Jay Gatsby
“I can’t describe to you how surprised I was to find out I loved her, old sport. I even hoped for a while that she’d throw me over, but she didn’t, because she was in love with me too. She thought I knew a lot because I knew different things from her... Well, there I was, ‘way off my ambitions, getting deeper in love every minute, and all of a sudden I didn't care. What was the use of doing great things if I could have a better time telling her what I was going to do?”
(F. Scott Fitzgerald, 150 )
(F. Scott Fitzgerald, 150 )
Best Qualities- Devoted: Although Daisy did not wait for Gatsby to return from war and chose to marry Tom, he is still very much in love with and wants to rekindle all that they had five years ago
- "He knew that Daisy was extraordinary, but he didn't realize just how extraordinary a 'nice girl' could be." (142) - "He felt married to he, that was all" (142) - Determined/Ambitious: He has set goals and is willing to do anything it takes to achieve them (E.g. Daisy and the American Dream). Has a special ability to hope and turn dreams into realization - "Well there I as, 'way off my ambitions, getting deeper in love every minute and all of a sudden I didn't care." (143) |
Worst Qualities- Stuck in the Past: He can't let go of the love he had with Daisy five years ago. He is constantly trying to relive it and freeze time so he can go back to those moments. He doesn't want to live in the present because it isn't going to help him attain his goals and dreams which this saddens him.
- "I think he would acknowledge anything now, without reserve, but he wanted to talk about Daisy." (141) - Naive: Gatsby is so optimistic that he often forgets the difference between reality and his dreams and ambitions. His overoptimism leads him to thinking that Daisy loves him back and wants to get back together, but reality sinks in and things do not go the way Gatsby envisioned - "I'd even hoped for a while that she'd throw me over, but she didn't, because she was in love with me too." (142) - His View of Daisy is Not Always Sincere: Although he may love Daisy, it may just be her wealth and class he loved. He is so driven to attain this respect and social status that comes with old money but unfortunately it is something he can never have. He looks at her like she is a prize and a value rather than a person he has fallen in love with. - "It excited him, too, that many men had already loved Daisy - it increased her value in his eyes" (141) |