I used to loathe The Great Gatsby. I first read it my junior year of high school, and all I can remember thinking was, “wow, this is the worst love story I have ever read.” Consequently, when I found out that it was one of the assigned texts for my American Gangster class, I was annoyed.

However, reading it for the second time significantly changed my perspective. Not only did I more fully appreciate Fitzgerald’s mastery of language, but the lens through which I analyzed the novel provided more valuable and compelling insights. We were instructed to read Gatsby as a gangster novel, and interpret Gatsby himself as a gangster character. This, for me, changed everything for the better.

I’ve gleaned too much to incorporate into one blog post, but I will say this: there’s more depth to the theme of “The American Dream” than I previously thought. There’s a darker layer. Not because of how Tom and Daisy hide their true selves behind piles of money. No, it’s about Gatsby willing to do whatever it takes to become “successful,” and how he takes it too far.

Next week I’ll do a little exploration on Baz Luhrmann’s 2013 film adaptation of The Great Gatsby, and you’ll get to hear my thoughts on Lurhmann’s retelling the novel as a love story.

Helena