Abstract

The Great Gatsby established Fitzgerald’s status in American literature. It has won worldwide acclaim since its publication. Its excellent writing skill is one of the reasons that make it classic. This essay is going to talk about its feature of impersonality based mainly on Flaubert and James’ opinions from the perspective of narratology, and analyze how this feature is embodied in this novel in terms of techniques and emotions. In respect of techniques, the author’s relation to the narrator and the narrator’s relation to the story will be discussed separately, and in respect of emotions, the application of irony will be analyzed. Finally, functions and problems that impersonality brings to this novel will be discussed.

Key words: The Great Gatsby; impersonality; author; narrator; irony

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1.Introduction1

2.Literature Review1

3.Definition of Impersonality .3

4.Impersonality in The Great Gatsby.4

4.1 Impersonality in techniques4

4.1.1 The author’s relation to the narrator.4

4.1.2 The narrator’s relation to the story.5

4.2 Impersonality in emotions8

5. Effects of Impersonality in The Great Gatsby.9

5.1 Functions 10

5.2 Problems.11

6. Conclusion.11

Works Cited.13