Class Thus Far (Part Two)

I would like to reflect for a moment upon 'The Great Gatsby', a book that I found to be a very rewarding read. Gatsby's story struck a chord with me, not because I've had similar experiences to him per-say, but because I found the overall message relevant as both an American and as and individual. Gatsby's steadfast devotion to his dreams ultimately led to his death. But I do not believe the moral of the story was not to pursue one's dreams. I think rather, that the message was to choose wisely when to pursue one's dreams, and when to move on. Gatsby believed so firmly in the past that he did not even realize the past had gone. He had continued searching for something that had ceased to exist a very long time ago. In the end, this realization wreaked havoc with him emotionally. Whether he would have been able to recover or not, it is hard to say. We will never know for certain, as he was never given the chance. Gatsby's folly is one we see quite often in our own lives, when we adhere to something with such diligence that we do not even notice when it has gone. I feel that the Great Gatsby is first and foremost a novel about moving on. The economic themes aside, Gatsby is about what can happen, both emotionally and physically when one doesn't move on.