From F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous novel, The Great Gatsby, and this painting, one can find comparisons that show wealth, as well as the isolation and loneliness that often come with it. The Great Gatsby is a timeless classic that tells the story of Jay Gatsby and his obsession for the extrodinarily beautiful Daisy Buchanan. The novel is set in the Roaring 20s, a time of wild parties and loose moral standards and the rich becoming even richer than before. The piece of art this novel is being compared to depicts a lavishly set dinner table set against a dark backdrop. On the table, there are goblets of wine, grapes draped over silver platters, even a whole lobster. Through the elements of motif, scene, and theme, one can find many comparisons
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As stated previously, the painting makes viewers feel dejected and sorrowful because of the strong, dark hue and the way the food items are placed around the table, as if they’ve been given up on. Despite the symbol of wealth, this dinner does not convey a happy feeling. Viewers can almost imagine a group of unhappy, rich people dining on exotic, expensive foods, and then leaving the uneaten food and plates on the table, forgotten. There is no sign of interpersonal relationships or friendships of any kind in the picture; the scene is quite distant and aloof. The artist is attempting to convey the detachment and aloneness that often comes hand in hand with great wealth. This is also shown in The Great Gatsby. All these rich characters, full of life and opportunity, inevitably find themselves alone and lonely. Daisy has it all: the looks, the marriage, the beautiful house, yet she is not truly happy. The fact that Tom doesn’t really love her, and is fact having an affair that she knows about, only adds to her solitude. She tells Nick, “I’ve had a very bad time, Nick, and I’m pretty cynical about everything.” (16). However, she is too scared of being alone and without money to do something about Tom. Gatsby is perhaps the best example of this, someone who lives in a grand house and has enough money to throw huge parties every week, yet still suffers from terrible loneliness and has never really found true happiness. Even at his own parties, his aloneness is seen as “...no one swooned backward Gatsby, and no French bob touched Gatsby’s shoulder, and no singing quartets were formed with Gatsby’s head for one link.” (50). One can most clearly see Gatsby’s loneliness and lack of personal relationships in his death, when other than Nick, “no one else was interested--interested, I
As stated previously, the painting makes viewers feel dejected and sorrowful because of the strong, dark hue and the way the food items are placed around the table, as if they’ve been given up on. Despite the symbol of wealth, this dinner does not convey a happy feeling. Viewers can almost imagine a group of unhappy, rich people dining on exotic, expensive foods, and then leaving the uneaten food and plates on the table, forgotten. There is no sign of interpersonal relationships or friendships of any kind in the picture; the scene is quite distant and aloof. The artist is attempting to convey the detachment and aloneness that often comes hand in hand with great wealth. This is also shown in The Great Gatsby. All these rich characters, full of life and opportunity, inevitably find themselves alone and lonely. Daisy has it all: the looks, the marriage, the beautiful house, yet she is not truly happy. The fact that Tom doesn’t really love her, and is fact having an affair that she knows about, only adds to her solitude. She tells Nick, “I’ve had a very bad time, Nick, and I’m pretty cynical about everything.” (16). However, she is too scared of being alone and without money to do something about Tom. Gatsby is perhaps the best example of this, someone who lives in a grand house and has enough money to throw huge parties every week, yet still suffers from terrible loneliness and has never really found true happiness. Even at his own parties, his aloneness is seen as “...no one swooned backward Gatsby, and no French bob touched Gatsby’s shoulder, and no singing quartets were formed with Gatsby’s head for one link.” (50). One can most clearly see Gatsby’s loneliness and lack of personal relationships in his death, when other than Nick, “no one else was interested--interested, I