Friday, April 16, 2010

The Final Fishbowl!

It's our last one--make it our best!

Try getting into a hotseat, and as always, explore your ideas thoroughly and bring in lovely textual passages when possible.

Enjoy, my dears!

48 comments:

  1. Do you think Gatsby died l the same way hey lived, alone?

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  2. Why do you think Daisy didn't stand up for Gatsby when Wilson asked who killed Myrtle? I think that no one really loved anyone in this book and it was all just physical attraction and they loved the idea of money not the person. Daisy just wanted to get out of toruble, she was all in it for herself.

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  3. Do you think that Nick was right not to want to shake Tom's hand?

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  4. Alexander- I do believe that he died along because he never completely achieved Daisy

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  5. On page 165 Nick says "...I began to have a feeling of defiance, of scornful solidarity between Gatsby and me against them all". Why is Nick felling this way?

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  6. Beau,
    I think Daisy didn't stand up for Gatsby because she didn't want Tom to be suspicious of her still having feelings for Gatsby. She was also just trying to get out of trouble because that's the way Daisy is she's just a shallow person who is only in it for herself

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  7. Alex I don't think that Gatsby died alone because he now had Nick. Nick was a good friend to him and even tried to get other people to come to the grave.

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  8. Beau- I agree I don't think Daisy ever loved Gatsby, I think she liked his attention and his money. She seems like she only cares about herself, if she actually cared for Gatsby she wouldn't have let him take the fall for what she had done.

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  9. Grant, I feel that Nick was right tho not want to shake his hand but, I think he should have anyways.

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  10. Beau- I think that Daisy was to afraid that she would get into trouble if she told the truth about her driving the car. She obviously didn't love him enough to take the punishment for her actions, and took the easy way out.

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  11. I think that none of the characters genuinely loved anyone because they never told the truth, and the only person that was honest didn't fall in love. On the other hand I don't think they only loved money, I think they did what they did because they were already so rich and didn't really have anything to worry about, so they became bored and numb to the real world.

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  12. Beau, I agree with you. It seems like everyone was just stuck up and rich and the only people who really loved someone were Gatsby and Wilson, who ended up dying in the end because love failed them.

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  13. I think Daisy didn't leave because she saw that Gatsby saw her more as a prize than someone that he loved.

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  14. Towards the end of the book Fitzgerald says "I see now that this has been a story of the West, after all- Tom and Gatsby, Daisy and Jordan and I, were all Westerners, and perhaps we possessed some deficiency in common which made us subtly unadaptable to Eastern life."(176). Why are people from the west not suitable for the eastern life, then why would everyone wanna move east. I there something bad about the west? Also in the quote why does Fitzgerald put Tom and Gatsby together and then Jordan, Daisy, and Nick together. Why doesnt he put Nick with Gatsby and Tom?

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  15. I agree with Beau, it seems like every relationship in this book is fake and padded with the character's desires for fame and fortune. I think that people in this story only develop relationships that will be profitable for them, and when the cease to be, they end them. It seems like most of the characters in this book are only as deep as their wallets.

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  16. I think Daisy didn't tell Tom that she was the one who hit Myrtle because she is afraid of Tom, and she doesn't see the need to stir up more trouble than there already is in their marriage. It's also part of who Tom and Daisy are, they are from a world of drinking and money. In their world what you did last night doesn't matter. They live in the moment with no regard to the past or the future or anyone around them. Because Tom and Daisy ended up unscathed and still had their money, I don't think they cared about anything that had happened.

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  17. Do you think the outcome of the book has anything to do with Fitzgeralds life? Why do you think he had Gatsby die? I thought he was portraying Gatsby as who he wanted to be in his life so I don't understand why he would have Gatsby die....

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  18. Grant- I think it was right for him not to shake Tom's hand because he had no respect for him anymore. He saw Tom differently now and it also made him realize that Tom and Daisy only cared for themselves.

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  19. Referring to what the inner circle is talking about... I also think that since Daisy has been married to Tom for 5 years, her and Tom know more about each other (just by being with each other all the time) than Daisy and Gatsby would know about each other. Because Gatsby missed out on 5 years on Daisy's lives. I think he likes the idea of Daisy and he likes the idea of loving a girl and having someone love him (or at least say that they love him) even though it may just be temporary.
    I know this is back in chapter 7 but on page 140 when Tom says to Gatsby "why-- there're things between Daisy and me that you'll never know, things that neither of us can ever forget." makes so much sense since she has spent 5 years with Tom. And I think when Daisy felt pressured during the fight, she says things that may not be true or may not make sense. Even she admits that she loved both Tom and gatsby.

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  20. I agree with Beau. Daisy was a selfish person in this book. She is worried about herself only, she is a fair weather fan, and is easily persuaded. This entire story didn't involve much true love, just lust and pretend relationships.

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  21. Beau
    I believe Daisy did not tell Tom that she was the one driving the car to save herself and also because she did have some feelings for Tom. I feel that at first Daisy liked the idea of Gatsby back but eventually she found that she is not the person that Gatsby fell in love with and she does have some feelings for Tom. I think she felt more secure with Tom and didn't want to risk being with Gatsby.

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  22. Shay-
    I don't think Nick was Gatsby's friend because Nick was his neighbor and knew Daisy. When Gatsby found that out he used Nick to get to Daisy, so he was always alone underneath "the Gatsby life".

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  23. do you think that Gatsby was to good for Daisy?

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  24. I don't think Daisy had thought her affair with Gatsby through. I don't think she planned on doing anything about it. She was just enjoying herself and doing what ever felt good at the moment. I don't think she planned to leave Tom.

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  25. I don't think Daisy thought that Gatsby was too good for her but she realized that he saw a person that was perfect had had refined his ideas of her over five years to make her perfect.

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  26. I also agree with Andrew about everyone being stuck up and rich, when it came to Gatsby's funeral and only a few people showed up. everyone only loved Gatsby's money and parties including Daisy.

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  27. Beau-
    Fitzgerald's wife, Zelda had affairs on him... So maybe Fitzgerald wanted to use Gatsby to refer to one of the guys Zelda had an affair with to prove that even though Fitzgerald and Zelda had their own affairs, they still love each other in the end. And none of those guys Zelda had an affair had a chance, just like Gatsby didn't have a chance.

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  28. Grant, I think it was right of Nick not to shake Tom's hand. I feel like Nick thought that Tom was coward for not telling the truth. Also I feel like Gatsby was Nick's true friend on the east coast and Tom took that away from him. Nick had every right to not shake his hand.

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  29. Elizabeth, in spite of what i said in my other comment, I believe that Gatsby and Nick's relationship is the only true relationship in the entire book. Nick still went to Gatsby's funeral when the people who attended his parties every weekend did not. It seems like this relationship is the only one that was deeper then the monetary gains that Nick could have in befriending Gatsby.

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  30. Corbin, I think that Fitzgerald puts Tom and Gatsby together and Nick, Jordan, and Daisy together because Tom and Gatsby are the 2 main characters and they have lots of conflict in the book. Nick, Daisy, and Jordan are main characters, but not in the main conflicts.

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  31. Grant- I think that he was right in not shaking Tom's hand. He looked down upon him because he is self centered and selfish and I don't think Nick wanted anything to do with him, especially after he had pointed Wilson in Gatsby's direction.

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  32. I think Daisy might have been bored and was just trying to make her life more interesting by having an affair and testing her husband to see what how far she could go before he snapped.

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  33. Joe- I think that Gatsby was good for Daisy in her younger years but now that she has a family and a 5 year relationship with Tom the sudden reappearance of Gatsby wasn't good for her.Gastby mostly just messed with her life and made it even more complicated than it already was.

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  34. Corbin- I think people moved to the east because of the desires and things you could do out there and not in the west. I think the west is more where you can find yourself and be yourself. In the quote I think he put Tom and Gatsby together maybe because they were the two characters who changed the most when they moved.

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  35. Alex yes he used Nick to get to Daisy but they also seemed to like each other at other moments and seemed to care. Also why did Nick care so much then when people didn't show up to the burial.

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  36. I think Nick was right by not shaking hands with om because if someone pointed a finger at my friend and it took his life away I would NEVER shake his hand either.

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  37. Grant, yes they were still true friends, but even good friends need to know when they are in the wrong. Gatsby needed to know that they had grown apart.

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  38. Beau, I think Gatsby was Fitzgerald in the book especially at the end because Gatsby died a lone and a painful death. Just like Fitzgerald was alone when he finally died and was a painful death with the alcohol. Also since no one came to his funeral shows that in Fitzgerald life he was a lone and said when he was about to die.

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  39. Why do you think that the only people to attend Gatsby's funeral were Owl Eyes, the servants, and Gatsby's father?

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  40. Do you think Gatsby accomplished everything he wanted to in his life?

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  41. Shay-
    Nick cared because he had seen how many people had come to Gatsby's parties and thought they would care enough to come to his funeral.

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  42. Why didn't anybody go to Gatsby's funeral? What does this show about his material wealth?

    I feel that nobody went to Gatsby's funeral because Nick was his only true friend. I think that Nick was the only character in the book that liked Gatsby for more things then his parties and material wealth. I feel that Gatsby ended up just like the man he worked for when he decided to change his name and live his alternate life. He died alone and the only people that showed up to his funeral are people from his old life, like his father.

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  43. I still believe that Gatsby was the character that F. Scott wanted to be in his real life. But what was he trying to say about himself when Gatsby's solid personality turned around at the end and his life was ended.. in a holocaust?

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  44. When Myrtle died I think Nick was just fed up with the 'rich' lifestyle and he didn't want to deal with those people anymore.

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  45. I agree with Samantha, Daisy was bored with her life but I think she also wanted to get back at Tom for having an affair to show him he's not the only one who can have an affair. I think she jumps into decisions without really thinking them through because she thinks they will make things more interesting. It seems she likes to cause problems because it causes drama.

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  46. I also agree with Shay about how Nick And Gatsby were true friends because even when nick already had Daisy they still hung out and acted as friends. nick was one of the few that went to the fuenerals

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  47. In the book "The Great Gatsby", by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gatsby changes his character from the beginning of the book to the end. In the beginning Gatsby was only try to get to Daisy and he was alone,"... my eyes fell on Gatsby, standing alone on the marble steps looking from one group to another with approving eyes."(Fitzgerald 54). Gatsby spent so much time alone and trying to get Daisy that he didn't spend time even get to know the people at his own party. His character reflected only his selfishness and greed to get Daisy that no else wanted to get to know Gatsby. However at the end of the book Gatsby has Nick, his father and the owl-eyed man attend his funeral,"It was Gatsby's father, a solemn old man very helpless and dismayed...It was the man with the owl-eyed glasses..."(Fitzgerald 175, 183). Gatsby's true friends and family at the end showed up to his funeral this shows that Gatsby had a change of character from beginning to end. Gatsby started to live for others when he lost Daisy and that is what changed Gatsby's character at the end of the book. Gatsby's character is reflected by those who were there at the end of the book, not the one person at the beginning.

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  48. In the final chapter of the book "The Great Gatsby" by F Scott Fitzgerald, the story comes to an end. In the previous chapter, Gatsby is killed by Mr. Wilson in order to gain revenge for his wife's murder. Even though "The Great Gatsby" is known to be a love story, I think the only love involved is the love Gatsby had for Daisy. After Gatsby died, Daisy showed no remorse and continued living her life as if nothing happened. She never stood up for Gatsby and allowed him to die for her own mistake. I dont think Daisy told Tom she was the one driving the car that killed Mrytle because Daisy is using Tom as her security blanket now that Gatsby is gone, she wouldnt want Tom mad at her and abandon her.
    I wondered why everyone knew Gatsby and attended his parties, he seemed really popular, but after he died- no one came to his funeral. I think it is because he lost his reputation because people thought he was the one who killed Mrytle. I think it is sad that Gatsby lost his good reputation for an ungrateful Daisy.
    The only person in the book who seemed disgusted by the situation was Nick, he wouldnt even shake Tom's hand when the met in New York. I think realized how badly Gatsby was used and had no dignity for Tom or Daisy.
    Nick ended his "thing" with Jordan, probably because he didnt want to have anything to do with the "old group" (nick, jordan, daisy, tom, gatsby, and mrytle)
    After everything, Tom and Daisy were never heard of again and Nick moved back to the west.
    I think the story ended really well and almost happy. Nick narrates the end talking about how Gatsby symbolized the American dream, and following his dreams and "the green light". He died for someone he "believed in" even though Daisy just liked Gatsby's money.
    Overall, I really enjoyed reading Gatsby.

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