"The locality was always vaguely disquieting, even in the broad glare of the afternoon, and now I turned my head as though I had been warned of something behind. Over the ashheaps the giant eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg kept their vigil, but I perceived, after a moment, that the other eyes were regarding us with peculiar intensity..." (125).
Although I originally thought that Gatsby would be the protagonist with his name being in the title and all, but I came to the conclusion that Nick is the protagonist in the story. He suffers an external conflict with society, and he doesn't ever fit in with their personalities or lifestyles. This conflict is shown throughout his interactions with everyone, but I think it might also be represented in some reoccurring scenery. The eyes of Dr. Eckleburg passed judgement on Nick and his companions many times as they passed by the ash. Those giant eyes were always watching, and I got the impression that they looked on with disapproval and scorn. The ashheaps made the location seem desolate and hopeless, and nothing really positive occurred by the ash. I think that whole area with the eyes and the ash represent how their careless lifestyle was not free of consequence, and someone was always watching their lives. They never had any secrets with those eyes watching. The characters couldn't escape the eyes or the desperation of the ashheaps even when they weren't at the physical spot.
I also agree that Nick ended up being the protagonist, contrary to the name of the book. I did, however, have a bit of trouble trying to find the antagonist to Nick's protagonist. There's always Tom -- I really never liked him -- but he never really did anything to directly impact Nick; not that I noticed at least.
ReplyDeleteThe day I actually understand this literature stuff.. That will be a grand day.