to the workers and to Tom Joad. Jim Casy was a hero to the "Okies".
I believe the theme of this novel is how a group of people, specifically the people from the "Dust Bowl" that moved to California, must adjust to their surroundings in order to survive. If they do not adjust, they and their family have no chance for survival because there will be no money for food or a sufficient living space. People moved from Oklahoma because the bad conditions for crops contributed to them losing their farms to the banks. They thought conditions would be better in California, but they were not. You could describe every possible job opportunity as a riot in California because so many people needed jobs. This is why you could say the theme of the novel is having the perseverance to adjust to the California way and finding a job.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Blog
Mark Twain has a wild imagination and he shows it in the novel of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn". He has described characters with various personalities and lifestyles, but I will focus on two of the main characters, Huck and Jim. Their relationship is very interesting in the novel because they are always willing to help each other, and even when they are separated from each other, they always seem to find each other again. Since their circumstances and goals are similar, their search for freedom directs their lives along the same path. This leads to what I think is the main theme of the novel, freedom.
The goal for freedom is seen a lot in this novel. From Huck escaping from his father to Jim escaping from slavery. These are just two examples of freedom in a novel which I believe is full of the want of freedom. Everyone wants freedom in life and most of the time we can achieve it fairly easily, but for Huck, he has to work towards freedom. The same goes for Jim. It is not hard to figure out why these two characters ran into the Duke and the King because these two were also seeking freedom while cheating people of money along the way. These two con men wanted to be free from having an honest job and free from having to do honest work. This is a crude version of freedom, but freedom none-the-less.
Freedom also ties into the setting. The setting is in the South, just a few years before the Civil War-I believe, based on the fact that there is still slavery. The setting is a place that will soon erupt into fighting over slavery. It will be a war fought for freedom, just like Huck fights for his freedom and Jim fights for his freedom. I like the setting because the author describes a setting much different from today because of the lack of freedom. This setting is very realistic to the South because the South was built on slavery and the people involved in slavery wanted freedom, and some even died for freedom. Huck and Jim achieved freedom in the end of the novel, but if they hadn't, I believe they would have died trying. It is hard to imagine what it would be like not to be free.
The goal for freedom is seen a lot in this novel. From Huck escaping from his father to Jim escaping from slavery. These are just two examples of freedom in a novel which I believe is full of the want of freedom. Everyone wants freedom in life and most of the time we can achieve it fairly easily, but for Huck, he has to work towards freedom. The same goes for Jim. It is not hard to figure out why these two characters ran into the Duke and the King because these two were also seeking freedom while cheating people of money along the way. These two con men wanted to be free from having an honest job and free from having to do honest work. This is a crude version of freedom, but freedom none-the-less.
Freedom also ties into the setting. The setting is in the South, just a few years before the Civil War-I believe, based on the fact that there is still slavery. The setting is a place that will soon erupt into fighting over slavery. It will be a war fought for freedom, just like Huck fights for his freedom and Jim fights for his freedom. I like the setting because the author describes a setting much different from today because of the lack of freedom. This setting is very realistic to the South because the South was built on slavery and the people involved in slavery wanted freedom, and some even died for freedom. Huck and Jim achieved freedom in the end of the novel, but if they hadn't, I believe they would have died trying. It is hard to imagine what it would be like not to be free.
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