The Great Gatsby by Allison

The Great Gatsby by Allison - February 2015 Scholarship Essay

Throughout our school years, English is the one class that is required for us to take. Each year, at least in public schools, there is a curriculum that must be followed which means a bunch of books that must be read. To each person, there are favorites and ones that they could care less about. For most high school students who take many challenging classes, they tend to either skim through a book or read spark notes. I admit to this tendency as well but there is one book that I recommend every high school student or anyone who hasn’t read the book, to read; The Great Gatsby.

Unlike Shakespeare and Dickens, Scott Fitzgerald not only uses language that everyone understands, but also uses an incredibly live time period to base his story off of. The Great Gatsby takes place in America during the 1920’s where stock was booming, people were rich, parties were being thrown left and right, fashion dramatically changes and alcohol was banned, though nobody listened. This book successfully incorporates the aspects of this time period. Not only does Fitzgerald use an interesting time period, the story is a mix of love and mystery so it is able to attract more than just a small crowd.

Everything I have said so far are definitely great aspects of the book that I enjoy, but the one thing about this book that I love is all the symbolism. Left and right Fitzgerald uses symbolism to give each concept of the book more meaning. From the color of Gatsby’s car and the light at the end of the dock to the eyes on a billboard, the symbolism is never ending. And what I love about symbolism is though there is usually a basic, general interpretation; there is always room for different interpretations.

So though there are many books forced upon us, if a student was going to take time to only read one book in the class, I would without a doubt recommend The Great Gatsby. The time period and type of story creates a book that never lacks entertainment. The book doesn’t have a slow period where you wish the book would end and it short but not too short. And the cherry on top of this book is the symbolism. These books are a perfect break from Shakespeare and Dickens and take my word; you will not be able to stop reading once you’ve started.