Not for nothing does the story carry the name of its main character. To my mind, Jay Gatsby is the most interesting and complex character. He is the protagonist; however, the reader does not get to know him from the very beginning. Quite the contrary, first our attention is drawn to the novel’s narrator. However, while tracing the life of Jay Gatsby, three different states can be seen. The character of Mr. Gatsby is complex and dynamic. The road of the character can be traced through three periods: before the wealth, with the wealth, result.
As a young man, Jay Gatsby had first had to learn the meaning and goal of any kind of work. He did not come from a rich family and had to climb up the social latter completely on his own. While working for a millionaire he grew up into a man whose goal in life was wealth. He fell in love while still young and open. However, as he became older, the feeling of love, or at least what he thought to be love, was his main driving force. He was ready to do anything in order to be good enough for Daisy. She is the reason he went into criminology. From the very beginning the character undergoes substantial changes. However, this is rather normal for a young man when growing up. That is the time when one finds his place in the world and decides how to lead one’s life. Gatsby was no exception. He fell in love and dedicated the rest of his life to obtaining everything needed to make his dream a reality.
Once Gatsby understood how to reach his American dream, how to reach the top of the social pedestal, he channeled all of his energy into his work. He did not care how to earn money, did not care if he was doing the right thing or now. All that was important for him was the money he needed to obtain. At the top, Gatsby now started to search for his goal, Daisy. He moved as close to her as he could. His parties were the talk of town. One rarely got invited to such a party, people just came, often without even knowing what the owner looks like. He didn’t care for them. All of this showing off was not for them. It was all to get Daisy to come. How had he hoped to see her at one of his parties? She never came. Only thanks to the help of Nick Carraway does Gatsby get to meet Daisy again. Money has made his tough and he no longer cared for much in the world. The character changed from a man open to things around him, to a closed person centered on his wealth and attempts to gain respect in society. Gatsby now only cared about material things. Even though all of this was for love, money and wealth took too much of his attention.
After meeting Daisy, Gatsby as if turns back into that young man again. He is ready to drop everything. His house gets new servants and parties are no longer a must. Everything is used for his new/renewed relationship. While on seventh heaven Gatsby’s character is freed. Nick finally sees the human inside him, the sensitive and warm human being that can care and love. The relationship as if transforms him only to kick him down when he thought the top was so near. Daisy’s uncertainty and that horrible scene in the hotel, all of it affected Gatsby. Everything he has been working for all his life was no longer something that he even wanted. In his dreams, Daisy loved him and only him as he loved her. The truth kills him. Just seeing the daughter turns out to surprise him. It is as if he was living in a different world after reunited with his love. But that bubble burst and the character fell apart. He still loved her and protected her as he could. Nevertheless, he no longer needed anything that he had worked so hard to gain.
Jay Gatsby is a dynamic character and changes throughout the story. Almost his whole life is laid out in front of the reader and we see just how the boy became a man and more. As a young man, he is a free soul, which quickly becomes trapped in the nets of wealth and money. Surprisingly it is the pure feeling of love that leads him down the twisted path. It is this feeling that blinds him and carries him for the next years. His American dream is formed and fulfilled when he is far enough to the top to be able to invite whoever to his great parties. He has reached the top. He lives in a magnificent house with a huge number of servants. His lands are numbered and he has every toy a grown up man may want – from a boat to a plane. This is what defines him now. His money and wealth is the only things that people see him as. The driving force of his life is extinguished at the end of the story and this puts an end to the life of our protagonist. The characters comes a long way and changes quite significantly. The idea of the American dream is what lead him to his doom.
Works Cited
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York. Simon and Schuster, 1925. Print.
