资源描述：
《The Art of Symbolism in the Great Gatsby》由会员上传分享，免费在线阅读，更多相关内容在学术论文-天天文库。
1、TheArtofSymbolismintheGreatGatsby1.IntroductionF.ScottFitzgerald’sTheGreatGatsby(1926)is,atfirstsight,anovelaboutlove,idealismanddisillusionment.However,itsoonrevealsitshiddendepthsandenigmas.Whatisthesignificanceofthestrange“wasteland”betweenWestEggandNewYork,whereMyrtle
2、Wilsonmeetsherdeath,analienlandscapepresidedoverbytheeyesofTJEckleburgwhoseeyes,likeGod’s,“seeeverything”?Andwhatarewetomakeofthenovel’sunobtrusivesymbolism(thegreenlight,thecolorofAmericandollarbills,whichburnsattheendofDaisy’sdock,thereferencestotheelements-land,seaande
3、arth-overwhichGatsbyclaimsmastery,thecontrastbetween“East”and“West”),oritssubtleuseofthepersonalizedfirstnarrator,theunassumingNickCarraway?Itisanovelwhichhasintriguedandfascinatedreaders.Clearly,asaself-proclaimed“taleoftheWest”,itisexploringquestionsaboutAmericaandwhati
4、tmeanstobeAmerican.InthissenseGatsbyisperhapsthatlegendaryopus,the“GreatAmericanNovel”,followinginthefootstepsofworkssuchasMobyDickandHuckleberryFinn.Wewillreturntothisaspectofthenovelinmoredetaillateron.However,wealsoneedtobeawarethatitisanovelwhichhasmuchtobesayaboutmor
5、eabstractquestionstodowithfaith,beliefandillusion.Althoughrootedinthe“JazzAge”whichFitzgeraldissooftencreditedwithnaming,itisalsoanovelwhichshouldbeconsideredalongsideworkslikeTheWasteLand,exploringthat“hollownessattheheartofthings”whichliesjustbelowthesurfaceofmodernlife
6、.Eliothimselfremarkedthatthenovel“interestedandexcitedmemorethananynewnovelIhaveseen,eitherEnglishorAmerican,foranumberofyears”.ViewedfrommoredistantperspectivesitispossibletoseeGatsbyasanarchetypaltragicfigure,theepitomeofidealismandinnocencewhichstrivesfororder,purposea
7、ndmeaninginachaoticandhostileworld.InthissenseGatsbycontainsreligiousandmetaphysicaldimensions:theyoungmanwhoshapesa“Platonicvisionofhimself"andwhoendowstheworthlessfigureofDaisywithreligiousessenceeventuallypassesawayintonothingness,withfewatthefuneraltolamentthepassingo
8、fhisromanticdream”.2.FitzgeraldandtheGreatGatsby2.1Fitzgerald’slifeandhisworks.FrancisScottKeyFi
