Materialism and lack of reality
This book captured these two points so beautifully. It really caused me to reflect on what the american dream really OUGHT to be.
Best American novel ever? Have you lost your mind or have you never read Flannery O'Conner? How about Wise Blood? What about Faulkner and The Sound and the Fury? Hell, even Hemingway wrote better novels that Fitzgerald did and I do not even like Hemingway all that much. I even think Heller and Vonnegut have written better American novels. The Great Gatsby is just alright, but it sure does not, and never will match up to the beautiful writing styles of Faulkner.
Flannery O'Connor's short stories will outlast her novels. But I think the above poster is right; "Gatsby" has a good claim to be called the best American novel, at least of the 20th century. (Great as it is, it's no "Moby Dick.") To me, the ease and enjoyability of the narrative, with its very specific characters giving way to a universality of experience and far-reaching implications about how modern people live their lives, was a harder trick to pull off than the hothouse experimentalism of Faulkner at full throttle. (Though I guess the styles fit the subjects: Fitzgerald on the Gold Coast and Faulkner in Mississippi Goddamn.) Granted, I think Faulkner is probably the best American novelist of the last century, but I don't think you can pick out just one novel out of his three or four best, and the weak spots of one novel are propped up by the strengths of another. "The Great Gatsby," on the other hand, is perfect.
I think both you and I can come to an understanding that it is nearly impossible to declare the "best" American novel. What it comes down to is personal opinions. I was never much for The Great Gatsby and although I think its a great book, I think that Faulkner's novels were always much better with his narration, style, and his development with his characters. Although, the more I think about it the more I would have to say that the best American novel would have to be split up by the time era and location. For instance: The Great Gatsby would be the best American novel for the east coast, whereas The Sound and the Fury would be the best for the south, and for the mid-west and west coast I have no clue...
listen kids, gatsby is a great american novel because everyone can, and more than likely has read it and enjoyed it. try getting every high school sophomore in america to read the sound and the fury and appreciate it the way they appreciate to kill a mockingbird, gatsy or catcher in the rye
Sort of off topic, but I think that Willa Cather might have some right to best mid-west novel with O, Pioneer! or My Antonia. Steinbeck is an amazing example of west coast literature, especially East of Eden or Of Mice and Men.
Heh -- good point. Still, I should add that I didn't much care for Gatsby in high school, but then picked it up again after college and thought it was one of the best things I'd ever read.
Funny you should say that. I did a piece of my English coursework on the Great Gatsby in Lower Sixth, which involved (obviously) tearing it to shreds in the process, and reading it in class absolutely destroyed it for me. By the end of the term, i was reading the dictionary. But i went back to it about a year later, and i was amazed by it. It really is one of the best books i have ever read. I mean, i am English, and so have not experienced the American Dream first hand exactly (we English are faaaar too cynical to dream!), but what is great about it, is that it actually fits certain scenarios over here as well. It really is a phenomenal book, though my teacher was surprised as anything when i turned around and said i was reading it again!
