BOOK REPORT OF

BOOK REPORT OF

5034029007 杨玲

I have already read this novel for three times ,each time I found some more ideas . But in fact until now,I have not understood the author ’s meaning totally . This book ’s language is not difficult ,but what the author really intent to tell us is difficult to comprehend.Now ,I only write something about what I have learned from the novel.

Mainly it is the story of Jay Gatsby, told by Gatsby's friend and neighbor, Nick Carraway, a bonds salesman in New York. Three other important characters are Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan, and Myrtle Wilson. Nick is distantly related to Daisy, whose wealthy husband, Tom, went to college with Nick. Myrtle is married to a mechanic but is sleeping with Tom.

After searching for the background of this novel ,I know it is about many things that have to do with American life in the "Roaring Twenties," things such as the abuse of alcohol and the pursuit of other pleasures, including that elusive entity, the "American dream." Much has been made of Fitzerald's relation to his characters. Many of the characters in his novels are based on people from his life. Within the characters of Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby we can see the dueling parts of Fitzgerald's own personality. Gatsby and Fitzgerald are alike by both being self-made men who have achieved financial success. Similarly, they both achieved their financial success for the love of a woman. Gatsby felt that he needed wealth to win the hand of Daisy, and Fitzgerald felt the same about Zelda. The love of a woman was the motivating factor behind virtually all of Gatsby's actions, and many of the young Fitzgerald's. Fitzgerald would spend the majority of his career struggling to earn as much money as possible to maintain the privelaged lifestyle that Zelda desired.

From this novel ,we can know that in the Gatsby ’s period ,is filled with extravagancy, vacuity. money can buy them love, friends, and happiness. Gatsby tries to buy Daisy's love throughout the book. In the first part of the book Gatsby holds a number of large parties, hoping Daisy will come to one of them so he can pursue her. Unsuccessful, he manipulates Nick into arranging a meeting between himself and Daisy. Nick has Tom, Daisy, and Gatsby to tea. Subsequently, Gatsby invites them to go for a ride with him. Thereafter, Gatsby tries to drive a wedge between Daisy and Tom, but though she claims to love him, her love is as superficial as the image Gatsby has created with his money. Money itself is neither moral nor immoral, but the use Gatsby puts money to involves moral issues about marriage that go far beyond the mere fact that he is rich and uses his money to gain want he wants.

Gatsby also tries unsuccessfully to win friends through his parties. Gatsby is lonely and he tries to fill his loneliness with his parties. In effect, he tries to buy friends with his lavish entertaining. And, although his parties are successful in the number of guests (invited and uninvited) and in their apparent enjoyment of the parties, Gatsby makes no significant friends through these entertainments. Instead, people speculate as to how Gatsby got his money and as to whether or not he is a killer. Indeed, he has got his money illegally--through bootlegging and other immoral ways. And the novel suggests that partly because of this fact Gatsby comes to grief. Though Nick, referring to Daisy, Tom and their friends, tells Gatsby, "'They're a rotten crowd,' . . . . 'You're worth the whole damn bunch put together'" (154), he also disapproves of Gatsby and has done so "from beginning to end" (154).

Both Tom and Gatsby believe that ,money can buy happiness.But neither of these two persons gain any happiness from money .His affair with Myrtle suggests he is trying to fill the