The Great GatsbyByF. Scott FitzgeraldThe Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is by far one of the most interesting and cluttered books I have ever read. I feel like the story changed as soon as I was able to tell what was happening. A constant idea was the themes, symbols and motifs used throughout. Love and the seduction of money are for me the most influential themes I noticed in the book. Instead of separating them, I would like to combine them. They worked in synchronicity, together, to define the environment, the characters, the lifestyle of that era. When I talk about that era, I'm talking about the American lifestyle of the 1920s. F. Scott Fitzgerald's characters were only interested in money, like many in that era. For them, becoming rich is the main goal of life and nothing will stand in their way. It also affected love. Love materialized which led to the failure of all relationships that were not related to love and in the novel all relationships that were not related to love failed because that they were materialized. The relationship between Tom Buchanan and Myrtle Wilson is a perfect example of this. Tom uses Myrtle for sex and in return she receives money and gifts. There is no real love between the two, just the lure of material possession. The reasoning behind this is that Myrtle is fed up with her husband's lack of success and craves wealth, which Tom has. Tom, who comes from the West Eggs, looks down on everyone who is not part of his "class", which is why he treats Myrtle like trash, one could even say just using her. This theme continues when Tom marries Daisy. Marriage is not about love, again, it is about wealth and until the story ends with Gatsby's death. Daisy only loved Gatsby because he...... middle of paper......brood. This is ironic because Gatsby was not in the car at the time. Returning to the theme of love, Daisy and Tom conspire against Gatsby, accusing him of Myrtle's murder and also being Myrtle's lover. Daisy never had any love for Gatsby. So the Valley of Ashes literally represents every bad road an individual can take. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to enjoy this book more. I was too busy paying attention to the annotations and themes of the book to connect with the characters. I'm going to reread this book to better understand the story, not just its structure. I am still amazed by this book. This is one of those rare masterpieces that everyone must read at some point in their life. Fitzgerald masterfully uses different themes, symbols and motifs to bring his story together beautifully..