An Erasable Past

    Whoever said you can’t repeat or change the past has certainly never met Gatsby. With confidence, he would exclaim, “Of course you can” (Fitzgerald 110). At first, he would seem delusional and foolish to anyone. After all, the past appears to be set in stone, having already occurred and now stuck behind us. However, you may be shocked to discover this may not always be the case. The past is not necessarily fixed but can be altered with the wave of a hand or, more accurately, through a series of actions.

    The past is essentially history, either it be a country’s or a person’s history. Moreover, history can be distorted through lies, deception, and luck. As a result, reality may be a reflection of a manipulated, twisted truth. Gatsby is a prime example. Especially at the beginning of the novel, his persona was surrounded by a mysterious and slightly intimidating aura. Most likely, he intentionally maintained this ambience to mask his true identity as well as to avoid answering any unwanted questions. In some ways, it also creates many to be fascinated which can be illustrated through Nick’s first impression of him. Later on, it is shown that Gatsby intentionally lies to keep his true identity hidden when he starts spitting out gibberish to Nick on the drive to New York City. Eventually, nonetheless, Nick finds out the truth about Jay Gatsby’s actual mundane background-- or shall I say, James Gatz’s. A boy who grew up in Minnesota decided to completely change his identity and start anew to fulfill his dreams. Through his multitude of lies, James had created a new past in which he was depicted as an intelligent, sophisticated, and heroic man. His new beginning had fabricated a false reality in which nobody knew the true man behind the mansion. Overall, Gatsby’s entire character illustrates how one man’s past can be erased with a couple of lies.