了不起的盖茨比readingreport.doc

Protagonist and antagonist
Daisy Buchanan:
Daisy is one of the main characters in The Great Gatsby. Her name, firstly, is a kind of little white flower with yellow heart, and this name, in my opinion, precisely suggests her money worship not only because the flower’s color but also because we can find pragmatic usage of this flower in referring to money. Such as the game called Plants vs. zombies, daisy plant in that game is used to produce extra money. In the novel, Daisy is depicted as young, beautiful, and her skin is fair, just like daisy’s fair petal, which provides people with a character seems pure and clean. However Daisy’s heart, yellow heart, dominates her mind. Many men are deceived by Daisy, including Gatsby, for the simple sake of getting excitement and getting luxury. Nick feels that Daisy is enthusiastic with every thing; in fact, she is hot outside but chill inside. She is happy to know the house-keeper’s secrets or if there is someone greeting her, but is indifferent to her own daughter. Daisy said that she hope her daughter become a silly beauty, because she thought it is the best way for woman. It is not very hard to understand why a silly beauty is regarded as the most successful woman by Daisy: a silly beauty can earn money and fame without worrying about anything, and this kind of life is the one the Daisy admired.
Jay Gatsby:
At the end of the first chapter of the novel, the protagonist of the novel shows up, following with three ‘green lights, minute and far away’. To analyze in the aspect of culture, green the color is considered as a symbol of peace and dream while it also represents inane and money(for dollar is printed into green), and these analyses show that the life of Gatsby was full of hope and dream. Gatsby was rose from an impoverished childhood in North Dakota, working for a millionaire made dedicate his life to the achievement of wealth. He meet Daisy before he went to the army, but Daisy hates poverty and at last she married wealthy Tom. From then, Gatsby struggle his every chances in order to win Daisy back, including studying in Oxford, and even participate in criminal activities. Although he becomes wealth at last, there is still a gap between him and Daisy which is his poor background. However, Gatsby himself did not give up his love until his last second. And when Gatsby died, Nick said:’ Gatsby believe in the green light，the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us.’
The characteristic of the green light, minute and far away, reveal that Gatsby‘s dream and love are inaccessible and predict the tragedy of him.
Main setting of the story
The story was happened in Jazz Age, which is the period after the end of World War I, thought the Roaring Twenties, ending with the on set of the Great Depression. During the Jazz Age, technology and economy was in rapid development, and people were tended to enjoy their life and waste their money. Just like Daisy, people at age worship only money and superior social position, and people like Gatsby can only became the victim of the age.
Two main themes
1. Express the sarcasm on money worship and hedonism.
2. Rebuke the irresponsibility, apathy, and the rustic moral criteria.
Rising action,
Gatsby meets Daisy and falls in love with her. However, Daisy leaves Gatsby and marries Tom, for she hates his poverty and birth, and from then Gatsby starts to strive to get wealthy.
Main conflict,
The main conflict in this novel is between normal individual and society, while Gatsby represents normal and Daisy represents society. And from this conflict we can see that the people at that age, which was rapidly developing, were compelled to get wealth and to earn respect unscrupulously by the society that is totally dominated by money worship.
Climax,
In my opinion, the climax in this novel is the procedure of Gatsby’s death. In order to get away from Gatsby, while Daisy’s husband wants to dump his lover, Mr. and Mrs. Buchanan trap Gatsby and send him to the final paradise.
Falling action,
With the death of Gatsby the story steps into the falling action, his death shows that he, after all, is a victim in the harsh cold world, and non of people can survive in a totally money worshiped society. As we all know the author of this book, F. Scott Fitzgerald, is one of the personal representatives of the lost generation, and the main characteristic of the work of the lost generation is the quiet number of suspiciousness and denial to the contemporary society.
The resolution
The resolution of the dramatic complication seems to be Gatsby’s death; however, the conflict of the society would not be eradicate unless people put more on their mental construction and get back to a substantial life.

Ten main events in the story