Chapters 1 and 2 of Gatsby: Unreliable Narration

Quite quickly it becomes apparent that the narrator of this novel can't be trusted. When a narrator, a storyteller, confesses that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments" about people, the first thing that popped into my mind is that he can't be trusted. And what about this early line: "the intimate revelations of young men...are marred by obvious suppression." Is he alluding to Freud here? What credibility would that bestow upon the narrator? All I can think now is what the narrator might be hiding in this story, this "intimate revelation" that we are now privy to.

Sprinkled throughout the first chapter are little hints that Nick is, for all his pride, a little ashamed of his Midwest heritage. He even mentions in the very beginning that he never thought he would leave the East coast, for the midwest seemed so remote an meaningless to him after serving in the war. He speaks of Tom with contempt -- but can't help being impressed. When he speaks of the way Tom and Daisy entertain, he refers by way of contrast to how an evening is spent "back West" where people appear to be in a "nervous dread of the moment itself."

There is some ample self loathing going on here; I just wonder what will be become of this perspective. I'm already imagining having to map the book, sectioning off the narration from the action and the dialogue. I know that it's not a fully reliable science, but when I can isolate the mostly objective discourse (I know, impossible) from the obviously subjective, I get more of a feel for the conversation a text seems to be having with the universe.

I love the handle Fitzgerald gets on the individual who feigns modesty and humility through tight lipped restraint, but inwardly harbors an intense grudge against almost everything he meets that does not live up to his impossibly high (and often narcissistic) standards. To have an opinion about everything, but never express it, as well as pride oneself for the ability to remain silent, seems terribly dishonest. I find myself having more appreciation, as well as more disgust, for Tom, who although a cheat and a bigot, seems somehow more honest than Nick. Honesty seems to be a major concern of this novel.