Tragedy Essay Plan on Richard II & The Great Gatsby
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Course
Aspects of Tragedy
Institution
AQA
Full essay plan for Aspects of Tragedy paper on Richard II and The Great Gatsby, answering the question of 'Tragic heroes cannot be mourned. To what extent do you agree?' Includes thorough use of quotations, analysis, structural points and references covering the entirety of both texts. Works as su...
Essay Play - Tragic heroes cannot be mourned
Gatsby Plan
Question of should not or cannot. Should not be, author’s intention is not for us to mourn for our
tragic hero, they are to be made an example of. Gatsby is the embodiment of excess within the
Jazz Age. Hegel’s theory that once the tragic hero dies, society will benefit from their death. If
Fitzgerald has intended for Gatsby to be an example, then on the wider scope – his death or rather
the death of excess/ hedonism will refresh society once again. If we use the summer as the
summation of this hedonism, and Gatsby’s death near to its end, then the idea that society will
improve is heavily emphasized. “struggle” “oppressive” (the heat) “In this heat every extra
gesture was an affront to the common store of life." “Life starts all over again when it gets crisp
in the fall.”
However, our tragic hero may be a victim to the structure of his genre. Gatsby becomes likable in
that he is a romantic, living within this fantasy – which is debatably his hamartia, but also
debatably what allows us sympathy for him. Gatsby falls for love. Even Daisy alludes to the idea
that her marriage was a mistake, (going back to the heat), “Imagine marrying someone in this
heat! - “still- I was married in the middle of June.” A slight subversion from the tragic structure,
but perhaps Gatsby was not fully at fault for his fall, Daisy’s marriage is implied to have been a
rash, summer decision – much like her affair with Gatsby. In Chapter Seven, Gatsby does make
heroic sacrifices. He does not want any ‘gossip’ to expose his affair with Daisy, he protects Daisy
even if it comes at a cost to his lifestyle. His car, a symbol of his extravagance, now drives
‘sulkily away.’ Gatsby’s demeanor has changed for Daisy. In the end of the chapter, he ‘of
course’ will say it was him driving; this is Gatsby’s final act and leads to his death, this is a hero
who can be mourned as he sacrifices himself for someone he loves, that can’t even fully
reciprocate it.
Yet to experience his anagnorisis, Gatsby has lived his life yes in a fantasy of romantic pursuit.
However, this world can be realized as his hamartia. With parties where he was the anonymous
host, and the “earth lurched away from the sun.” Gatsby’s life is one dichotomously experienced.
He lives in the shadows yet does so with a vivacious outcry – all in hope of his fantasy. But
Gatsby has overreached in this ‘foolish flirtations’ and with his mansion, and a ‘swollen’ car.
With this dream that is somewhat disappointing, it was clear that Gatsby had been unrealistic
with his expectations, and Daisy became a figment unable to fulfill what he had dreamed of.
"There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy tumbled short of his
dreams -- not through her own fault, but because of the colossal vitality of his illusion. It had
gone beyond her, beyond everything." Gatsby cannot perceive that she has changed, and tells
Tom, “your wife doesn’t love you. She’s never loved you. She loves me.” This cannot be agreed
with by Daisy, who eventually admits to having loved Tom. This was the moment where Gatsby,
like Icarus, has gone too far, asked too much and flown too close to the sun. (the increasing heat)
‘It seems that pretty soon the earth’s going to fall into the sun.’ This direct comparison to Icarus,
whilst the heat may be a pathetic fallacy literary device to elevate the tension toward the climax,
it also acts as Fitzgerald’s initial message with Gatsby – that excess was never to live a long life.
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