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In this section you will find a creative and critical viewpoint on The Great Gatsby, a book written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, in order to guide students and teachers into a more profound reading of literature without leaving behind creativity. Most of the information written on the infographics was taken from Lois Tyson's book Critical Theory Today (2016).
Marxist reading of The Great Gatsby: The story can be seen as a criticism against the promises of capitalism. The story takes place during the economic boom of the 1920s, where wealth seems to reach an all-time high within American society, and in that same society, people see all things as opportunities for better social standing. Most of the characters have this tendency to see commodities rather than people, leading to a seemingly unending cycle of manipulation and hedonism, leaving those who are of the lower class looking like pitiful and detestable bootlickers.
Psychoanalytic reading: The Great Gatsby serves as a tale that encompasses two aphorisms; love hurts, and you can only love others once you learn to love yourself. In this context, the characters are just slaves to their insecurities, forever tied to fulfilling the missing parts of their souls with one another. Every individual seems to project onto others their supposed desire, not in a physical sense, but rather a psychological one, a desire to heal that is never reached and leads to despair.
Death and Sexuality: The book discusses the meaning of both death and sexuality in our lives through a psychoanalytical context. Death (thanatos) and sexuality(eros) are inescapable parts of our lives, even if we manifest our relations to them in different ways. Death is not just a biological drive, it is a contrast within the struggle to feel alive, in other words, it is in the fact that we are dying that we find the biggest pleasure in living. Sexuality relates to power, the power over ourselves and others. It is in this desire for power that we find ourselves frightened at the thought of being degraded, as it takes that power from us.
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