a substance to have fun. The people participating are mainly the rich or individuals with some connection to the rich. To many, alcohol is a symbol of escape. Somebody abuses alcohol in order to run away from reality and to seclude himself from society. It seems silly that such an apparently well off group of individuals would want to escape reality. Why would they choose to run away? Something obviously has to be wrong. Fitzgerald, by using Nick as a narrator, was able to create a very believable scene. The style in which Nick describes it is totally humanly honest, which allows the reader to trust Nick. Nick tells the story just as a person thinks, adding various side observations and humor. For example, at this same party, Nick “wiped from his cheek the remains of the spot of dried lather that had worried me all the afternoon” (41). In this quote the human side of the Nick is revealed. He was bothered all day by an aquaintance’s speck of shaving cream and finally decided to wipe it off. He was “worried”, a feeling any person can relate to. The tone, setting, and feel of the scene are percieved by the reader through the eyes of another human being, creating a natural understanding between the narrator and reader. This narrative technique is used to reveal this and other aspects of Nick’s society.Another aspect of Nick’s world that is revealed by his narration is the role money plays in people’s lives. After the party in the New York apartment, Nick finds himself at another party at Gatsby’s house. Gatsby is very well known for his flamboyant parties, and many people attend, including some uninvited guests. Here Nick describes the scene outside the house, “They were, at least, agonizingly aware of the easy money in the vicinity and convinced that it was theirs for a few words in the right key” (46). Nick is describing a scene of “…young Englishmen…all...
