Some Thoughts on The Great Gatsby

I just finished my first summer reading novel (I would have been finished with White Noise by now if I hadn’t misplaced it during the move- hopefully it will turn up soon), The Great Gatsby. I’m glad that I decided to finally increase my knowledge of American Literature, I enjoyed it very much. What struck me most about the story was how simple it was, and how tragic it still managed to be in spite of it.
Basically, a young man named Nick Carraway decides to spend the summer on Long Island while he works in the city. His cousin Daisy and her husband (who is quite proud of the fact that he keeps a mistress) live across the bay from him and his next door neighbor, Jay Gatsby a mysterious and incredibly wealthy man who no one knows much of throws incredible parties in his grand house. Nick finds himself invited to such a party and soon drawn into Gatsby’s confidence. He is in love with Daisy and has been waiting for her for five years. The stage is then set for an ending I wasn’t expecting.
In the end it’s clear that money and spectacle can win acquaintance, but can’t cure loneliness and sometimes our dreams are only precious while they stay that way.
It was a quick read, I finished it in two days and am on to my next reading project. I’ve read several of his short stories, but now I am tackling a novel by Hemingway.