內容摘要
　　
　　1925年出版的《了不起的蓋茨比》是美國作家菲茨傑拉德最優秀的一部作品，作為一部具有濃烈悲劇色彩的小說，它緊扣時代脈搏，對美國現代社會的批判入木三分。
　　小說集中地暴露了二十年代美國夢的破滅，揭示在當時的美國社會，蓋茨比的追求是必然要失敗的。同時，圍繞著對蓋茨比的刻劃，小說還深刻揭露了當時美國物欲社會道德的淪喪。作品表明從金錢達不到愛情，從物質不能上升到精神，面對一個完全分裂的世界，情感是既無法彌補這種分裂，也無法代替人生的價值的，從而使作品在今天仍有深刻的現實意義。
　　小說的情節基本線索清晰，而具體事件又撲朔迷離，構成小說情節藝術的無窮魅力。同時該小說還充滿著強烈的抒情色彩，風格淒婉。作者用五光十色的音符譜出了一曲悲歌，給人留下無限的思索。
　　
　　[關鍵字] 菲茨傑拉德 時代 人物性格 美國夢 幻滅 情節 敍述者 抒情 意象
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　A Brief Analysis of Fitzgerald’s Novel –The Great Gatsby
　　
　　
　　Abstract
　　
　　The Great Gatsby is the best novel of F.S. Fitzgerald. As a novel with strong tragic flavor, it keeps in step with the time and its criticism of America society is really penetrating.
　　The novel shows the disillusion of “American Dream” in the 1920s. At that age, it was impossible for Gatsby to succeed. The novel also shows that in the American society of 1920s, the commons were in total depravity. It tells us that there is no way to go from money to love, from material to spirit. In a split world, love could neither make up the split nor replace the value. It is full of realistic meaning even today.
　　The clues of the novel are very clear, while the specific events are mysterious. In it, we can fully enjoy the glamour of art. In addition, the novel is intensely lyrical. With colorful musical elements, the author composed a tragic song, leaving a lot of questions for us to think about.
　　
　　[Key words] times, Fitzgerald, personalities, American Dream, disillusion, plot, narrator, lyric, image

Part One Time and F.S. Fitzgerald
　　
　　1. The historic background of the novel—The Great Gatsby
　　By the 21st century, the United States of America became the leading one in the world’s economy. By exploiting and squeezing, capitalists quickly burgeoned throughout the country. Billionaires, such as railway tycoon, steel tycoon, financial tycoon and etc, became the typical representatives of the age. In the times, capitalist economy got fully developed. No wonder the times have been called “Gilded Times” by historians.
　　However, the basic contradiction between socialized manufacturing and private-owned material of production makes all the people under the capitalist system trapped in dilemma between wealth and living meaning. Some “lucky” ones get rich among the commons. But wealth doesn’t necessarily bring the meaning of living to them.
　　American tradition is a balance of idealism and mercantilism. It has been said that American nationals wish to enjoy spiritual happiness while earning money. However, by 1920s, all characters and phenomena of modern society manifested.
　　It was an age of explosion of social wealth and billionaire, but also an age of spiritual poverty. Just as the critic Pilson said, 20s was not splendid times as the propaganda made by media; Contrarily, 20s was times of illness and disease, and times of bitterness and helplessness after madly reveling for young people. It was times that wealth and spiritual poverty were growing together.
　　Ideal and reality have lost balance. Commerce and Economy sharply developed. However, idealism found nowhere to perch. Bourgeoisie has played a very important role in history of the world revolution. The production forces created by bourgeois in its domination of less than one hundred years were more than those of the total sum getting all the times together before bourgeois. But, no doubt, in the modern society, national foundation under the foot of industry had been dug out, all feudal and rural relations have been destroyed, and all kinds of sacred haloes that used to be venerable and awesome in the past had been effaced, even the most affectionate family relationship had been replaced by sheer monetary relationship. Exactly, this kind of society, which amassed wealth but didn’t ask for the meaning, made people under the system very difficult to find out the meaning of living.
　　When the foundation of the old Europe was dug out, it was hopeless for American to form a new class of noble. Just as The Great Gatsby referred to, they had formed a new class, having their own way to think and live. They had the luxurious air as well as the Europe noble, like the Europe-styled house, nice ornaments and pure silver tableware. But except money, they had nothing to keep the foundation of the noble’s air. In their mind, they had neither sense of long history, nor weakness and pensiveness of waning Europe noble. Contrarily, they were adaptable to sociality, commerce, and politics. As a result, we could see the virtue and value standard, which led people to spiritual harmony was deserted. So here we can find out Gatsby’s value. Gatsby never gave up his spiritual ideal while he bent himself to materialism pursuit.
　　The loss of ideal was related to the First World War. American went up to take part in the war from behind the Atlantic shelter. The war ended. American benefited a lot from it. But the young people, especially the literate who had been sent to the battlefield, where they suffered from body and spirit’s trauma in the first time. Back to America, they felt tired of politics, adventures and ideals. In the times, the society showed an attitude of escaping. However, Fitzgerald, living up to the title of times’ singer, described the reality and feature of society, mainly in his novel The Great Gatsby.
　　
　　2. F.S. Fitzgerald
　　Fitzgerald was born in a family of businessman in Saint Paul in Minnesota. His grandfather was a rich immigrant from Ireland. But in his father’s generation, his family waned. Financing by relatives, Fitzgerald went to Pre. School. He often got along with the rich, but never regarded himself as a member of them. Fitzgerald had been impressed a lot by his father’s gentle style and mediocrity, feeling that he lived in a family in artificial noble manners. His mother pursued wealth, and liked fashionable clothes. She also made some influence upon Fitzgerald’s growing. In 1913, Fitzgerald entered Princeton University. During the time, he associated with Wilson and Bishop who later became the poet and the writer, making full use of his gift for literature and art and leading the students’ literature researching and play writing activities. It had been noticed that he deeply observed some social phenomena. His life in university was the starting point of his literature creating. In his junior year, he has short timely been in love with a millionaire’s daughter, but the love ended in failure.
　　In 1917, Fitzgerald was enrolled in army, being granted a title of second lieutenant of infantry stationing in Alabama. There he knew Zelda, a local judge’s daughter, and then fell in love with her. Their love wasn’t an easy path. Zelda paid too much attention to wealth, thinking that only money could keep her social status. From it, Fitzgerald realized, he needed money to pave the way to his dream. He yearned for getting rich. In 1919, he left the army. After a while of poor life, Fitzgerald decided to go back home for concentrating on polishing his novel that had been finished in the university. He succeeded. In 1920, the novel named this side of paradise had been published. The novel showed postwar the American youth’s living pattern. In the novel, the youth recklessly pursued for wealth and social status, dreaming of “prettiest” girl and “richest” boy.
　　After the novel published, Fitzgerald not only became wealthy and reputed, but also won back his “golden girl”—Zelda. The marriage influenced his rest life. He always took his wife as main female figure to write his novel. Under the demand of Zelda, they traveled to Europe twice, in big cities like Paris, leading a luxurious life of high class. This kind of luxurious life damaged his body and spirit, and hampered his artistic creation.
　　From 1921, many press including authoritative Atlantics, dared not snub him, instead, agree to publish many of his works. Fitzgerald successively published two collections of short story, Flappers and Philosophers (1921), Tales of the Jazz Age (1922), and a long story, the Beautiful and the Damned (1922). “The Jazz Age” was called by Fitzgerald for the times of 1920s. In the times, young people felt lost and puzzled while wildly pursuing materialism wealth and luxury. Fitzgerald himself and his works were the classic production of “The Jazz Age”, summarizing young people’s revel and spiritual vacancy and a world of decadence.
　　In 1925, Fitzgerald’s best works, long story—The Great Gatsby have been published. The novel showed the disillusion of American dream. After the novel came out in New York, T.S. Eliot immediately said, it was the first step taken by American novel since Henry. James. Hemingway described the friendship between him and Fitzgerald in the book named A Moveable Feast, said, since Fitzgerald could write out such good works the great Gatsby, he believed that Fitzgerald could write out better works. If knowing how strict Eliot and Hemingway were, we can understand the meaning behind the words.
　　In 1930, Zelda began to suffer from mental disease, and was sent to psychiatric hospital. It was a great shock to Fitzgerald. And after that, he also became more and more profligate.
　　The fourth long story Tender is the Night which was published in 1934 was almost Fitzgerald’s last spiritual struggling. By a love tragedy of a young doctor, the novel showed the selfish, hypocrite and decadence of capitalist magnates.
　　In the last years of his life, Fitzgerald suffered in 1936, he wrote biography—the Crack-up. In 1938, for earning his living, Fitzgerald went to hollywood for writing play. In 1940, he decided to accomplish a great long story. However, on December. 21, 1940, because of a burst of coronary heart disease, he passed away, just at the age of 44. Later, the manuscript had been compiled by his friend Wilson into a novel named the Last Tycoon, which was published in 1941.after he died, there were also some collections of short story and collections of prose and movie play being published.
　　
　　Fitzgerald was a great writer enjoying the same prestige with other famous writers of “ The Lost Generation”, like Hemingway, Faulkner, and etc. Scarcely, he kept in steps with the times in the novel the great Gatsby. He never evaded reality of American society, writing his experiences into his novels. So he gained the irreplaceable position in history of American literature. “The lost generation” was active in 1920s. Once the famous American female writer Stein said to Hemingway, All of them were the lost generation. “The lost generation” contains many writers of 1920s. They were tired of imperialism war, and felt lost and puzzled about their future. With special artistic technique, they described the young people’s trauma of both body and spirit caused by meaningless war, expressing a sense of confusion and despair. “The lost generation” not only includes the writers who took part in the war, but also do include the writers who didn’t take part in the war directly, such as Fitzgerald, who also felt lost and puzzled about the future.
　　Fitzgerald was young people’s spokesman. He got famous at early age. He finished this side of paradise at the age of 24 and the immortal works the great Gatsby at the age of 29. His works showed post-war American young people’s pursuit and life. In his eyes, young people were energetic and hopeful, but always indulged in degenerate life. Fitzgerald himself often couldn’t help revel away the time, called “the most fashionable”, becoming the classic representative of “the Jazz Age”.
　　Fitzgerald was a rare writer with dual personalities. American literary critic Mitzner said, as a writer, the most important thing of Fitzgerald was his conscious dual personalities. Fitzgerald was gifted of literature and art, but he was unable to refuse the temptation of luxurious life of high class, leading a profligate life. He wanted reputation and wealth, but he didn’t forget that he was a strict and serious writer. In the special times of the wildest and the most colorful, he was in and out; because he was in, he experienced it and knew it very much; because he was out, he could calmly observe the changing of the social stream, and truly describing the features of American society, soberly recognizing the irreconcilable contradiction between the rich and the poor.
　　Moreover, Fitzgerald’s life and works nearly intermixed with each other. Mitzner said, his life enlightens his works, just as his works forms his life.
　　Someone has told something interesting about that:
　　… Fitzgerald not only represented the times, but also did privately feel that he assisted in forming the times. He made some action pattern observable for the younger. There had been a drunken young man finding out him in the Peace Village. He said that he could not express his gratitude by words. In my mind, you created my life. However, the victim of Fitzgerald’s novels wasn’t the drunken young person who later became a novelist owning many readers, but exactly Fitzgerald himself. He once spoke to another guest visiting the Peace Village that sometimes he got confused about if he and his wife lived in reality or in his novels.
　　What the outstanding writer wrote were exactly about his deep prints left by life. His life was a life of tragedy, and a life suffering from capitalist society.
　　Generally, Fitzgerald’s individual experience is experience of American people, miniaturing American society. His works transcend himself, becoming the symbol of human dramatization. His “Princeton”, his “golden girl” and his consciousness of sharp changing of virtue standard are certainly part of American people’s cultural proceeding.
　　

Part Two Disillusion of life in “The Jazz Age”
　　
　　1. A brief introduction of the content of the novel
　　The Great Gatsby is Fitzgerald’s favorite novel, also a most obvious sign that his thought and style became mature. With strict designing of structure and special narrator, Fitzgerald expressed the motif of the disillusion of “American Dream”. By the standard of both art and profundity, the novel is the best works of Fitzgerald.
　　The whole novel proceeded with Nick’s narration. Nick. Carraway was born in a Western family, going to the developed Eastern for his own ideal. Nick lived in the West Egg of Long Island neighboring Gatsby. Gatsby was very rich and mysterious, and holding extremely luxurious banquet once per week. Nick attended Gatsby’s banquet and made friends with Gatsby and understood that Gatsby’s living here and showing luxury were all for attracting Daisy, who was Nick’s cousin living in the East egg, near to the West Egg. In the past, Gatsby and Daisy once fell in love with each other. But later, Daisy married a rich boy—Tom Buchanan. From then on, Gatsby made efforts to amass money for winning back Daisy. By Nick’s help, Gatsby and Daisy ignited their love affair again. But in the conflict between Gatsby and Tom, Daisy dared not to leave Tom. After that, purposelessly, Daisy knocked Tom’s mistress, Mrs. Wilson to dead by car. For protecting Daisy, Gatsby took the responsibility. However, Tom hinted Mr. Wilson that Gatsby was the murderer. So Mr. Wilson who didn’t know the truth killed Gatsby. At last, there were very few people attending Gatsby’s funeral. Meanwhile, Daisy and Tom became reconciled and gone out for traveling together. Nick saw through the indifference of people and left Eastern.
　　
　　2. Gatsby’s personality
　　As Fitzgerald’s favorite figure, Gatsby had the similar experiences and mental state, and their dreams were different from the commons. Gatsby never gave up his idealistic dream while striving for material joy. Gatsby kept on making efforts to balance the both sides.
　　(1) The material pursuit of Gatsby
　　On the one hand, he knew that, in the society that the commons scrambled for power and wealth, the will and the means to grab money were necessary. The novel introduces few about early days of Gatsby. But just from the few words, we can learn that Gatsby, who was born in a poor family of western farmer, was assiduous and self-disciplined in his childhood. Gatsby’s father has taken out a ragged old copy of a book called HOPALONG CASSIDY. That was a book Gatsby had when he was a boy. On the last fly-leaf the word SCHEDULE was printed. SCHEDULE made a good arrangement of Gatsby’s study, practice and daily life.
　　And GENERAL RESOLVES went that:
　　
　　“No wasting time …… No more smoking or chewing Bath; every other day Read one improving book or magazine; per week Save $5.00 {crossed out} $3.00 per week Be better to parents”.
　　
　　His father recalled that Gatsby was always ambitious and determined. In fact, that is the value standard of the older generation, like old Gatz, who has participated in early western pioneering. Gatsby has been infected by that kind of virtue standard. But when entering the society at the age of 17, Gatsby was given a lesson. By accident, he could serve for a millionaire named Cody. And after a time, he originally got the chance,
　　
　　“And it was from Cody that he inherited money—a legacy of twenty-five thousand dollars. He didn’t get it. He never understood the legal device that was used against him, but what remained of the millions went intact to Ella Kaye”. “He was left with his singularly appropriate education; the vague contour of Jay Gatsby had filled out to the substantiality of a man.”
　　
　　It shows that from then on he understood that one who wanted to prosper should get money by hook or by crook. The novel didn’t directly tell us business done by Gatsby, but hinted us about it. In chapter 7, Tom has reproached Gatsby that
　　
　　“ You’re one of that bunch that hangs around with Meyer Wolfshiem—that much I happen to know.” “He and this Wolfshiem bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter.”
　　
　　For such a charge, Gatsby was unable to deny, just responded:
　　
　　“What about it?”
　　
　　 And Tom continued:
　　
　　“Walter could have you up on the betting laws too, but Wolfshiem scared him into shutting his mouth.”
　　
　　And at the moment,
　　
　　“That unfamiliar yet recognizable look was back again in Gatsby’s face”.
　　
　　Who was Wolfshiem?
　　
　　“He’s quite a character around New York—a denizen of Broadway.” “He’s a gambler.”
　　“He’s the man who fixed the World’s Series back in 1919.”
　　
　　And Gatsby was really very familiar with Wolfshiem. Later, after Gatsby died, for fearing that him be implicated to it, Wolfshiem refused to attend Gatsby’s funeral. And another man called “Slagle” mistook Nick into Gatsby, said in telephone:
　　
　　“Young Parke’s in trouble,…. They picked him up when he handed the bonds over the counter. …”
　　
　　So, all of them hinted us that Gatsby collaborated with criminals and was engaged in illegal activities, even was implicated to some scandals.
　　(2) The spiritual pursuit of Gatsby
　　On the other, Gatsby made full use of his imagination, and make great efforts to build a new world of spirit. He had his own dream, namely the idealistic love. During his pursuing love, we can see a man of good character. He adhered to his love adamantinely and unswervingly. He searched all means to please and care Daisy and never faltered in his love towards Daisy. Whatever he would have done for protecting his love, even sacrificing his life. Just for attracting Daisy or finding a person who knew Daisy, he has spent an astronomical amount of money to hold an unmatchable luxurious party per week at his colossal house. When he really remet Daisy after 5 years, he became very embarrassed and was“acting like a little boy”. Then:
　　
　　 “After his embarrassment and his unreasoning joy he was consumed with wonder at her presence”.
　　
　　Just from his performance, we feel he very real and lovable, and a sense of bliss. After the accident happened, for protecting Daisy, he unhesitatingly took the responsibility. And instead of going away, he kept in watching for Daisy, till he was killed. The point is the most important thing. So, comparing with the vacant, indifferent and cruel Tom, Daisy, Jordan and a lot of social parasites, Gatsby is “great”.
　　
　　2. Tom’s personality
　　Tom Buchanan, who had solid wealth and social status, was Daisy’s husband. He was a insolent and conceited playboy who has got a great achievement in sports. The novel in chapter 1 describes:
　　
　　“Now he was a sturdy straw-haired man of thirty with a rather hard mouth and a supercilious manner. Two shining arrogant eyes had established dominance over his face and gave him the appearance of always leaning aggressively forward…”
　　
　　 In chapter 2,the novel specifically described his insolence, from it, we can see how rude and conceited Tom was:
　　
　　“…, and when we stopped by the ashheaps he jumped to his feet and, taking hold of my elbow, literally forced me from the car. ‘We’re getting off,” he insisted. “I want you to meet my girl.’”
　　
　　What is worse, differing from ones that were just rude and insolent, Tom liked disguising as a prig, and was surprisingly based on the racism.
　　When Nick went to Tom’s home, Tom violently broke out a lot of racism words:
　　
　　“Civilization’s going to pieces”, “I’ve gotten to be a terrible pessimist about things. Have you read ‘The Rise of the Colored Empires’ by this man Goddard?” “The idea is if we don’t look out the white race will be—will be utterly submerged. It’s all scientific stuff; it’s been proved.” “This fellow has worked out the whole thing. It’s up to us, who are the dominant race, to watch out or these other races will have control of things.”“This idea is that we’re Nordics. “—And we’ve produced all the things that go to make civilization—oh, science and art, and all that. Do you see?”
　　
　　And in chapter7, when Tom began to dispute against Gatsby, he repeated incredulously.
　　
　　“. . . . Nowadays people begin by sneering at family life and family institutions, and next they’ll throw everything overboard and have intermarriage between black and white.”
　　
　　It is ridiculous: in Tom’s eyes, the day that intermarriage between black and white becomes reality is the day of doom. And how he dared criticize that “people begin by sneering at family life and family institutions”. Did he forget he had a paramour? No wonder after hearing his words,
　　
　　Nick “was tempted to laugh whenever he opened his mouth. The transition from libertine to prig was so complete”.
　　
　　Tom was despicable, and factually committed felony. He had direct or indirect relations with three live, Mrs. Wilson, Gatsby and Mr. Wilson. He was the paramour of Mrs. Wilson, terribly undermining the family of Wilsons. He beat up Mrs. Wilson and made her face bruised and her nose swollen when she went back home. So, Mr. Wilson discovered something, and then combined his wife in his house. And because his disputing against Gatsby, later, on the way back, Daisy, in a state of nervousness, purposelessly drove his car to knock down Mrs. Wilson who suddenly run on the street. After the accident, Tom hinted Mr. Wilson that the murderer was Gatsby and where Gatsby’s house was. As a result, Mr. Wilson killed Gatsby and then committed suicide. Thus Tom was sinful. But at last carelessly he and Daisy went out for traveling.
　　
　　3. Daisy’s personality
　　Daisy was splendid girl. She was beautiful with her appearance, her eyes and especially her voice. Her voice can make anyone infatuated with her. She performed in an artificial manner and she was fickle. At the very first, she fell in love with Gatsby, but married Tom. Before the day of wedding, she shouted
　　
　　“Take ’em down-stairs and give ’em back to whoever they belong to. Tell ’em all Daisy’s change’ her mine. Say: ‘Daisy’s change’ her mine!’.”And then “began to cry—she cried and cried”. But “Next day at five o’clock she married Tom Buchanan without so much as a shiver, and started off on a three months’ trip to the South Seas”.
　　
　　And they had a very nice honeymoon. Later, when Gatsby who became very rich reappeared before her, she seemed to love Gatsby again. But, in the conflict between Tom and Gatsby, she hesitantly went back to arms of Tom.
　　What on the earth is Daisy like? In the novel there is a very important sentence:
　　
　　“And all the time something within her was crying for a decision. She wanted her life shaped now, immediately—and the decision must be made by some force—of love, of money, of unquestionable practicality—that was close at hand.”
　　
　　So from it, we can see through Daisy’s personality, she was utilitarian. She was one who pursued things substantial, like money and social status. That is exactly the inside element for why she was fickle. She knew Gatsby loved her, and Tom didn’t. But obviously Tom had the substantial things that she pursued for, money, reputation and solid social status. For the reason, she chose Tom. Later, she remet Gatsby and marveled at Gatsby’s richness and extravagance. So she fell in love with Gatsby again. But forementionedly, in the conflict between Tom and Gatsby, Tom indicated that all of Gatsby’s money was out of illegal activities, and Gatsby himself has also been implicated to some scandals. And Gatsby was unable to deny the charge. It made Daisy feel that Gatsby and his money were unstable and endangered. Contrarily, Tom and his wealth were safer and much more solid. Then Daisy chose Tom again and from then on indifferent to Gatsby even he sacrificed himself for her. The novel described Daisy’s voice for many times, especially in chapter7, Gatsby said,
　　
　　“Her voice is full of money”.
　　
　　 The narrator “I” –Nick has also agreed the point,
　　
　　“That was it. I’d never understood before. It was full of money—that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it, the jingle of it, the cymbals’ song of it. . . . high in a white palace the king’s daughter, the golden girl. . . .”
　　
　　Daisy’s voice is beautiful, euphonic and jinglingly. But this kind of voice was for pursuing money. Here it intensified Daisy’s main personality.
　　 Daisy wasn’t born with meanness. In some sense, she also was a victim of wealth and social status, while her meanness was the symbol of human’s alienation in the world of money. She might have been aroused the love by Gatsby, but eventually she couldn’t withstand the temptation of money and social status. Under the environment full of money and influence, Daisy was only to corrupt and just left a beautiful and empty body.
　　
　　 4.The reasons for Gatsby’s disillusion
　　The main contradiction in the novel is the contradiction between Gatsby and Tom. In some sense, it seemed that Gatsby took the advantage. Firstly, in the affair of love, Gatsby was a man of good virtue. He devoted himself to the love towards Daisy. For Daisy, he was able to pay everything, even his own life. Tom didn’t love her really. When Daisy’s baby “was less than an hour old and Tom was God knows where.” Furthermore, Tom had a paramour; Secondly, Gatsby looked amiable and gentle. Nick felt: “I could see nothing sinister about him.” Tom was ignorant and insolent; Thirdly, Gatsby was daisy’s first love. Tom was Daisy’s husband, but in fact their marriage wasn’t based on love; Fourthly, after 5 years, Gatsby became as rich as Tom; Gatsby took the advantage. But why at last has Gatsby been bitter defeated? Superficially, the direct cause is that Tom reproached that Gatsby was engaged in illegal activities, and Gatsby was unable to deny it. However, the root cause is that what Gatsby pursued for was idealistic and fantastic love:
　　
　　 “There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy tumbled short of his dreams—not through her own fault, but because of the colossal vitality of his illusion. It had gone beyond her, beyond everything. He had thrown himself into it with a creative passion, adding to it all the time, decking it out with every bright feather that drifted his way. No amount of fire or freshness can challenge what a man will store up in his ghostly heart.”
　　
　　And as forementioned, Daisy was far from the idealistic figure in Gatsby’s mind. Daisy adhered to substantial things—money and solid social status. What Gatsby expected for was an idealistic figure, not realistic. Even if they can live together, Gatsby would have been disillusioned.
　　Otherwise, for winning back Daisy, Gatsby grabbed wealth by hook or by crook, even collaborated with criminals and was implicated to some scandals. After becoming a new rich, he showed off his wealth to everyone. He held a sumptuous banquet per week in his colossal villa, treating uncountable guests with a plentiful supply of food, champagne, orange juice and lemon. He hired the orchestra play for his banquet,
　　
　　“no thin five-piece affair, but a whole pitiful of oboes and trombones and saxophones and viols and cornets and piccolos, and low and high drums.”
　　
　　All the mediocre doings were for innocent love. Wasn’t it sarcastic to Gatsby himself? But he had no alternative. This is a tragedy. Pursuing for idealism dream by extreme materialism means gets no access to success. Therefore, in any case, Gatsby’s dream would have been shattered inevitably.
　　
　　5. Total depravity of the American society
　　Meanwhile, the novel deeply exposed American people’s total depravity in the materialism society of 1920s. Daisy caused the car accident, and then Gatsby took the responsibility. However, Tom hinted Mr. Wilson that Gatsby was the murderer. So Mr. Wilson who didn’t know the truth killed Gatsby. When Gatsby’s cold dead body was still lying in the water of pool, Daisy and Tom have become reconciled and gone out for traveling together, leaving other people to “clean up the mess they made”. It is a tragedy of mammonism society. “Great” Gatsby died with grievance, while “scoundrel” Tom won. At last, it was very bleak that there were only very few persons including Nick, old Gatz attending Gatsby’s funeral. And, Daisy, whom Gatsby devoted himself to, “hadn’t sent a message or a flower”. None of his parasite trenchermen was present on his funeral. someone “called up about was just for a pair of shoes he left there”. And another one even “implied that he had got what he deserved”. Nick found himself steadily on Gatsby’s side, but alone.
　　
　　“No one else was interested—interested, I mean, with that intense personal interest to which every one has some vague right at the end.” It made Nick become so angry that “when the butler brought back Wolfshiem’s answer he began to have a feeling of defiance, of scornful solidarity between Gatsby and me against them all”.
　　
　　It was a charge expressed by the author against the realistic society. The only “great” man—Gatsby was gone. And the so-called “noble” ones like Tom and Daisy—
　　
　　“They smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made. . . .”
　　
　　
　　6. Summary
　　By depicting main figures’ personalities and the conflicts between them, the great Gatsby deeply shows that under the materialism environment, in any case, Gatsby would have failed to his idealistic dream inevitably, namely disillusion of American dream. Meanwhile, the novel also shows that the materialism way gets no access to a perfect country. Instead, it leads total depravity. The nationals become hypocritical, indifferent, empty, and cruel, day and night indulged in material pursuing

Part Three The Novel’s Art of Plot-Designing
　　
　　1. Two main clues of the story
　　The novel’s clues are very clear. There are two basic clues. The main clue is the imbroglio between Gatsby and the family of Tom, and the minor one is the imbroglio between Tom and the family of Wilson. The two clues parallel developed till the accident happened, namely Daisy purposelessly knocked Mrs. Wilson to dead when driving car. Since then the two clues interwove together. After the accident happened, Mr. Wilson knew that the car, which caused the trouble, was the one Tom decided to sell him. So he went to Tom’s house. Tom hinted him that Gatsby caused the trouble. So Mr. Wilson killed Gatsby and then committed suicide. Meanwhile, Tom and Daisy went out for traveling. The result of the two clues’ interweaving was that Gatsby died and Tom won. The two basic clues (There are other clues, such as Nick’s story.) make the novel become very clear and complete.
　　
　　2.Specific events of mystery
　　(1) The mystery about Gatsby’s money
　　Throughout the narrating, the novel is in a sense of mystery. The first two chapter of the novel is about Tom and his two girls, his wife--Daisy and his paramour--Mrs. Wilson, untangling the relations between them. The protagonist—Gatsby