Great Gatsby Blog 3

What is the theme of The Great Gatsby?


I believe that the theme is that money is not something that will make you have a great legacy. I think this comes mostly from Gatsby because in the book Gatsby uses his money to throw large parties and to try and win back his love. But, this does nothing for him. In the end because of everything he has tried to accomplish with his money he ends up dying. All of his actions end up digging his grave for him. This shows that money will not make you have a great legacy. Gatsby was a rich man but when he died he did not have many real friends who thought that his life was great.

Why did the author title the book The Great Gatsby?

I believe that it was titled this because it was based off of Gatsby's interpretation of himself. Gatsby's main goals were to be great and he wanted everyone to idolize him. But, in the end the only person that stuck with him was Nick he didn't really have anyone else. Gatsby thought that he was great and that everything he had done in life was amazing when in the end he was a failure. He lost his love and his life instead of being great.

Did Daisy love Tom or Gatsby?

I believe that Daisy loved both of them. She loved Tom for his money but she loved Gatsby for his personality. Yes, Gatsby ended up having money in the end but in the beginning when he and Daisy first fell in love he was poor and did not have the money that Daisy wanted. This is why I think when Daisy met Tom she fell in love with him because she had all of the money she ever wanted. Even though Gatsby has money as well I don't think that she will accept that he has it now because he didn't in the beginning. Also Tom was the first one to show her money so therefore I believe she feels more protected by his money. I think Daisy loves them both for different reasons.

What does the green light symbolize throughout the book?

I believe that overall it symbolizes jealousy and envy. When it is first brought up in the beginning of the book it symbolizes Gatsby's envy of Tom because he has Daisy. The light is at the end of Daisy's dock and the color represents Gatsby's jealousy. In the end of the book I believe that it symbolizes Nick's jealousy of Gatsby. Nick loves Gatsby's life from the beginning when he first meets him. Nick looks up to him so therefore in the end when it talks about Nick and the green light I think it is based on Nick's jealousy of Gatsby

Blog 2 Great Gatsby

1. I believe the purpose of Meyer Wolfsheim is to make us look at Gatsby in a new light. Meyer Wolfsheim is a very odd character and reveals part of Gatsby's past that is very mysterious. This makes me think of Gatsby in a bad way because Wolfsheim makes Gatsby seem like a bad character which makes me reconsider my earlier judgements of him.

2. Gatsby and Daisy's past makes me feel bad for Gatsby because Daisy let him for Tom. I feel bad for him because Daisy was his first love and she was supposed to wait for him but she didn't. This is depressing because it shows that Daisy may not have loved Gatsby which makes me feel sympathy towards him.

3.The rest of Gatsby's path makes me think that Gatsby is lonely and depends on money too much because he went through all of that trouble to become rich. It makes me think that Gatsby is a greedy man.

4. Before these three chapters I thought that Gatsby was a man that just liked to throw parties because he was rich. But after these three chapters I feel like Gatsby may have done some bad things in his past to get his money but now I feel like he is using his money for a good reason (to get Daisy back) so I think that his motives are okay.

"Black Bottom Stomp" by Jelly Roll Morton

While listening to this music I envision many people dancing; doing dances like the charleston or swing dancing. The really high pitched sounds such as the trumpet stand out to me. These sounds give it a very upbeat feel and happy mood. I think this song would mesh with one of Gatsby's parties because in the book it describes them as being very lively and I think this song would fit in perfectly because of the way it sounds.

First Reading Response Blog "The Great Gatsby"

From reading chapters 1-3 I believe that Jordan is an anti-hero, Nick and Gatsby are heroes, and Tom is a villain.

Nick- Nick is portrayed throughout the first three chapters as having characteristics of a hero. For example, Nick is said to be honest many times throughout the first three chapters making him an obvious hero.

Gatsby-I do not yet know too much about Gatsby but, based on what the other characters have said about him he would be a hero. The book says, "If personality is an unbroken series of successful gestures, then there was something gorgeous about him." (2). The narrator also continues to say good things about Gatsby so this leads me to believe he is a hero.

Jordan- Jordan is a good friend to Nick although she seems to have some bad qualities as well. She parties and drinks and is overall rude but she is still a good friend to Nick. "The bored haughty face that she turned to the world concealed something" (57).

Tom- Tom is the villain because he only seeks his happiness. Throughout the first few chapters he has put Daisy down just so the he could be on top and happy. This makes him the villain.

Evaluating Death Penalty Paragraphs

I thought that Kroll's essay was much more effective because of it use of Pathos. The Pathos really made me feel bad for him and his situation. The story that he used really appealed to me as well because of the amount of Pathos that it used. I thought that Menken's essay was a little confusing it also used a lot of ethos and logos which are not very appealing to me. I find that pathos appeals to me more therefore this is why I did not find Menken's essay as agreeable with.

"Sixteen Military Wives"

1. The song is talking about how military wives are suffering because their husbands are away working hard for our country while everyone else sits around doing nothing and taking our military for granted.
2. The theme of the song is that everyone should be thankful for our military and the work that they do.

"Race for the Prize"

The theme of Race for the Prize is that to get what you want you sometimes have to go to extreme measures to get it. In the song the two scientists both want the same thing but have to fight to get what they want. In the lyrics it says, "Theirs is to win if it kills them" this shows that they must go to extreme measures to get the prize that they want. It also says, "Forging for the future but to sacrifice their lives both of them side by side so determined" this statement also helps the theme because it shows what they must go through so that they are able to get what they want.