We learn a lot about our narrator, Nick, in the first few pages of the novel, don't we? In short, we learn that at one point, he was young and vulnerable. (In many ways, he is STILL quite vulnerable and able to be taken advantage of, especially by Gatsby himself.) Let's look at some quotes from the very beginning:
In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since.
“Whenever you feel like criticizing any one,” he told me, “just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.”
This also tells us that Nick wasn't born poor. He was born in the Midwest into a good family and with the prospect of a good education. Therefore, here he also describes himself as having a great respect for his father. Still, Nick was vulnerable and as such, he says, "made me the victim of not a few veteran bores." Yet, as a young man who has respect for his father, Nick was "the only honest person" he knew.
It is also at the beginning of the novel that Nick describes himself as being completely bored of the honest Midwest and looking for more excitement in life, so he decides to move to New York to become a "bond man." Nick, then, as an honest person, is not above looking for exciting risks. Moving to New York, and moving next to Gatsby, was one of them.
No comments:
Post a Comment