Group 1—West Egg
Horrocks—Writer
Matta—Revising and Posting
Mullaney
Sanford
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5 comments:
The West Egg is located in New York City, however, compared to the East Egg it’s the less fashionable town. Nicks home and Gatsby’s home are located in the West Egg, but Nick’s house is located at the tip of the egg, and is only fifty yards from the sound, and squeezed between two huge places. Gatsby’s mansion is right next to Nick’s house and it consists of more than forty acres of lawn. However, even though the West Egg is the less fashionable town of the two, it has the ability to bring people together. Gatsby moves to the West Egg in order to be across the bay from Daisy. When Nick first see’s Gatsby, he is reaching out towards the dark water which could ultimately be a portrayal of his desire to be with Daisy. Nick moves away from the East Egg in order to avoid the gossip that is brought up there. This is an action of isolation, and Nick is an isolationist who doesn’t enjoy socializing with other people, but rather being on the outside of the situation and observing.
Important Quotes
“I lived at West Egg, the—well, the less fashionable of the two…” (5)
“My house was at the very tip of the egg, only fifty yards from the Sound, and squeezed between two huge places that rented for twelve or fifteen thousand a season” (5)
“He stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him I could have sworn he was trembling” (20)
I think that your response is a backloaded reply--what I mean by this is that the best parts your post happen in the second of your reply.
In the first part--I think you have some issues with the geography of West Egg. Is it in NYC? What does your map say? You must clear up this issue in order to understand the differences between the three vastly different settings of West Egg, East Egg, and The Valley of Ashes.
More than anything else--I have some questions for you that I hope that you will answer in order to fortify your post about West Egg:
-Why is West Egg less fashionable than East Egg?
-Why is it important that Nick lives in place squeezed next to two huge places? How does this fact tie back to Gatsby and Tom's relationship? Is Nick a character that will always be torn between these two mansions?
-How is West Egg a place that is able to bring people together? What does this say about West Egg and the people who live there--but also about the people who one day hope to reside in one of the 'eggs?'
Your musings about Nick being an isolationist intrigue me, and I am left with only questions: why does Nick want to isolate himself from Tom's East Egg even though it is the place that Gatsby is trying to touch? How does this idea strike to the core of one of the essential themes present within the novel.
Thank you for this response--but I do think that it is not yet complete, and I hope that you consider some of the questions raised in order to add the depth of your response.
More than anything else, please let me know what I can do in order to be of help to you as you make transform this reply from good to great.
Best,
AK
Grade: 80
West Egg is where reality is nonexistent and the rich live on a cloud of falsehoods. The money on West Egg is considered to be “new” money, meaning the money doesn’t run very far in their family lineage and it is for this reason of inexperience and lack of class that separates West Egg from East Egg. These upper class people who “came and went like moths”(pg.39) attracted only to the bright lights of Gatsby’s house and West Egg, have no perception of what is real and are simply wasting away their so-called glorious lives for the life of drinking and partying. It is West Egg where these people do not realize the sins they are committing shown when Owl-eyes cannot comprehend “that wheel and car were no longer joined by any physical bond.”(pg.55) In the protection of this egg these people don’t realize and never feel the consequences of their actions for they are in class that the people in The Valley of Ashes will never know. Even with this elevation above others the Wast Eggers like Gatsby are always striving for the East Egg life, although unattainable they try to climb their way to this ‘holy’ East Egg.
Other Important Quotes:
“He could climb to it if he climbed alone…gulp down the incomparable milk of wonder”(pg.110)
“They were a satisfactory hint of the unreality of the reality…”(pg.99)
“All the lights were going on in West Egg now…”(pg.95)
“A wafer of a moon was shining over Gatsby’s house…the sound of his still glowing gardens”(pg.55)
There are two separate parts of town, the West Egg and East Egg. Between the two, the West Egg is the less fashionable town, and the two are separated by the Valley of Ashes. Nick and Gatsby’s homes are located in the West Egg, but Nick’s house is “at the very tip of the egg, only fifty yards from the Sound, and squeezed between two huge places that rented for twelve or fifteen thousand a season” (5). Gatsby’s mansion is right next to Nick’s house and it consists of more than forty acres of lawn. The West Egg is where people are brought together, torn apart, and where the party gets started.
Literally speaking, the parties get started because Gatsby throws parties in his house that’s located in the West Egg. People come uninvited, but still receive the hospitality that Gatsby gives out. These parties are defined by the rich, the ones who do what they want during the party, and the poor are the ones left to “repair the ravages of the night before” (39) the next day.
The West Egg has brought two people together in an attempt to fulfill a dream; however this dream slowly becomes an obsession. Gatsby and Daisy had once been in love with each other and have not seen each other for five years. Gatsby moves to the West Egg in order to be across the bay from Daisy, and in hope that one day their love will be rekindled. The one problem is that Daisy has a husband, one whom Gatsby is positive she has never loved. This dream slowly alters Gatsby’s perspective, and allows him to become unrealistic about the future. Nick first encounter with Gatsby is when he reaches out towards the dark water which could ultimately be a portrayal of his desire to be with Daisy. This dream alters reality, and makes Gatsby believe that there is only one person to live for in this world, Daisy. The West Egg is where dreams become unreality, where people live in their dreams, wishing they had something they couldn’t have.
Important Quotes
“I lived at West Egg, the—well, the less fashionable of the two…” (5)
“My house was at the very tip of the egg, only fifty yards from the Sound, and squeezed between two huge places that rented for twelve or fifteen thousand a season” (5)
“He stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him I could have sworn he was trembling” (20)
“On week-ends his Rolls-Royce became an omnibus…” (39)
“They had forgotten me, but Daisy glanced up and held out her hand; Gatsby didn’t know me now at all” (96)
Long island is home to three of the most important characters in The Great Gatsby. Not Nick, Tom, Daisy, or even Gatsby but rather West Egg, East Egg, and the Valley of Ashes. The Valley of Ashes is the home of the lower class and the refuse of the upper class. East Egg is full of people living off the old money, meaning they belong to the uppermost echelon of wealth and have been there for several generations. The new wealth lives in West Egg; their money comes from modern enterprises and is not respected as real wealth by the old money. Because West Egg is the new money, they do not have the same tastes as those of the old money and therefore is regarded as the less fashionable of the two. Nick and Gatsby live in West Egg. Gatsby’s house rests on 40 acres and is able to bring together people from both East and West Egg. Nick’s house is 50 yards from the sound, wedged between Gatsby’s house and the shore of East Egg. Gatsby lives in West Egg to be just across the sound from Daisy and even in Nick’s first sighting of him, Nick serves as a go between to connect Gatsby to the world of East Egg that he so craves. Nick could care less about the split between old and new money and though he lives in West Egg, he can travel without restriction everywhere. Nick doesn’t like the old money even though he is certainly more than capable to live among them. He chooses not to, taking the action of an isolationist and deciding to become an outside observer of wealth.
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