The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a classic book that tells the story of a young man named Jay Gatsby, and the complicated love and tragedy that he experiences. Set in the 1920s, also known as the Jazz Age, Gatsby (so far) is a romantic, complicated story of wealth, love, heartbreak, lies, and much more! F. Scott Fitzgerald has created such complex, intense characters already by chapter five. Daisy Buchanan is one of these characters. She is a beautiful, charming young woman, yet so incredibly lonely and living in a pretend bubble at the same time.
Daisy is a really interesting character. When Nick Carraway (the storyteller, also Daisy's cousin), first comes to have dinner at her house, he walks in to find her laughing and all bubbly with her good friend. She seems happy; as though she doesn't have a care in the world. But as this scene progresses, readers see just how fake this is. Daisy is all about appearance-- she hides her feelings and covers them up with fake smiles and laughs.
Daisy seems like she has made mistakes in her life-- ones that have stuck with her. In this scene where Nick is attending dinner at her and her husband Tom's house, she tells him about the day her daughter was born. She says, "She [the nurse] told me it was a girl, and I turned my head away and wept. 'Alright', I said, 'I'm glad it's a girl. And I hope she'll be a fool-that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool." (pg. 17). I think Daisy is saying something about her own life when she says this; that she hopes her daughter just has fun as a fool instead of getting stuck in something she doesn't want to be in (like marriage perhaps) like Daisy did. I also think she is saying she hopes her daughter is careless, and doesn't get hung up on a man in a way that will stick with her the rest of her life.
I think Daisy is afraid of her feelings. I think something in her past caused her to be forever hurt by it, and that feeling is what scares her. Daisy had been hurt, and as I read more and more, it's starting to become clear that something happened between her and Gatsby in the past. At some point, Nick mentions Gatsby's name, and the author writes Daisy's reaction: "'Gatsby?' demanded Daisy. 'What Gatsby?'". This detail is subtle, but clearly there is something more to that line than just Daisy asking a simple question.
Overall, Daisy is an incredibly complex character. I feel so bad for her, yet I also think she is stupid for getting herself into something she isn't happy with. Gatsby clearly wants her-- he wants Nick to set up a time for them to reunite. I think Daisy needs to get away from the life she is stuck in, and stop pretending. People in this world are fools; they are always faking. I think it's important for us to not hide our feelings, and not cover them up just because that may be the "easy" way out. Doing that is like lying to yourself and to others around you. Daisy, and people who live in that pretend bubble she lives in, need to face their emotions, even if that is what scares them.
The book, "Looking for Alaska", written by John Green, is a fun, yet incredibly emotional book that tells the story of Miles Halter, who is (at first) a wimpy, inexperienced teenager who doesn't really fit in at his school. He convinces his parents to let him go to boarding school-- Culver Creek Preparatory High School in Alabama-- for his junior year. His roommate Chip, "The Colonel", soon becomes his close friend, and introduces him to his own crowd, giving him the nickname "Pudge". Miles soon meets Alaska Young, an extremely attractive but very emotionally unstable girl. Throughout the story, Miles and Alaska's relationship changes and grows in so many ways. John Green does an excellent job of showing the complexities of relationships, and how important they are to help us learn and grow as individuals.
I would describe Alaska as a wild, rebellious girl, but at the same time, she is extremely smart and emotional. Sometimes while reading I found myself hating her-- hating her unexplained mood swings and her selfish behavior. But other times, Alaska Young is a character that I love, and want to meet and be friends with.
Miles, (aka Pudge), is almost the complete opposite of Alaska. He is tame, and inexperienced. He has a stable life at home, and is a pretty chill kid. One thing Alaska and Miles do have in common is their intelligence. Both are deep thinkers-- Miles who is seeking the "Great Perhaps", and Alaska, who is trying to figure her way out of this labyrinth we call life.
Despite their differences, Miles and Alaska have an extremely close, yet complex relationship. Since Miles is so in love with her, Alaska, being intelligent and aware, knows this, and uses it to her advantage-- or so it seems to me. It's like he is her dog on a leash, and she pulls him closer when she wants him, but then just as easily pushes him away when she doesn't. For example, right before Thanksgiving break, Miles had planned to go home to his family, just as the rest of Culver Creek did. Alaska however, did not have plans and was going to stay there. She wants Miles to stay with her, and Miles, being so head over heels for her, calls his parents and cancels his plans. He says to his mom on the phone, " 'I think I might stay here for Thanksgiving. A lot of my friends are staying'--lie--'and I have a lot of work to do'-- double lie". Miles knows the only reason he is staying is so that he can be alone with Alaska, which proves that he is in her spell, and not only can't, but doesn't want to come out of it.
John Green shows just how powerful a relationship can be. Miles and Alaska are just friends. Always will be. Even though there are moments when their relationship seems like more than just friends, that is all they are. It's so simple, it's just friendship-- and yet, it is so much more.
I look around at my own life, and my own friendships, and I realize how much more complex they are than just that. We call our friends our friends, when really, there are so many more layers to that word. Alaska and Miles are friends, but they both have different feelings for each other than with their other friends. The two help each other, but also cause each other emotional stress. They are always there for each other, and honestly, they change each others' lives. They teach each other things. This book really illustrates the power of friendship, and how important, yet confusing, relationships are.Without each other, Alaska and Miles would not have grown and changed to become the individuals they become in the story.
