addie2’s Blog

” Go to Atlantic City for a week, or up to Montreal.” -pg. 148

This quote shows how wealthy Gatsby is and how his American Character helped him reach his dreams and aspirations of become one of the elitest in America. Not everyone can just decide one day on going to Montreal or Atlantic City for a week, where lots of money would be used. Most people have to plan their vacations or trips weeks in advance, but for those who have great amounts of money, they can go wherever they want, whenever they please. Gatsby can go to Atlantic City for a week and spend 1000 dollars on betting money and still be as rich as ever. It’s for luxuries like these that people work hard to attain their goals and become more enriched in the American culture of get rich.

” It was indirectly due to Cody that Gatsby drank so little. Sometimes in the course of gay parites women used to rub champagne into his hair; for himself he formed the habit of letting liquor alone.” – pg. 100

Who has enough money to be able to have champagne poured in their hair? Except for Baseball players who have just won the playoffs. Gatsby has so much money that he could give away 1000 dollars every day and still maintain his status of wealth. He truly defines the American chacacter, someone who followed their goals of becoming successful and putting their wealth to uses of their pleasure. 

” Let’s go to Coney Island, old sport. In my car. It’s too late. Well suppose we take a plunge in the swimming pool? I haven’t made use of it all summer.” – pg. 81-82

This quote was a diolague between Gatsby and Nick after Nick had just come home and greeted Gatsby at his lawn. This qoute is a perfect reason why Gatsby is a great example of the American character, he wants to have lots of money, which he does, and he uses it for whatever he wants and enjoys his earnings. He has completed the American dream, and has the time to do whatever he wants, he can go swimming at night or go to Coney Island because he doesn’t have work the next day. He doesn’t have to make any money, he get’s to enjoy his wealth. However Nick does have to go to work, even though he too comes from a wealthy family and personifies himself as middle-class, and can not yet enjoy the luxuries of not going to work because he has not yet compeleted the American Dream. This quote truly shows how Gatsby is a perfect example of someone who has enjoyed the American Dream.

” Reach me a rose honey, and pour me a last drop into that there crystal glass,” -pg. 61

This statement was made by one of the young ladies on Gatsby’s lawn, sort of like an after party get together. The fact that one of the ladies has to mention the ” crystal glass” shows us how prestigious, snobby these sort of people are. And in reality, a pure product of the american dream during the roaring twenties, which in itself exemplifies the true meaning of American Character. Gatsby is so rich that he can afford to have so many luxuries such as crystal glasses, and ongoing parties. Gatsby is a perfect example of American character. He lived up to his goal, which was in all likelihood his dream to become a successful millionaire, and spend his money in any way he would like.

” On weekends his Rolls-Royce became an omnibus, bearing parties to and from the city between nine in the morning and long past midnight, while his station wagon scampered like a brisk yellow bug to meet all trains.” -pg. 39

I think this quote exemplefies the meaning of the American Character. Mr. Gatsby, to who’m Nick refers to as his neighbor, is so rich that he has parties every weekend in the summer. He can afford anything he wants- a rolls-royce for example. He has enough money to host parties at his mansion every weekend, and he’s probably already retired because of his multimillion dollar fortune. When Nick refers to a rolls -royce being an omnibus he’s telling us that Gatsby is so wealthy he can afford to have his Rolls-Royce, one of the most expensive cars on the market, take the role of an autobus to transport his guests to and from his parties.  This quote is a perfect example of how the American character is all about achieving one goal, to become rich , and to enjoy the American Dream through spending your wealth.

” I want to get one of those dogs,” she said earnestly. ” I want to get one of those dogs for the apartment. They’re nice to have-a dog.”  – Mrs. Wilson

I think this quote says a lot about the way these people live, and it also gives us a feel for the American character. This quote, as said by Mrs. Wilson, really tells us what lifestyle the people in East and West Egg live. The fact that number one, Tom and Mrs. Wilson both have boyfriends and girlfriends when they are already married, and number two, the fact that she can pretty much get any thing she wants because her boyfriend will get it for her. As we all know, Tom Buchannan is a very wealthy human being and can buy anything he wants, but that doesn’t mean he’s always going to be happy.

” I bought a dozen volumes on banking and credit and investment securities, and they stood on my shelf in red and gold like new money from the mint, promising to unfold new secrets that only Midas and Morgan adn Maecenas knew. ( Fitzgerald, 4)”  This quote supports the idea that the American character represents capitalism and ambition to succeed. The fact that Nick is thinking that his books look like new money tells us that he is very much inclined on being very successful and wealthy. The fact that he bought the books about banking and credit and investment securities shows that he plans on getting a good job to make a lot of money. That is the exact capitalistic and ambitious attitude that most Americans have.

I think Melville is really brilliant in the way he wrote his book because he made it boring adn long in the beginning and the last 10 chapters really suspenseful. One quote I noticed that has some sifnificance is, ” When Ahab, coming from his cabin, cast his eyes a loft, the viligant Helmsman would ostantatiously handle his spokes adn the eager mariners quickly run to the bows; and would stand there with all their eyes  centrally fixed on the nailed dubloon.” This quote represents how all the sailors on board the ship can sense Ahab is ready to find the white whale and they think thtat it will be found very soon because they know whoever finds the whale, get’s the dubloon nailed to the ship. Another significant part in the book was when the typhoon is going on and Melville describes Dagoo as ,” up to thrice his real stature and seemed the black cloud which the thunder had come.” Dagoo represents the thunder in the storm, and he says the Tashtego is a shark, ” The parted mouth of tashtego revealed his shark white teeth.” Tashtego represents the sharks looming in the water. Queequeg represents the ocean, ” Which gleamed as if thy too had been tipped by corposants up by the prenatural light, Queequeg’s tatooing burned like satanic blue flames on his body.” Really interesting metaphors by Melville.

Another really important part in the book is when Starbuck has a soliloquey and he talks about the idea of how ahab is crazy, ” yes it would make him the wiful murderer of thirty men and more if this ship come to any deadly harm,” Starbuck also considers overthrowing Ahab and even killing him. Another important part before the ending of the book is when Ahab runs into a ship that tells them Moby Dick has just attacked another ship and that one of the passengers on the ship was Flask’s son. I feel very simpathetic towards Flask in this chapter because he lost his son.

A lot of important event happen in these chapters as the book is soon coming to its closing. My favorite quote from the chapter came when Ahab was baptizing the pagans, ” Ego non baptizo te in nomine patris, sed in nomine diaboli.” This quote said by Ahab was written in Latin which makes it all the more interesting and mysterious. In translation to english this quote means, “I do not baptize you in the name of the father, but in the name of the devil,” very interesting, I think. This quote reminded me of a scene in a famous movie, The Godfather, the scene is in the last part of the movie where Don Corleone is attending his son’s baptism, as he is the godfather, and the priest is talking in similar diolague as Ahab. When I read this part of the book this is the first thing that came to my mind and I pictured the italian priest’ voice saying the Ahab quote.

In chapter 117 Melville kept mentioning hearses, probably another foreshadow I presume. A quote I thought was significant in this chapter was, ” I have two pledges that I shall yet slay moby Dick and survive it…. Hemp can only kill thee.” I figured that this quote was talking about Ahab killing Moby Dick, and how if Ahab dies he will not be killed by Moby Dick but he will die because he get’s strangle to death by the rope that is attatched to the harpoon, hence the ” hemp.”

Chapter 110 was probably the most interesting and exiting chapter so far through the book. But before I talk about that, the sub-title for chapter 108 : The Deck-First Night Watch,  made the chapter sound a lot more interesting than it actually was. All that happens in the chapter was the carptenter makes Ahab an ivory peg-leg. Chapter 110 had an interesting title as well, Queequeg to His Coffin  , I figured that either Queequeg was going to die or it was just a foreshadow by Melville. Unfortunately it was neither although for about three pages it seems like Queequeg will die, eventually. He came down with a fever, he had a coffin made out for himself, he brought Ishmael to his bedside, and closed the coffin door on himself. But after a couple of days decides to just pop out and wake up, it really kind of reuins the book for me.