November
2008
The End0
“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” – last page, last sentence
This sentence brought up some discussion in class and when i stated my opinion about it, it was contradicted by another student. I hope that in this blog i am able to explain my opinion and defend my interpretation of the this quote.
The first part of this sentence may seem optimistic, “so we beat on.” It shows that although this summer was full of questions and drama, people are able to continue their lives and still push to reach the “green light” or the “American dream.” Fitzgerald knows it will not be easy and thus “boats against the current” suggests that the dream will not just be given out, like we saw with the other characters in this book. However the last part of the sentence puts a melancholy outlook onto the expression. “Borne ceaselessly into the past.” The characters (that have lived through the current events) are able to move on from what happened to the Wilson’s and Gatsby, however maybe too soon. Characters such as Tom and Daisy have proved to not care about others feelings and will mess things up, leaving the ruins for other people. Tom certainly has forgotten Gatsby as he did not value his life. Gatsby’s one friend, the man who threw the baseball game, could not attend the funeral because he was afraid of what people would say and another man could not go because he was going to be on a picnic. People of West and East egg have no souls to mourn over a loss that occurred brutally. This has a negative outlook on how these people will continue their lives and brings up the question of how many more times events like these will occur.
The characters are receding back into the past. A time when nothing was said and everything just swept under the carpet. It was a time when Daisy was miserable in a life that she believed she was too smart and aware for. It was a time when Tom would go off, have affairs and there was nothing Daisy could or would do. It was a time without parties, without a social life that brought people together. And with the great depression approaching, it was the last glimpse of hope for many of the people. It is impossible to go back into the past. We saw this with Gatsby as he wanted to re-create the past during a time when Daisy loved him. We saw this with Wilson as he attempted to fulfill a dream of Myrtles when they first got married, before Tom may have entered the picture. So when Fitzgerald writes, “borne ceaselessly into the past” it will not be the same past in any way. Although they try not to be affected, it is impossible to erase Gatsby from their memory, and it is impossible for Tom to forget what Daisy said that night in the hotel room.
The characters in the Great Gatsby were miserable before Nick came. And now with the events that took place behind them, there is even more to be hurt about. So when a classmate said that the last sentence was optimistic, that perhaps the inhabitants of West and East egg were going to be able to continue on toward their dreams, i ask, how are they going to move forward toward this dream if they were not able to express their feelings before all these problems occurred. Tom and Daisy and Jordan will not be able to move toward their dream as they must move forward in order to do so. Instead they are receding, going back into their old habits of being rich and doing nothing.
That is why i think the last sentence of the Great Gatsby is fearful for the lives ahead of the remaining characters, as Fitzgerald and Nick alike know that nothing will ever change.
