Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Syntax

“The one on my right was a colossal affair by any standard – it was a factual imitation of some Hotel de Ville in Normandy, with a tower on one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy, and a marble swimming pool and more than forty acres of lawn and garden. It was Gatsby’s mansion”(6).
Fitzgerald utilizes a periodic sentence in this passage to give it a drawn out, dramatic feeling, of wealth and splendor. It directly relates to and accurately portrays the hollowness of aristocratic society. The first sentence is a long elaborate description of Gatsby’s mansion displays an ample amount of adjectives and description, whereas the second sentence, a telescopic sentence, declares that the humongous mansion is indeed owned by Gatsby. The rift between the periodic and the telescopic sentence creates a better understanding for the society of upper class, otherwise known as the aristocratic. Fitzgerald also employs a hyphen to indicate contrast between “standard” and “factual imitation of some Hotel de Ville”, to allow the reader to comprehend how wealthy Gatsby really is. Through the rhetors’s mastery of syntax this cleverly crafted sentence conveys important information of nobility.
“ ‘All right...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’ ”(21).
 The repetition of “fool” emphasizes the digression social norms of the era. The hyphen also signifies a pause, hinting at Daisy’s uncertainty and fervent desire to fill the role of the “ideal woman”.  The implementation of the ellipsis also acts of another instance of a pause to allow the reader to discover the thought process.  Daisy is often portrayed as a damsel that wanders to her most feverish lover. In order for her to be an “ideal woman”, Fitzgerald  uses her as an example of how woman behaved in the time period of The Great Gatsby. Syntax, used in the right instances, can cause a great affect in delivering a message.

1 comment:

  1. I thought that your first example of syntax, where it describes Gatsby's mansion, perfectly paints a vivid picture of Gatsby's mansion to the reader. It not only gives us an indication of Gatsby's enormous wealth, but it also offers the reader insight to his personality. Your explanation for this quote was insightful, and I agree with you about showing the "hollowness of arisocratic society". It was good to point out Daisy's repeated use of the word "fool" when describing her future girl. I think another explanation for the use of this quote would be to highlight and satarize the morals and mindset that was in the aristocratic society of the Roaring Twenties.

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