The Queer Reading Of Nick Gatsby - 1537 Words

As insane as this sounds, I ve done the research. It s plausible. The idea isn t original; it was first proposed by Carlyle Thompson, a professor of African American and American literature at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York. There s actually quite a bit of evidence to support it, just as there is to support the queer reading of Nick. Gatsby is described by Nick, his tanned skin and short hair look as though it were trimmed every day (Fitzgerald 50). The short hair and the appearance of daily trimmings could definitely refer to the grooming habits of African American men. Gatsby s West Egg mansion is on more than 40 acres of lawn and garden (Fitzgerald 5), which is specifically interesting, because freed slaves were to be given 40 acres and a mule by decree of Sherman s Special Field Orders, No. 15. More than is stated, but instead of giving us that exact number--it could be 41 acres or 400--but we re given 40. It should be noted that 40 acres and a mule was oft promised, but a promise not always kept and inconsistently applied (Oubre 79). There s an obvious metaphor for a man who feels deserving of something he doesn t get, i.e., Daisy. Gatsby would be unlikely to achieve the level of success he did in the roaring 20s if he were black, and some of the upper-crust white folk would be likely to notice or take issue with his race, so it s only a plausible theory if he were able to pass himself off as white. There is evidence for this,Show MoreRelatedThe New Criticism, Structuralism, New Historical And African American Criticism1991 Words   |  8 Pagesthe conclusion. 1. Definition New Criticism The word New Criticism was appearing on the book, The New Criticism, written by John Crowe Ransom. In his book, The New Criticism, Ransom came up with a new formalist current, which emphasized close reading, particularly of poetry, to discover how a work of literature functioned as a self-contained, self-referential aesthetic object. It soon became a dominated theory in the middle of 20th century in Anglo-America.( Tyson, 135) Structuralism BasicallyRead MoreShort Summary of the Great Gatsby11203 Words   |  45 Pagesexceedingly ambivalent about the notion of the American dream: for him, it was at once vulgar and dazzlingly promising. It need scarcely be noted that such fascinated ambivalence is itself typically American. Like the central character of The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald had an intensely romantic imagination; he once called it a heightened sensitivity to the promises of life. The events of Fitzgeralds own life can be seen as a struggle to realize those promises. He attended both St. Paul Academy (1908-10)