Gatsby January 21

After finishing the novel, I don’t believe that Gatsby ever truly stopped dreaming. I believe his faith in the dream was shaken by the events of the previous night but I believe he died a dreamer, perhaps contemplating what it would be like when Daisy finally left Tom. Even if Daisy didn’t choose to leave Tom right away, I believe Gatsby was still clinging to the dream, the hope that she one day would: “‘I suppose Daisy’ll call too.’ He looked at me anxiously, as if he hoped I’d corroborate this” (154). I think he was so caught up in his dreams that he couldn’t see anyone for who they really were, not Daisy, not Tom, not the hundreds of people who came uninvited to his parties. And maybe it was because he lived so much within his dreams that there was nothing left after he died. The Daisy in reality wasn’t like the Daisy in his dreams, grief-stricken and sobbing uncontrollably over Gatsby’s casket. Who knows how long it was before she even found out Gatsby had been killed. I feel extremely sorry for Gatsby. He spent all of his life building a reality based completely on dreams of fame, wealth, power and Daisy, and in the end, it seemed to amount to nothing. Even after Daisy admits that she loves Tom too, Gatsby still tries to convince himself that his dream could become a reality: “‘I don’t think she ever loved him,’ Gatsby turned around from a window and looked at me challengingly. “You must remember, old sport, she was very excited this afternoon. He told her those things in a way that frightened her—that made it look as if I was some kind of cheap sharper. And the result was she hardly knew what she was saying…Of course she might have loved him just for a minute, when they were first married—and loved me more even then, do you see?’” (152) He didn’t want to give up the dream because then he’d have nothing to live for, ironically enough.