Venecian Carnival Presentation

4 Scenes to Theme

Thomas Nguyen

by F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Great Gatsby

Theme: Attempts at restoration

In the novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald illustrates the challenges of trying to restore what has been. Throughout the book, he shows how chasing after the highlights of the past may only lead to misery upon realizing that the past is difficult to repeat. He does acknowledge how it can be tough to simply just move on, but he ultimately proves his point by manifesting the pitfalls that could come about as a result of trying to reclaim what’s in the past.

Connection to Theme

Significance:

By wishing for her baby girl to grow up oblivious to all the bad things in the world, Daisy is attempting to restore her own innocence within her daughter’s life. Similar to how parents try to give their kids a better life than they had, Daisy is trying to give her daughter a life free of the struggles that she herself had to deal with, such as with Tom’s affair. So, we learn here that Daisy is restoring her own lost innocence into her daughter.

The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald - Attempts at Restoration

In this moment, Daisy reveals that Tom wasn’t around when their baby girl was born. Daisy then implies that he was with another woman instead. So, when Daisy realized their child was a girl, she is reassured because she believes that the child will grow up to be a “beautiful little fool.” In other words, Daisy has realized that “everything’s terrible,” but she has hope that the girl will stay oblivious to the harsh realities of the world.

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Significance:

In trying to get herself to feel the passion that she once felt for Gatsby, Daisy essentially attempts to restore their love. However, this scene supports Fitzgerald’s point that it’s hard to restore what has been lost because even though Daisy wants to be with Gatsby like she was in the past, her marriage to Tom makes it impossible for her to leave him in favor of Gatsby.

The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald - Attempts at Restoration

When Daisy saw Gatsby again after 5 long years, she felt ecstatic. However, after the initial excitement faded, Daisy wasn’t as eager as Gatsby was to keep their love going perpetually. So, the significance of this moment is seen in Daisy’s uncertainty in deciding who she truly loves: Tom or Gatsby. She’s trying to make both sides happy, but it’s impossible for her to ultimately love both of them.

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Significance:

Gatsby’s desire to renew his relationship with Daisy is essentially him trying to restore something that has long been gone. Thus, the scene’s importance to the theme of restoration is in being able to understanding that he’s been chasing after Daisy ever since he returned. Additionally, Gatsby not being able to find Daisy in Louisville is essentially a shortcoming that backs Fitzgerald’s idea that what is passed cannot be restored.

The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald - Attempts at Restoration

This scene of the book reveals that ever since Gatsby returned from his time spent in the army (for WW1), he’s been attempting to locate Daisy and reignite the flame that once existed between them. This is supported by the fact that he went all the way back to Louisville in hopes of seeing her again. This is significant because it confirms the idea that Gatsby’s presence in West Egg wasn’t just a coincidence but rather a deliberate act to reunite with Daisy.

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Significance:

When this scene begins, Nick realizes that Gatsby has no close fellows despite his name (which was immensely popular throughout New York. As a result, Nick attempts to restore Gatsby’s legacy by calling everyone that even might’ve known Gatsby, promising that he’ll “get somebody for… Gatsby.” However, the funeral is ultimately desolate (save for a relative of Gatsby’s). With this, Fitzgerald is once again supports the idea that attempting to recover just has passed — in this case, Gatsby’s prominence among the New Yorkers — can only lead to emptiness.

The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald - Attempts at Restoration

This moment paints the picture that, despite all the parties that he had thrown in his mansion, Gatsby’s only “true” friend was Nick Carraway. We know this because Nick is the one tasked with setting up a proper funeral for Gatsby as a result of there being nobody else that cares enough to do so. However, while he attempts tell people the bad news, Nick is unable to find very many people who actually care about Gatsby’s death. Therefore, the significance of this moment is that, other than Nick, Gatsby is alone. Still, Nick puts effort into trying to “get somebody” for Gatsby