played a part in many peopleslives in the 1920s.Many landscape descriptions make known the drifting tendencies of Nick, thenarrator. Although actual descriptions of him are absent because he is telling the story, hisfeelings, actions and surroundings are shown. An exemplary description showing thatNick is a drifter is the train station scene. After Nick gets drunk and passes out, he wakesup to find himself in the train station. In this scene, many random thoughts enter Nickshead. There is a disoriented tone, as many thoughts with no apparent connection enterNicks head. Beauty and the Beast... Loneliness...Old Grocery Store... Brookn Bridge(42). Although Nick was previously drunk, his mind straying from one aimless thought toanother shows he is unsettled. Nick loses consciousness because of his drunkenness, andhe wakes up to find himself in the cold lower level of the Pennsylvania Station, staring atthe morning Tribune and waiting for the four oclock train (42). Nick does not evenknow what happened to him, but his thoughts about his situation are very nonchalant. This shows Nicks irresolute characteristics. He has no real concrete goals in his life, notmuch that is important to him, and he is not looking for opportunity or stability either. Asshown in this train station scene, Nick fits in with the attitude that many people had duringthis age: uncaring, and drifting along with whatever comes along.Gatsbys house is described several times throughout the novel. It is a criticalcomponent of the story, as well as an excellent landscape to utilize in developing thistheme. In one such description, Fitzgerald uses precise skill to not only paint a picture forthe reader, but also to incorporate the drifting theme as well. When Nick first attends oneof Gatsbys parties, he is awed at the number of people that are there. I believe on thatfirst night at Gatsbys house I was one of the few guests that had actually been invited(45). H...
