The book is short, only nine chapters, translated into Chinese is only 40,000 or 50,000 words, and it can be read in a few hours.
The story is also very simple, Di Si Gatsby in order to pursue the goddess Daisy tried to become a huge rich, only to be abandoned by the goddess, and finally died for her to be charged with murder.
But if it is just such a tragic story of licking a dog, it will not become a world famous book, the national reading of the United States.
It must have something classic.
If you want to become a classic, good writing is the most basic.
The depictions of scenery and people in this book are first-class, and the various characters are sketched to life in just a few strokes.
Such a short novel, but can portray a large number of characters into the wood three points, which shows the author's profound skill.
We can see the obsessive and lonely Gatsby, the selfish and vain Daisy, the prudent and introspective Callaway, the miserly and indifferent Buchanan, the cold and arrogant Jordan...
The metaphorical symbolism and echoing before and after are also used very well.
For example, the green light at Daisy's house symbolizes Gatsby's dream, and the moths surround Gatsby's diners and so on.
Especially the green light of Daisy's house, the whole text appears three times in total, at the beginning, middle, and end, such a symmetrical structure is very beautiful and ingenious.
The opening place symbolizes the pursuit of dreams. At that time, Gatsby and Daisy were geographically close, but the actual distance was out of reach.
The middle one symbolizes the realization of dreams. Daisy suddenly reached out and took him by the hand, and their distance was no longer so far away, but close at hand.
The one at the end symbolizes the transcendence of dreams. After clinging to it for so long, Daisy is still Gatsby's illusory dream, no matter how hard they try, they are people of two worlds after all.
But if it is only so, it can only be called a passing novel. If you want to become a classic, you need to have a deeper connotation.
A classic novel is indispensable to the meticulous depiction of the times, and the author's reflection on the times and self.
The author, Jez ferrad, vividly shows the drunken and flashy 1920s, also known as the "Jazz Age".
Because Daisy is a young girl, and she is in a snobbish world of drunken gold fans and pleasure-seeking. In this world, the light song and dance are endless, and the sound and color dogs and horses are endless all year round. The saxophone played the "Bill Street Blues" all night, and hundreds of pairs of gold and silver dancing shoes kicked up the shining dust. When it's time for coffee breaks, the low, sweet hit still reverberates, and many fresh faces float around the ballroom like rose petals blown to the ground by those brass pipes.
Indeed, as John Chamberlain admired, Fitzgerald "has the ability to capture the flavor of an era, the fragrance of a night, and the mood of an old song with a single passage."
A few paragraphs of description are very substitutionary, making me feel as if I am in the lively moment of light singing and dancing, that extravagant and flashy twenties.
If you want to understand the extravagance and vanity of the upper class of that era, this novel should not be missed.
After the ambient atmosphere is rendered, it is time for the characters to interpret the story.
The most brilliant characters are Gatsby and Daisy.
What kind of people are they?
"They're all rotten people, and those bastards aren't as noble as you." This is what his friend Mr. Callaway had to say about him.
On the surface, Gatsby is no different from the bastards.
He was extravagant, hosting grand banquets every weekend for moth-like diners; he would lie, he would weave up his illustrious home to create a legendary story; he always liked to wear pink suits... Looks like a brash upstart.
But he's not that kind of person.
He is always courteous, attentive to diners who eat and drink for free, and even a little cautious. Except for the dance with Daisy, at his own lively banquet, he was as sober and detached as an outsider. He is extremely restrained and modest, with a slight rustic temperament, treating people and things without a trace of arrogance and arrogance, and even a little cramped and uneasy.
Not only that, but the biggest difference between them is that people like Buchanan and Daisy are material slaves, and he only uses wealth as a means of pursuing Daisy.
Whether poor or rich, he had only one purpose, and that was Daisy.
In this materialistic world, everyone only wants their own enjoyment, only he pursues a love that makes people look even a little ridiculous.
Not willing to be poor and trying to make money is not to enjoy a rich and comfortable life, but to let Daisy be with him.
He spent years creating a wonderful world for Daisy, to embellish such a beautiful fantasy.
Daisy was his obsession, the kind that couldn't turn his head back when he hit the south wall.
Therefore, he was doomed to a tragic fate.
Because love is something very ridiculous in the eyes of people in the upper class, and there is more than one mention of it. What is the use of love, the door is right, the appearance of the talented woman is the most important. Sincerity is the cheapest and most useless thing.
Because he was not born well, because his huge wealth was earned by selling bootleg liquor, it was black money, so no matter how rich he was, he would never be recognized by the upper class, he would never enter Daisy's world, he could only have her past, but there could be no her present and future.
In Daisy's heart, he was a spare tire. The sadness of her husband's cheating has him to comfort, the crime of murder has him to bear, and she only needs to give a little hope that seems to be nothing, so that he can be fascinated by her and go to the soup.
Some people say that they have loved before, otherwise Daisy would not have had a brief remorse before marrying Buchanan.
But I don't think she's actually ever loved Gatsby.
Because you love someone, you can't give nothing, you can't even be unwilling to wait for him for a little time, but just simply enjoy the other party's goodness to yourself.
That's called exploitation, not love.
When she married Buchanan for the sake of being a door-to-door and beautiful person, she had a short period of nostalgia and regret. But at that time, her heart and longing were not because of Gatsby, but because of that romantic atmosphere.
This was especially evident in the early days of her and Tom's marriage.
Because they were newly married at that time, they were like glue and very loving. At that time, Tom gave her a rich life, gave her romantic romance, so she never thought about Gatsby.
Later, when Buchanan cheated and had countless lovers and affairs, she would be upset and angry.
But this performance also does not say how much she loves Buchanan.
It was only because he didn't give her the perfect, romantic love that her fantasies of a beautiful married life were shattered.
At this time, Gatsby appeared, he was generous, gave her imaginable tolerance and romance, coupled with the previous emotional entanglements made her nostalgic for that mood, so she wanted to leave Buchanan to marry Gatsby.
But when she discovers that Gatsby's origins are low and that Gatsby's money is not coming from the right direction, she can immediately pull out and show a kind of innocence that is forced to helpless rather than voluntary.
She hadn't loved Gatsby, nor had she ever loved Buchanan.
From beginning to end, she loved only herself, she loved only noble origins and innate wealth, and she loved only romantic atmosphere.
Whoever provides her with this, she will go with whomever she wants, and it has nothing to do with love at all.
She is a natural princess, she can only live by pampering, she can only be noble and elegant, and that ridiculous love cannot touch her at all, but can only move herself.
If she finds that you may be a threat to her well-dressed life, she will not hesitate to pull out. And even if you are everywhere, as long as you have a birth and wealth, and occasionally show your love and thoughtfulness, she will be dead to you.
That's why even if Buchanan cheats repeatedly, she tries her best to maintain the marriage even if she lies, which is why Gatsby tries her best, even if she takes her life, she can't hide it.
Because she is a woman who is selfish to the extreme, indifferent to the extreme.
How gorgeous the outside is, how empty the heart is.
At the end of the day, it's just a vase and a parasite, hateful and pathetic.