How Does Fitzgerald Use Characterisation in Great Gatsby

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In chapter 1 Fitzgerald starts with reflection from Nick and then Fitzgerald uses varieties of techniques to continue chapter 1 when he introduces Tom and Daisy Buchanan Jordan Baker and ‘Gatsby’. The use of narration is present and incredibly important throughout the novel as Nick acts as a guide for the reader throughout the novel. We can tell this as Nick provides an opinion on the happenings on each chapter for the reader this is so Fitzgerald can provide the reader with an opinion. We see that Nick provides an opinion for the reader when he says ‘Gatsby turned out all right in the end’ this causes the reader to feel reassured that Gatsby’s character will in the end prevail after the tribulations of the story. There is a certain aspect that may not occur to a reader until they have read much further into the book and that Gatsby’s character is doomed and then is his retribution. This can be seen from ‘in the end’ as this can be seen as the end of Gatsby. Fitzgerald constructed Nick in such a way that he is essentially the commentator throughout the novel and each characters actions and emotions are evaluated by Nick. Fitzgerald uses Nick to cause a shared opinion with Nick towards other characters. Fitzgerald also uses Nick to add his personal opinion which is displayed as Nicks, this however is contradictory to the construct of Nick as he states at the start of the chapter he states that he is ‘inclined to reserve all judgement’ Fitzgerald uses irony here as Nick is very judgemental throughout the whole novel. The start of chapter 1 is told as a brief summary of Nick caraways life until it moves onto introducing and describing Gatsby, we can see that it is a reflectional summary of Nicks early life as it simply says ‘in my younger and more…’ we see that is almost summarising his life very shortly as if it were to be written in a memo or told in a short
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