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El Gran Gatsby
Self-made millionaire Jay Gatsby epitomizes the decadence of the 1920s Jazz Age in this tale of rise and decline, told with detached curiosity by his neighbor and confidante Nick Carraway.
The title, Ernest Hemingway's The Great Gatsby, part of Chelsea House Publishers' Modern Critical Interpretations series, presents the most important 20th-century criticism on Ernest Hemingway's The Great Gatsby through extracts of critical essays by well-known literary critics. This collection of criticism also features a short biography on Ernest Hemingway, a chronology of the author's life, and an introductory essay written by Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of the Humanities, Yale University.
192 pages
First published January 1, 1986
About the author
F. Scott Fitzgerald
2,432 books26.2k followersFrancis Scott Key Fitzgerald, widely known simply as Scott Fitzgerald, was an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He is best known for his novels depicting the flamboyance and excess of the Jazz Age, a term he popularized in his short story collection Tales of the Jazz Age. During his lifetime, he published four novels, four story collections, and 164 short stories. Although he achieved temporary popular success and fortune in the 1920s, Fitzgerald received critical acclaim only after his death and is now widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century.
Born into a middle-class family in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Fitzgerald was raised primarily in New York state. He attended Princeton University where he befriended future literary critic Edmund Wilson. Owing to a failed romantic relationship with Chicago socialite Ginevra King, he dropped out in 1917 to join the United States Army during World War I. While stationed in Alabama, he met Zelda Sayre, a Southern debutante who belonged to Montgomery's exclusive country-club set. Although she initially rejected Fitzgerald's marriage proposal due to his lack of financial prospects, Zelda agreed to marry him after he published the commercially successful This Side of Paradise (1920). The novel became a cultural sensation and cemented his reputation as one of the eminent writers of the decade.
His second novel, The Beautiful and Damned (1922), propelled him further into the cultural elite. To maintain his affluent lifestyle, he wrote numerous stories for popular magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post, Collier's Weekly, and Esquire. During this period, Fitzgerald frequented Europe, where he befriended modernist writers and artists of the "Lost Generation" expatriate community, including Ernest Hemingway. His third novel, The Great Gatsby (1925), received generally favorable reviews but was a commercial failure, selling fewer than 23,000 copies in its first year. Despite its lackluster debut, The Great Gatsby is now hailed by some literary critics as the "Great American Novel". Following the deterioration of his wife's mental health and her placement in a mental institute for schizophrenia, Fitzgerald completed his final novel, Tender Is the Night (1934).
Struggling financially because of the declining popularity of his works during the Great Depression, Fitzgerald moved to Hollywood, where he embarked upon an unsuccessful career as a screenwriter. While living in Hollywood, he cohabited with columnist Sheilah Graham, his final companion before his death. After a long struggle with alcoholism, he attained sobriety only to die of a heart attack in 1940, at 44. His friend Edmund Wilson edited and published an unfinished fifth novel, The Last Tycoon (1941), after Fitzgerald's death. In 1993, a new edition was published as The Love of the Last Tycoon, edited by Matthew J. Bruccoli.
Born into a middle-class family in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Fitzgerald was raised primarily in New York state. He attended Princeton University where he befriended future literary critic Edmund Wilson. Owing to a failed romantic relationship with Chicago socialite Ginevra King, he dropped out in 1917 to join the United States Army during World War I. While stationed in Alabama, he met Zelda Sayre, a Southern debutante who belonged to Montgomery's exclusive country-club set. Although she initially rejected Fitzgerald's marriage proposal due to his lack of financial prospects, Zelda agreed to marry him after he published the commercially successful This Side of Paradise (1920). The novel became a cultural sensation and cemented his reputation as one of the eminent writers of the decade.
His second novel, The Beautiful and Damned (1922), propelled him further into the cultural elite. To maintain his affluent lifestyle, he wrote numerous stories for popular magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post, Collier's Weekly, and Esquire. During this period, Fitzgerald frequented Europe, where he befriended modernist writers and artists of the "Lost Generation" expatriate community, including Ernest Hemingway. His third novel, The Great Gatsby (1925), received generally favorable reviews but was a commercial failure, selling fewer than 23,000 copies in its first year. Despite its lackluster debut, The Great Gatsby is now hailed by some literary critics as the "Great American Novel". Following the deterioration of his wife's mental health and her placement in a mental institute for schizophrenia, Fitzgerald completed his final novel, Tender Is the Night (1934).
Struggling financially because of the declining popularity of his works during the Great Depression, Fitzgerald moved to Hollywood, where he embarked upon an unsuccessful career as a screenwriter. While living in Hollywood, he cohabited with columnist Sheilah Graham, his final companion before his death. After a long struggle with alcoholism, he attained sobriety only to die of a heart attack in 1940, at 44. His friend Edmund Wilson edited and published an unfinished fifth novel, The Last Tycoon (1941), after Fitzgerald's death. In 1993, a new edition was published as The Love of the Last Tycoon, edited by Matthew J. Bruccoli.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
January 11, 2021
If you like literary criticism and The Great Gatsby - you will like this book, obviously.
Critical interpretations from Barbara Hochman(this one, in particular, made me wonder why doesn't she do critical writings on more books because honestly, masterful writing and insight), Winifred Farrant Bevilacqua, Janet Giltrow & David Stouck were wonderful to read and gave me so much to think about, definitely the ones that appealed to me the most.
At this point in my life, I came to realize that I will, unmistakably, read anything that has anything to do with The Great Gatsby, so catch me reading more Gatsby related books in the future.
Critical interpretations from Barbara Hochman(this one, in particular, made me wonder why doesn't she do critical writings on more books because honestly, masterful writing and insight), Winifred Farrant Bevilacqua, Janet Giltrow & David Stouck were wonderful to read and gave me so much to think about, definitely the ones that appealed to me the most.
At this point in my life, I came to realize that I will, unmistakably, read anything that has anything to do with The Great Gatsby, so catch me reading more Gatsby related books in the future.
May 3, 2026
Halverwege kwam het boek voor mij opgang en werd het verhaal interessant! “Er zijn slechts vervolgden en vervolgers, bedrijvigen en vermoeiden”, was voor mij de mooiste zin en het kantelpunt in het boek!
May 25, 2013
I saw the 2013 movie before reading the book. Glad I did it in that order, as I would have been disappointed by the movie. The book is rich in nuance, careful and really underplayed; the movie is opulent, excessive and gorgeous. Both great, in different ways.
The archetypal story appeals on every human level, the lessons and revelations are powerful.
I missed reading it in my school years, but its power now (at my advanced age) is exhilarating. Terrific. I see why it is required reading. Men, women, youngsters, some violence, some romance, lots of life lessons about single-mindedness, being blind to what is looming before you, the shortness of life and the rush we should all feel to make this the best life, the fullest life possible. Fabulous.
The archetypal story appeals on every human level, the lessons and revelations are powerful.
I missed reading it in my school years, but its power now (at my advanced age) is exhilarating. Terrific. I see why it is required reading. Men, women, youngsters, some violence, some romance, lots of life lessons about single-mindedness, being blind to what is looming before you, the shortness of life and the rush we should all feel to make this the best life, the fullest life possible. Fabulous.
August 24, 2026
Decennia geleden gelezen en nu herlezen. Mooi boek met een tragisch einde.
June 21, 2023
Lo consiglio a tutti coloro che come me hanno amato il Grande Gatsby. Questo libriccino raccoglie i racconti di tre giovani ragazzi che come Jay Gatsby sono sospinti da un’ossessione romanticamente irrealizzabile: l’idealizzazione del sé giovane e di successo, l’idealizzazione della ragazza lungamente desiderata, l’invenzione di un alter ego che possa dar respiro ai propri sogni troppo grandi per una quotidianità misera. Tutti auto-incantesimi che si spezzeranno nello scontro con la realtà.
Mi sono chiesta se Gatsby fosse in realtà un anti eroe ridicolo che si ostina ad inseguire puerilmente un’idea irrealizzabile. Poi mi sono risposta che senza dover moralizzare le loro storie, possiamo ritrovarne degli stralci anche nelle nostre, mentre crescendo lavoriamo a ritagliare i nostri sogni sulla realtà.
Mi sono chiesta se Gatsby fosse in realtà un anti eroe ridicolo che si ostina ad inseguire puerilmente un’idea irrealizzabile. Poi mi sono risposta che senza dover moralizzare le loro storie, possiamo ritrovarne degli stralci anche nelle nostre, mentre crescendo lavoriamo a ritagliare i nostri sogni sulla realtà.
May 23, 2013
I loved this book when I read it as a set work in 2nd year and loved even more the second time around. F. Scott FItzgerald's writing style is so descriptive, genuine, sincere and really brings the story alive. I read it a second time in anticipation of watching the movie and seeing how well Baz Luhrman would interpret the book into the movie. I have to say, he did an amazing job! He quoted the book, stayed true to the way surroundings and characters were described and fleshed out by the author. He added modern music but he did it so tastefully, I understood it and appreciated it. If I were the author, I'd be extremely proud of the cinematic version of my story.
May 16, 2022
This is a valuable guide that can help the scholar not only to understand the work, but also to shape a personal interpretation of Gatsby's acts, his fame, the relationships between the different characters in the novel, and finally to solve the riddle of what made Gatsby great in the first place.
Apart from the section which summarized the chapters, and which I found a little bit less interesting than the rest of the book, I appreciated the different critical views imbedded by Bloom. There are so many theories and standpoints, and the reader is left with the utmost liberty to adopt, discuss, or refute any number of them. Overall, a good companion to the student of literature.
Apart from the section which summarized the chapters, and which I found a little bit less interesting than the rest of the book, I appreciated the different critical views imbedded by Bloom. There are so many theories and standpoints, and the reader is left with the utmost liberty to adopt, discuss, or refute any number of them. Overall, a good companion to the student of literature.
February 16, 2026
Un verano de seda, alcohol, chismes y una profunda soledad masculina
Terminé este clásico y mi primera sensación fue de un vacío absoluto. Es interesante como este autor nos construye un castillo de fuegos artificiales para luego apagar las luces y dejarnos con un desorden de realidad cruda. 😑
Terminé este clásico y mi primera sensación fue de un vacío absoluto. Es interesante como este autor nos construye un castillo de fuegos artificiales para luego apagar las luces y dejarnos con un desorden de realidad cruda. 😑
September 18, 2026
Boring and confusing, didn’t even know what was going on half the time
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 21, 2026
Een vierde ster voor het einde.
February 10, 2019
The three-page Introduction by Harold Bloom is excellent, particularly his comment: "Critics differ as to whether the theme of the novel is 'the withering of the American dream,' as Marius Bewley argued, or else a celebration of a Romantic hope in America despite all the ugly realities."
But Bloom's excellence is followed by several sections that could have been written by a freshman undergraduate and they are riddled with errors. These sections are titled: Biographical Sketch, The Story Behind the Story, List of Characters and Summary and Analysis.
Why someone of Dr. Bloom's stature allowed his name to be associated with such a flawed distortion of literary analysis is beyond my comprehension.
Following is a partial list of problems in these sections:
1. Only the Introduction is by Prof. Boom, the rest is a compilation of articles and unattributed analyses that could have been written by first-year undergraduates. This is where the Holes are.
2. P. 18 - Nick is called a "money manager," but he was only a novice bond salesman.
3. P. 19 and 20 - In two places it asserts that Gatsby's parties were "solely to attract Daisy," which is unsupported in the text.
4. P. 19 - Gatsby's bio lacks any mention of his criminal behavior.
5. P. 20 - It refers to the Plaza Hotel meeting as "a drunken lark," which is flat wrong. They left with the bottle still unopened. They had intended to make mint juleps, but things got out of hand before they could open the bottle. As they were preparing to leave: "...Tom got up and began wrapping the unopened bottle of whiskey in the towel."
6. P. 44 & 92 - It says Gatsby showed the policeman "a Christmas card signed by the commissioner." It was a business card, not a Christmas card. You don't carry a Christmas card around in your wallet.
7. P. 72 - It says Tom and Daisy "left for Europe" after the murder. The text does not state where they went.
8. P.73 - It incorrectly says "only Owl-Eyes shows up" at the funeral. Nick, Gatsby's father and a few servants were there as well.
9. P.128 - It says Daisy commits vehicular manslaughter, which is wrong. All the eyewitnesses say it was a man driving, not a woman. It is only Gatsby who says Daisy was driving, and he's a demonstrated serial liar. Furthermore, it is doubtful that Myrtle would have kept running toward the car if a woman were behind the wheel. (What's curious is it is Nick who fabricates the lie, and Gatsby simply goes along with it.)
But Bloom's excellence is followed by several sections that could have been written by a freshman undergraduate and they are riddled with errors. These sections are titled: Biographical Sketch, The Story Behind the Story, List of Characters and Summary and Analysis.
Why someone of Dr. Bloom's stature allowed his name to be associated with such a flawed distortion of literary analysis is beyond my comprehension.
Following is a partial list of problems in these sections:
1. Only the Introduction is by Prof. Boom, the rest is a compilation of articles and unattributed analyses that could have been written by first-year undergraduates. This is where the Holes are.
2. P. 18 - Nick is called a "money manager," but he was only a novice bond salesman.
3. P. 19 and 20 - In two places it asserts that Gatsby's parties were "solely to attract Daisy," which is unsupported in the text.
4. P. 19 - Gatsby's bio lacks any mention of his criminal behavior.
5. P. 20 - It refers to the Plaza Hotel meeting as "a drunken lark," which is flat wrong. They left with the bottle still unopened. They had intended to make mint juleps, but things got out of hand before they could open the bottle. As they were preparing to leave: "...Tom got up and began wrapping the unopened bottle of whiskey in the towel."
6. P. 44 & 92 - It says Gatsby showed the policeman "a Christmas card signed by the commissioner." It was a business card, not a Christmas card. You don't carry a Christmas card around in your wallet.
7. P. 72 - It says Tom and Daisy "left for Europe" after the murder. The text does not state where they went.
8. P.73 - It incorrectly says "only Owl-Eyes shows up" at the funeral. Nick, Gatsby's father and a few servants were there as well.
9. P.128 - It says Daisy commits vehicular manslaughter, which is wrong. All the eyewitnesses say it was a man driving, not a woman. It is only Gatsby who says Daisy was driving, and he's a demonstrated serial liar. Furthermore, it is doubtful that Myrtle would have kept running toward the car if a woman were behind the wheel. (What's curious is it is Nick who fabricates the lie, and Gatsby simply goes along with it.)
September 24, 2025
Los grandes clásicos no suelen ser mis lecturas favoritas, aunque trato de leer uno cada cierto tiempo no sé si por una labor completista o por entender mejor el mundo literario en el que vivimos. El Gran Gatsby ha sido en ese sentido una gran sorpresa: entretenidísimo de principio a fin, con el lenguaje atemporal de una novela que fue escrita en los años 20 pero que podría haberse escrito hoy mismo, con alusiones puntuales a la moralidad de la época (cuestiones raciales y maritales, principalmente) pero sin caer ni un solo momento en el puritanismo ni en la mentalidad obtusa de la América de hace un siglo. Una novela que nos habla del ascenso y la caída, de la fortaleza de los grandes sueños y las desilusiones que vienen asociadas a estos, de la clase social como una cualidad intrínseca, propia de los que nacen en ella, y que es incapaz de mutar por mucho que nuestra condición cambie en la vida, sobre la soledad del triunfador. Tom y Daisy, personajes de alta alcurnia, son moralmente reprochables de principio a fin, egoístas que pasan por la vida de las personas el tiempo suficiente como para sembrar el caos en ellas y marcharse sin mirar atrás. Gatsby, el lobo solitario hecho a sí mismo, consigue un estatus de celebridad que se marchita cuando empiezan los problemas, consigue ser el hombre del momento pero toda la gente que se acerca a él por interés desaparece de su lado en un soplo de viento. Los personajes que vienen de abajo son los que tienen objeciones morales en esta historia, y los que acaban mal. La novela es un retrato perfecto de esa sociedad de clases estadounidense que, hechizada por el falso relato de la meritocracia, se cree a sí misma maleable pero deja el poder y la impunidad siempre en manos de los mismos.
March 9, 2009
These collection of essays are particularly good for anyone who might be teaching canonized works or just simply wants to look a little more into a work they enjoy. Like any other book that attempts to understand art, this book has some essays in it that doesn’t hit the nail on the head all the time. The focus of a few of the essays is a bit of a stretch, and many of them attempted to investigate what books Fitzgerald might have been taking into account when he wrote “The Great Gatsby”. At times it was very interesting to get that insight, but at other times it seemed off. For example: There’s an essay that is a bit of a stretch in comparison (because it’s a common motif more than a direct comparison), but then no essay that compares it to “Wuthering Heights”, which is obvious in a lot of ways (at least just in some of the conflicts and character roles), and I’m sure someone’s written an essay on it. Still, there were enough interesting facts about Fitzgerald’s life for it to be a good book in the collection of any Gatsby fan. On one hand, it humbles anyone attempting to produce art because it lets us know that everyone has had a piece of work or an author that they’ve studied. On the other hand, we’re once again reminded of how great a work the piece is and how—with many faults of its own, a big feat in literature was accomplished. I don’t really like books that tear a book up so much that you just can’t enjoy it on some levels, and this book didn’t do that, so I was pleased.
October 21, 2012
Having read "Ellis Island" about the Irish arriving in 1920s America, I followed it up with a different aspect of America in that era. Quite enjoyed this but was DISMAYED at reading some of the spoken words. I had thought that it was a new modern annoying manner of speech from our youth but in this book there were the following: "... when she gave me the bill you'd of thought ...", "... if I hadn't met Chester, he'd of got me ...", "... if we'd of raised the blinds we'd of seen daylight", "How could she of been like that?"
So I suppose the youth of today can say that if it was good enough for Fitzgerald then it is good enough for them!
So I suppose the youth of today can say that if it was good enough for Fitzgerald then it is good enough for them!
May 24, 2026
Este libro me dejo con una sensación extraña, empieza de forma muy lenta, monótona y termina con una rapidez y confluencia que uno se queda procesando el cambio. También tiene personajes con personalidades muy complejas, construidas de acuerdo a sus experiencias y de acuerdo a las decisiones individuales que han tenido; la cual condiciona el estilo de vida. Una de las cosas en las que puse gran énfasis fue en la idealización, aquel elemento que permite construir algo fuera de la realidad que hace que la historia se envuelva en una gran nube que engrandece cada acontecimiento que pasa. Me dejo un hueco existencial; no me esperaba ese final.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 29, 2012
Spent considerable time on this recently (June, 2012).
Liked especially essay by Brian Way ("The Great Gatsby") and "The Waste Land Myth and Symbols in The Great Gatsby" by Letha Audhuy.
Ron Neuhaus on "Gatsby and the Failure of the Omniscient 'I'" took me into issues of the impact of point of view on writing and suggested ideas that should sharpen my own reading going forward. (Is the narrator likely to have known what he/she says?)
Liked especially essay by Brian Way ("The Great Gatsby") and "The Waste Land Myth and Symbols in The Great Gatsby" by Letha Audhuy.
Ron Neuhaus on "Gatsby and the Failure of the Omniscient 'I'" took me into issues of the impact of point of view on writing and suggested ideas that should sharpen my own reading going forward. (Is the narrator likely to have known what he/she says?)
January 21, 2013
Upon second reading, I was struck with the hallow characters, which--I think-- if not intended, at least an appropriate side effect. I read it when I was a teen and now that I am nearing the ages of the main characters, I find them more pathetic than ever, but still representing New York life in a way. I suppose now that I am older, tragic love stories seem to me imprudent and unsatisfying for all the dizzy romancing that happens. I've learned those lessons. What next?
March 2, 2009
probably the best book iv ever read..its one of those you either love it or hate it.I t captures all the aspects of humanity so well,from love, wealth, fame, frivolity,time,denial,failure.its great and it adresses the issue of morality and is really thought provoking....what does it profit a man to gain the whole world but to lose his soul???
May 11, 2010
This book perfectly shows the drama in the 1920 , involving love, deception, money and murder. There is also a great amout of suspense once you get near the end.
This incredible book changed the way I think of life alost a hundred years ago. I would definetly want to share this book to anyone who can read.
~:P
This incredible book changed the way I think of life alost a hundred years ago. I would definetly want to share this book to anyone who can read.
~:P
April 14, 2026
Las cosas que pasan cuando dos hombres idealizan tanto a una mujer que terminas con la sensación de que ella era la villana de la historia y aún así, también víctima de lo sistema patriarcal y capitalista en el que vive.
Personajes complejos e idealizados. Una estética increíble de la extravagancia y opulencia de los años veinte que me hace pensar que Baz Luhrmann le hizo justicia.
Personajes complejos e idealizados. Una estética increíble de la extravagancia y opulencia de los años veinte que me hace pensar que Baz Luhrmann le hizo justicia.
October 25, 2025
It was a best seller, I did read many years ago, and show you how was the behavior of the rich people in contrast with the very poor people by 1920, in Long Island in New York, the author wrote the book based in his own stile of life!
July 14, 2011
Once again, I appreciate the English professors waiting on my nightstand to enlighten me...
November 4, 2013
Selections cover a wide range of topics, but are a bit short.
March 4, 2014
I enjoy this book.
Gatsby the type of man that I want fall in love with them..
I'm ready for my 2014 Gatsby to sweep me off my feet.
Gatsby the type of man that I want fall in love with them..
I'm ready for my 2014 Gatsby to sweep me off my feet.
Read
November 14, 2015Shed new light on my understanding of the book (which by the way I read only once about 2 or 3 years ago.). Very helpful.
Read
November 16, 2016This book explained the symbolism in "The Great Gatsby" and is very well written.That is shown in the way he place the word like a painter making a masterpiece.
March 29, 2025
Soms kunnen schrijvers de zinnen gewoon prachtig op papier zetten.
May 11, 2026
Empeiza algo lento y acaba muy rápido. Daisy te odio
March 16, 2013
There are moments of breathtakingly beautiful prose. "Why is it great?" finds answer in reading.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews