reflection on class discussion 8/22

The class discussion on Wednesday was very interesting, and was very difficult to understand at the same time. There were times during the class when a little light bulb just came on in my head, and I was like, “wow I get that so much better." One of these moments was when I realized that F. Scott Fitzgerald is literally trying to use Gatsby to portray himself in way. Like Gatsby, Fitzgerald let himself be defined by the people around him, and I think that he has lost that aspect of himself and to me that is sort of depressing. For someone to give in to other people for a lifestyle that is just very interesting for me, but at the same time I feel that we ourselves have experienced similar situations in which we let people define us through fashion trends and social dynamics. I also love the fact that this book makes you really think, I mean when I read it I never thought about the green light being something that we cannot ever reach. Gatsby lives in his past since he knows no other life other than the one other people make him out to be, and he goes along with all the rumors that people, who he doesn't even know, make about him. But is James Gatz pretending to be Jay Gatsby to please Daisy? I think that he is, and that at one point Daisy loved him in the past, but since Gatsby is not the same person I think that she doesn't love him as much. The main problem is that one cannot change the past. Would Fitzgerald be writing these great books if he was the same person as he started out, and wasn't as famous? I believe that this is a possibility, but then again I'm not the same person I was when I was 14 either. So this brings up the question do we live in our past? Subconsciously yes, but there are people who try to change what has happened in the past even though they can't. I think that Jay Gatsby is the kind of character that most people can relate to in a lot of ways, whether you live in the past or not. All good writers try to connect to their readers in one way or another, and I think that Fitzgerald does this magnificently.