Great Gatsby Question 14

The overall direction of the narrative in The Great Gatsby is forwards, however a close examination of the chronology reveals that this is disrupted by repeatedly returning to the past. Flashbac is used at various points in The Great Gatsby to provide bac ground information and insight into the characters. !ic learns the history of "aisy#s ac$uaintance with Gatsby and of her marriage to Tom through a flashbac narrated by %ordan &a er. !ic introduces the presentation. 'nother use of the techni$ue fills in the factual life history of (%ames Gat) of !orth "a ota.( !ic gains this information partially as the result of investigations by (an ambitious young reporter from !ew *or ( and partially as told by Gatsby himself, (very much later.( Gatsby indulges in the use of flashbac s to eep alive his fantasy that someday he and "aisy will be able to shed other connections and complications and build a future together. 'fter the dance at his house, Gatsby tal s with !ic . +e expresses his regret that "aisy didn#t en,oy the party, then begins remembering earlier and better times in their relationship. -hen !ic urges him to stop, saying, (*ou can#t repeat the past.(, Gatsby#s immediate reply is, (/an#t repeat the past0...-hy of course you can.(. 1any of the disruptions are achieved seamlessly and occur within sections of dialogue as characters refer bac wards 2and very occasionally forwards3. There are also some points at which !ic draws attention to his manipulation of time or simply ,umps bac wards to a different time. 4eferences to dates and times are often embedded within the text, unobtrusively presented within dialogue or at the end of a passage, so that the effect can appear vague. These are generally consistent, although there are some aspects of this extremely complex novel where Fit)gerald appears to have made errors with the chronology, such as the age of 5ammy. The most stri ing aspect of the structure is its incessant movement from one time period to another, tending to return to the past while building a picture of a brief time in 1677.