How Reliable is “The Great Gatsby’s” Narrator?
The Great Gatsby is told through Nick Caraway’s perspective – this is mainly responsible for the way the characters are portrayed, and to say that the characters were on a path of ‘self-destruction’, as mainly viewed by many, is not only inaccurate, but undemocratic. By following events through Nick Caraway’s viewpoint, The Great Gatsby disallows any insight into the characters’ strengths and flaws, excluding some very rare moments. This, irrevocably, does not grant any endorsement to criticisms about these characters, because any statements that are made on their characters are postulations based on Nick’s bias.
A vivid character of the novel is Daisy Buchanan. Daisy is portrayed as an insubstantial and nonchalant person. During her younger years, she fell in love with Jay Gatsby and made a promise to wait for him as soon as he returned from the war. Inevitably, she demonstrates her enthusiasm of a noble life by accepting Tom Buchanan’s proposal instead of holding to her promise. The battle between Gatsby and Tom for her affections revealed her ability to act feebly instead of making a decision outright – the wealth and protection that Tom Buchanan offer was seemingly too hard for her to relinquish. Additionally, she refused to own up to the fact that she was the cause of Myrtle Wilson’s death, which provoked Nick Caraway’s characterization for her, and Tom Buchanan: “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy- they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made.” The qualities that Daisy possesses make it justifiable to call her “immorally corrupted.” However, a statement from Daisy provides a little insight into her character, and the reasons for her reactions to certain events: “All right... I’m glad it’s a girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool – that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.” This demonstrates that there is less truth in calling her flimsy than there is in calling her incisive – she is seemingly aware of the façade she fabricated, and while it is extremely far from what is considered “ethical”, it is also unreasonable to say that she was morally corrupted for following what she believed – presumably far from the obtuse woman portrayed through Nick’s point of view.
