100 Great Books (Book 13: The Great Gatsby)

The illusion of the past

This is the thirteenth book of our new course on 100 Great Books. You can read the brief about why the course exists and check out previous editions.

The Great Gatsby

Published in 1925, The Great Gatsby is F. Scott Fitzgerald’s exploration of how a person can create a new existence if they dream intensely enough. Fitzgerald exposes this dream as a carefully staged illusion that is glittering, seductive, and ultimately fatal.

The line that defines the novel is Gatsby’s own mantra: “Can’t repeat the past?” he cried incredulously. “Why of course you can!” The tragedy is that he believes this.