Book Notes: The Great Gatsby is considered F. Scott Fitzgerald’s greatest work
The Great Gatsby, published in 1925 and considered F. Scott Fitzgerald’s greatest work, depicts the prosperity and excesses of the years between World War I and the Wall Street crash of 1929.
The novel’s primary characters are Nick Carraway, the narrator; his cousin Daisy; her husband, Tom Buchanan; Daisy’s friend and woman golfer Jordan Baker; and the mysterious Jay Gatsby. Before WWI, Gatsby and Daisy met and fell in love. But Daisy did not wait for his return from war; instead, she married Tom Buchanan, a wealthy aristocrat.
The story takes place in a prosperous area of Long Island, N.Y., where Gatsby, who’s become a millionaire by nefarious means, owns a mansion and throws elaborate parties. Across the bay he can see the more luxurious spread where Daisy and Tom Buchanan live. Gatsby’s single pursuit is to win back Daisy. He hopes she will show up at one of his parties.
Nick becomes entwined in the lives of these characters. He spends time with Tom and Daisy, befriends Gatsby and helps him reconnect with Daisy, spends a day in New York with Tom and Tom’s mistress, and has a romantic afternoon with Jordan Baker.
Although Nick spends time with these folks, he does not respect them. He notes, “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.”.
UMRA’s Book Club members agreed that the characters were shallow, selfish, and focused on momentary happiness. Those who’d read Gatsby years ago reflected on how the shallowness seemed more striking on their second reading.
We also agreed that Gatsby’s downfall was thinking he could recapture the past and win back Daisy. We felt some empathy for Nick, whose allegiance was to Gatsby. He took that responsibility seriously, to the bitter end, and was instrumental in “cleaning up the mess” made by the careless people. But we were not surprised that Nick returned to the Midwest after his summer on Long Island.
—Kathleen Cramer and Becky Anderson
Book Club to discuss The Great Gatsby
Fri, May 17 2019, 2pm
Herb Scherer will lead a discussion of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald when the UMRA Book Club meets at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 17, in the 1666 Coffman building on Larpenteur Avenue in Falcon Heights.
These are the books and discussion leaders for the summer: June, Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell, discussion leader Beth Bedell; July, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, discussion leader Paula Knutzen; August, Still Foolin’ ’Em by Billy Crystal, discussion leader Joni Mitchell. Contact Pat Tollefson, [email protected] for more information.
Please visit umra.umn.edu/Events>Interest Groups>Book Club for a review of the club’s April read, The Shoemaker’s Wife by Adriana Trigiani.
Upcoming Events
We are fortunate to have UMRA member and former Minnesota Landscape Arboretum director Peter Moe to lead this approximately 3.7-mile hike at the Arboretum on Monday, May 6. Plan to have lunch together after the hike at the Eatery café inside the Oswald Visitor Center.
This session will continue the discussion begun in the May 8, 2023 session. See that article for details.
If you currently live in your own home or apartment, have you looked ahead to when you might want to consider a senior living option? Do you have any idea what those options might be? How much they cost? What they provide? UMRA’s May 14 workshop will provide an overview of the world of senior living and the basic information you need.
You’re invited to join the final Family History Interest Group meeting for 2023–24. This will be an opportunity to ask questions related to family history, share insights, talk about recent projects, and suggest topics for next year.
Stephanie Daily will lead the discussion of Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by best-selling author Mary Roach when the UMRA Book Club meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 17.
The May 20 hike will start at the Historic Lift Bridge in Stillwater and go along the river to the new bridge, cross over and then back on the Wisconsin side, a total of approximately 5 miles. Most of the route is paved. We will eat lunch after at Brian's Bar and Grill in Stillwater. Car pooling will be available.
Climatologist and meteorologist Mark Seeley joined the U of M faculty in 1978 and has been a weekly commentator on Minnesota Public Radio since 1992. We are honored to welcome him as our guest speaker for UMRA’s May Luncheon Forum and 2024 Annual Meeting. He is always entertaining and informative.
UMRA’s Fourth Friday Book Club welcomes back, for the second time, author Julie Schumacher, U of M Regents professor of creative writing and English, for a conversation about her novel The Shakespeare Requirement.
We are in for a treat on June 3! Lynn Anderson, will lead us on trails at two parks near her Monticello home. Bring a bag lunch and we will gather in Lynn's yard along the Mississippi River for eating and socializing after the hike.
Get out to the ballpark with fellow UMRA members for the annual U of M Day at Target Field as the Minnesota Twins take on the Oakland Athletics on June 14 at 7:10 p.m.
Please join us at 9:30 on June 17, 2024 for a walk around Lake Como in St. Paul before attending the UMRA Summer Social and Picnic starting at 11 at the Como Pavilion. A perfect opportunity to get in a walk before we gather to celebrate summer.
Picnic under the covered, open-air Como pavilion, gaze at the water, spy some birds, catch up with friends and former colleagues, and meet new members. We’ll have lunch with plenty of time for visiting and then compete in teams as we are challenged by our Quiz master(s)!
Healthy aging, mindfulness, fighting ageism, and more will be the focus of the third annual Age-Friendly University Day to be held on the U of M Twin Cities campus.