"He
smiled understandingly – much more than understandingly. It was one of those
rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come
across four or five times in life. It faced – or seemed to face – the whole
eternal world for an instant, and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you
just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like
to believe in yourself, and assured you that it had precisely the impression of
you that, at your best, you hoped to convey," (Fitzgerald, 48).
This quote appears in Chapter 3,
when Nick finally encounters Gatsby. In the beginning of the book, Nick informs
the audience that Gatsby turns out okay at the end. He gives a brief
explanation of how he finds Gatsby to be extremely unique and irreplaceable. He
states that he looks up to Gatsby and declares that Gatsby is above everyone
else and that people certainly cannot be him. Nick loves the way Gatsby takes
risks and admires the way he chases after what he wants. This quote describes
Nick's first close study of Gatsby's character and appearance. Nick thoroughly
illustrates Gatsby's smile. This description of Gatsby's smile captures
Gatsby's ostentatious, histrionic, magnetic, and appealing character; moreover,
summing up the world's perception of Gatsby. Gatsby's smile seems to symbolize
an image of hope, love, comfort, assurance, and imagination. Nick expounds that
Gatsby's smile has the ability to make an individual forget their troubles,
even if it is for a short millisecond. He depicts Gatsby's smile as one that
can reflect a person's most optimistic perception of him/herself. Gatsby's
extremely beautiful smile has the potential to make anyone he smiles at feel as
though he has chosen them out of "the whole eternal world."
This quote is important as it
introduces Gatsby to the audience. Nick builds a desirable connection between
the reader and Gatsby. Describing Gatsby's smile profoundly, Nick has the
audience receive an innocent, comforting, powerful, and amiable vibe from Gatsby.
The smile gives off a sense of all is good in the world even in the time of
corruption, misunderstanding, and confusion. There has to be a reason behind
that extremely appealing smile.
Gastsby sure did leave an impact on all of us! To be honest, almost all of the quotes in The Great Gatsby are worthy of equal praise. Fitzgerald does an amazing job of introducing Gatsby to the audience and to Nick for the first time. The gif at the end of your post perfectly sums up what it would look like to meet Gatsby in real life. What is dead may never die!
ReplyDeleteThis quote does an exceptional job describing Gatsby and giving a glimpse of who he is. The quote kind of tells the reader that Gatsby has been through and also seen plenty, but still manages to smile to see the brighter day. The gif at the end of your post is was a correlation to the quote.
ReplyDeleteGohar, thank you for drawing these lines to my attention once more. When I first read them, I instantly drew a comparison to another person who has a similar effect on me. These lines are not at all abstruse or unnecessarily complicated; they are simple and comprehensible and ultimately comforting.
ReplyDeleteGohar, I love your choice of the quote, and have to say I forgot about that quote whilst deciding which one to use. That line was possibly one of my favorites in the book, and I found myself going back to it right after reading it for the first time, to more thoroughly asses its beauty and euphony. I loved how you were able to describe the quote as being one that was greater than the sum of its parts, while adding a cryptic feeling to it as well, so as to leave some concepts unexplained.
ReplyDeleteI can count on only one hand how many times I have unconsciously smiled while reading a book, and that's saying a lot, considering I enjoy just about every book I read. This quote falls into that category. You chose a beautiful part of the book to analyze, and you did a beautiful job analyzing it indeed. I loved your description of Gatsby as "ostentatious"; I completely agree. I also loved how you wrote that his smile shows that "all is good in the world". Your writing is very emotional and passionate. Keep it up! :D
ReplyDeleteP. S.- Nice gif!
DeleteFitzgerald does a fantastic job at descriptively describing Gatsby in the beginning of the story, when Nick had just seen her. This quote that you chose is one of the best in the story because it truly shows Gatsby as being someone that effecting. For most his smile meant everything. He had those smiles that could make a huge difference in someone's life. Overall fantastic blog Gohar!
ReplyDelete