美国文学选读 The Great Gatsby 分析.docVIP

F. Scott Fitzgerald (1890 - 1940)II. His masterpiece: The Great Gatsby1.The story summary:The entire story takes place in one summer in 1922. The novel describes the life and death of Jay Gatsby, as seen through the eyes of a narrator who does not share the same point of view as the fashionable people around him. The narrator learns that Gatsby became rich by breaking the law. Gatsby pretends to be a well-educated war hero, which he is not, yet the narrator portrays（描绘） him as being far more noble than the rich, cruel, stupid people among whom he and Gatsby live. Gatsby’s character is purified by a deep, unselfish love for Daisy, a beautiful, silly woman who, earlier, married a rich husband instead of Gatsby and moved into high society. Gatsby has never lost his love for her and, in an era when divorce has become easy, he tries to win her back by becoming rich himself. He does not succeed, and in the end he is killed??by accident because of his determination to shield Daisy from disgrace. None of Gatsby’s upper class friends come to his funeral. The narrator is so disgusted that he leaves New York and returns to his original home. Chapter NineNick makes plans for the funeral. Gatsbys Funeral, three people show up. Nick returns to the west. Nick meets with Tom Buchanan Nick gets a last view of Gatsbys house.小说表面上是一个爱情故事，但实际却是对社会现状的讽刺批判。比如，小说真实再现了盖茨比挥霍的晚会场面，客人们空虚元聊的生活方式，以及盖茨比经营非法买卖敛取财富的背景，这些都是那寻欢作乐和价值沦丧的时代的典型写照。另一方面，自移民时期开始，美国人一直梦想在这片民主、平等、自由、富饶的土地上，通过个人奋斗获得财富和幸福。但是物质富裕带来的却是精神堕落和理想的破灭，财富的增加也没有消除社会贫困和社会各阶层的狭隘偏见。Fitzgeralds America is not a place where anything is possible: just as America has failed to transcend its European origins, Gatsby, too, cannot overcome the circumstances of his upbringing. 在盖茨比身上可以清楚看到英国式的理想和精神追求，他的“了不起”就在于他对理想的执着。但他的理想在与时代现实的冲突中却又显得天真、虚幻。他将奋斗和生命的意义仅仅建立在理想化的黛西和她代表的财富之上，而当现实元情地将这个梦幻击碎后，他的奋斗和生命便丧失了存在的患义，他其实是被他自己的梦想所杀死的。　　小说的结构和主题天然合一。小说突出比较了盖茨比与黛西夫妇和他们所代表的社会阶层各自不同的价值观。小说通过第一人称叙事者尼克的视角，在第一章 就将两组人并列展示在读者面前，在前四章，通过故事结构的安排使两组人交替登场