The Great Gatsby Group

Question:

robbie93
robbie93
Student
High School - 10th Grade

Is Nick a reliable narrator?  Why and how would the opening chapters be different if Fitzgerald used the omniscient 3rd person point of view?

Rate question:

Posted by robbie93 on Tuesday March 24, 2009 at 5:38 PM and tagged with narrator, nick, reliable, style, the great gatsby.

Answers:


  1. ms-mcgregor Teacher
    High School - 12th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    Best answer as selected by question asker.

    Besides being the narrator, Nick is also an important character in the novel. By telling the story through his point-of-view, the audience can learn what Nick is learning throughout the novel. An omniscient third person point of view would take away some of that gradual unfolding of knowledge that makes the book so memorable. Gatsby would not be some mysterious neighbor that Nick learns to admire, but would become just another character in the book. If the author was truly omniscient, some of Daisy's thoughts about class and the suitability of Gatsby as a life partner would also have to be revealed. By using Nick, a cousin of Daisy, Nick is able to fill in some of the details through memory and flashback and then flash forward toward the ultimate tragedy of the novel. Fitzgerald can also use Nick as a mouthpiece for his own thoughts about life. Thus, the reader becomes much like Nick, gradually learning the truth as it in front of his eyes.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/great-gatsby

    Rate answer:

    Posted by ms-mcgregor on Tuesday March 24, 2009 at 6:17 PM