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asienerbrown's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Blood, Car accident, and Murder
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Classism
aia_r's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
october 3rd 2023
/// a review i wrote for an English assignment that i'd like to share.
I got The Great Gatsby as a gift last summer from my uncle, who, like me, likes to read. I read some reviews on it online and many claimed to not like the book, so I did not have too high expectations. Since then, it’s been sitting on my bookshelf as I waited for an opportunity to read it. The opportunity came in the form of an English assignment. The Great Gatsby is American, dare I say, literature, at its finest. F. Scott Fitzgerald was a master at the written word. The prose with which he wrote was smooth, a perfect vivid description of the emotions of the 20s. His writing is truly beautiful unlike any I’ve ever read before. “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” That itself sounds like poetry. It was a pleasure to read it. With the 20s upon us once more and a moral destitution parallel to that of The Great Gatsby, people living in today’s day and age should read this. It is an exemplary saga that we all should recognise, remember and take notice of.
The Great Gatsby, narrated by Nick, is about Jay Gatsby, a ridiculously rich man and also a WW1 veteran living in a mansion on Long Island in the 1920s. He’s exceedingly in love with Daisy. Daisy fell in love with Gatsby as well but not to the same extent as Gatsby did. Leaving for the Great War, their relationship ended and when Gatsby returned, Daisy married Tom Buchanan. I believe that Gatsby fell in love with the idea of Daisy, the wealth she represented, and not her as a person. He held on to this idea and it slowly transformed into a persona that was not Daisy; an individual Daisy never could measure up to be. It’s intriguing, confusing, an ill-fated love story. A tragedy, yes, but a beautiful one. The plot was relatively slow sometimes but I believe it added to the conditions and atmosphere of the book. It is in those slow, seemingly meaningless moments we, the reader, can see how the majority of the characters lack spirit and liveliness in their lives. They worked on weekdays and attended tumultuous parties on Saturdays at Gatsby’s house, they merely existed but there was nothing deeper than the surface for them. As mentioned earlier, a reason why I think many do not like the book is because they don’t like the characters, but that shouldn’t be the case. I believe that the shallow characters and their imperfections permit the reader to see their own imperfections. For example, I could relate to Nick in his observing and non-judgemental manner. Another reason people dislike this is the end. It wasn’t a happy one and that bothers them. I disagree and think that the tragic ending adds to the excellence of the story. Through the book’s tragic ending, Fitzgerald makes us see where a materialistic life will lead us. Another thing I noticed is the symmetry between the story and the 1920s. What I mean is that in the majority of the book’s content, it was soaring high, jolly and gay, imitating the “Roaring 20s”. And in true symmetry, the 20s and The Great Gatsby both ended in a crash.
Overall, The Great Gatsby is an excellent book by an excellent author, highly recommended. I had a marvellous time reading.
october 15th 2023
Minor: Death, Blood, Car accident, Murder, and Alcohol
marenm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Car accident, and Classism
Moderate: Suicide, Blood, Antisemitism, Grief, and Murder
seapotatohowisitalrtaken's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Alcohol
ralfy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
I read it in one sitting during a thunderstorm. Could not stop if I had wanted to.
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
hayleyvem's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Suicide, Blood, Car accident, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and War
lizkocher's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Death, Infidelity, Blood, and Car accident
Moderate: Gun violence, Misogyny, Violence, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Emotional abuse
hdoomk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Infidelity, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
tifftastic87's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Nick, the narrator, reminds us so many times that hes one of the few honest men, that I fail to believe he is a reliable narrator at all.
Gatsby, whom we know so little about until the end, is honestly a man who is so stuck on the past when he "fell in love" with an 18 year old barely legal Daisy that he spent his whole life accumulating wealth to get her attention. He throws wild parties just to hope she'll come.
The women, Daisy and Jordan, are pretty much here for decoration and to be an object for the men to either fight over (Daisy) or be guided by (Jordan). The exception is Myrtle who is there to simply show you how horrible Tom is and for Nick to describe as fat and bossy.
She carried her surplus flesh sensuously as some women can.
Tom is a racist, white supremacist piece of garbage who cheats on his wife, abuses his mistress and just talks trash about everyone.
I disliked every single character in this book. I loathed every page. I am so glad I was never forced to read this in school.
Only giving it some credit for the accuracy in which Fitzgerald describes drunk people and the way he sets scenes.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Antisemitism, Car accident, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Gun violence, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Toxic friendship
paigeinabook's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Minor: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism