1. Why do people choose to believe rumors that do not have any evidence?
2. Does the author want the reader to believe these rumors about Gatsby?
3. Do people actually care about what is going on in a rumor or do people just get sucked into them because of amusement.
Which is more powerful? The perceptions people associate with each other, or a person's true identity? How does this relate to Gatsby and are there any consequences?
I think people choose to believe rumors that are not true because they do not know that they are not true. They just believe it because it is what others say. I think the author wants the readers to believe these Gatsby rumors because it gives him a false appearance that changes throughout the story. He wants Gatsby to have many different appearances to display how he is a mystery to many. People sometimes care about what is going on in a rumor, but mostly just find amusement in them.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the perceptions people associate with each other is more powerful than a persons true identity. People will believe what they want to hear regardless of what other people think. You may not know someone personally, but you hear a rumor about them and you believe it. Your perception of that person has been made and the other person can do nothing about it. Many people in the town say that Gatsby has killed people or that he has made his money illegally. However, as of right now Nick and Daisy are the only people who really know Gatsby for who he is. Majority of people choose to believe that he has done those things, but we do not know if he has or hasnt.
ReplyDeletei think that the perceptions people associate with each other is more powerful. one you find out someones true identity the mystery stops. its no longer fun and exciting. but when you dont know someones true identity you can make it up. you can make it as crazy as you want and the crazier the more powerful. people dont like to hear boring rumors. but when its made up and exciting people spread them faster and they become very powerful. Nobody in Gatsby's town knows his true identity. no one knows his real story. their rumors are more powerful then the truth.
ReplyDeleteI believe that in the society we currently live in perceptions of people are the ultimate reality. While this should not be the case, because a persons true identity is all that should really matter, people allow their perceptions to become their reality much to easily. In the novel Gatsby is a very popular topic for disscussion and everyone spreads different rumors about him that become that persons ultimate reality of him. This provides multiple consequences for Gatsby, and does not allow him to easily prove him true self to the people that matter.
ReplyDeleteThe perceptions that people associate with others tend to be more powerful because they are often fantastical and outlandish. The rumors spread like wildfire through a town, and soon everyone knows about the rumor. The rumors are often false, but many people are skeptic of what is real and what someone’s true identity is. This is related to Gatsby because in the novel, he is this mysterious person who has hundreds of rumors spreading about him. He does not mind that these rumors may portray him poorly because he wants all of these rumors to spread to Daisy. All Gatsby wants in the world is his love Daisy who is also unobtainable to get.
ReplyDeleteI personally believe that a person's true identity is more important than how others perceive other people. If a person judges another person or creates rumors about them they are no true friends because they do not know a lot about that person or even like them. For example, this relates to Gatsby due to the fact that the perception of Gatsby is open for interpretation. He almost enjoys the thing that people think of him or what they believe he did in his life. He cares more about true identity of the person than about what people perceive of him. However, he has a flaw of he care about how people perceive him in the case of Daisy his long lost lover that he used to date before the war. He throws big parties and shows off his house to impress her in hope that she will take him back. Most of the time people care most about how people perceive them but a person's true character is all that matters.
ReplyDeleteA person's true identity is more powerful, because a person knows their own true self. A person belief about themselves is more important than other people's views. Gatsby does not know himself. His real identity is a mystery and his appearance may seem to define his life. However, when he is intimate with another person like Daisy or Nick his true identity shines through. A person's image may only affect actions not directly related to the person. A person's true identity determines how those close to them perceive them. The beginning of the novel may argue otherwise, but a person's true identity is more powerful.
ReplyDeleteI believe that someone true identity carries more power than their percepted image. People tend to not know someones true identity, and therefore cannot know the power it holds. Ask yourself, when you have a true friend, and a rumor spreads about them, do you believe them and trust them? The answer should be yes. If someone is a true friend and you know their true indentity, their true identity outweighs the perception. The problem with perception originates from peoples ability to easily believe rumors, building a weak but sturdy perception. When the truth comes out though, people are shocked, and the true identity reigns more powerful.
ReplyDeleteThe perceptions society has for an individual is stronger than that of a person's true identity because very rarely do people see others true identity so it has almost no strength at all if its rarely there if there at all. Gatsby can be fake and no one sees his true identity of intelligence and emotional being so people see him as only a partier and rich cocky individual. the consequences are that no one truly respects him for who he is but what for what he has and does.
ReplyDelete1. People often times believe rumors they hear without any evidence just because somebody else says its true. People may also say that they heard it from a reliable source, but rumors can be exaggerated or changed as they spread.
ReplyDelete2.The author does not want the reader to believe the rumors about Gatsby, but rather emphasize how mysterious then life he lives is. Nobody knows what Gatsby's occupation or past is like so therefore, they gossip and spread rumors about his secret life.
3. People sometimes care about what is going on in a rumor, especially if it involves them or someone close to them. However I would say that majority of the times rumors are just mindless gossip that people spread out of amusement and boredom.
To a stranger, the perceptions people associate with each other are more powerful because they do not know a persons true identity. On the other hand, to someone close to you, your true identity will be much more powerful because those close to you do not judge based on what others think of you, but rather who you actually are. Like Gatsby, those that do not know him perceive him as what they've heard about him but those who know him perceive him as he is and not by the rumors they've heard about him.
The perceptions society has for a person can be much more powerful than their true personality, especially if they are talked about as much as a person like Gatsby. However, this is a problem, as excessive amounts of rumors can lead to a very negative perception, such as the Gatsby rumors - possibly being a bootlegger, a war hero, a murderer, and the nephew of Kaiser Wilhelm. The reason for this is to give Gatsby a multi-faceted nature, to add to his level of mystery and wonderment. The consequences are the skewed perception of him - nobody really seems to know his true full story.
ReplyDeleteI believe the preceptions associated with an individual are definitely more powerful than the individuals true identity. I believe this because if someone is truly an extremely intimidating, powerful person; then typically the perceptions associated with them will be exaggerated further increasing their 'power'. One of the major flaws of humanity is the tendency for people to believe practically anything they hear. They could be accepting random rumors as reality for excitement, but I believe people tend to do this just because they want to believe it. Generally, people just like to embelish the truth.
ReplyDeletePeople choose to believe rumors not by join, but by nature and how the human mind works. Rumors are just another form of entertainment, which is something that us as Americans cannot live without.
ReplyDeleteIn Gatsby's case, I believe that he doesn't want people to believe the rumors about him, but he wants to see what people think of him when he doesn't tell them anything about himself. I think he does this to see what chance if any he has to get back together with Daisy. His intentions revolve around being an impressive host to his party guests, while also being mysterious not only to impress his guests, but more importantly Daisy.
The only reason that people get involved with other rumors is for the entertainment aspect of it. As stated earlier, Americans cannot live without entertainment. It is something we have grown accustomed to and have come to crave. The rumor is usually not meant to hurt anyone in a specific way, but solely to provide entertainment to the people who it is told to.
It depends on the context of the situation, but usually books ARE judged by their cover. For example, if someone is told that another person killed another person, that someone will convince themselves that the other person really is a killer by psyching themselves into believing this. Then, when they go to meet, the person will have it engraved in their head that the other person is a killer, which even if proven false, cannot be overlooked in the grand scheme of things. It will always come up in that other persons mind whenever he/she is reminded of it, and could scar a relationship
1: Even though rumors may not be credibly supported, a person usually treats a new exposition as a fact and will attempt to piece together the pieces for a complete picture of the situation, rather than questioning the situation wholesale.
ReplyDelete2: F. Scott Fitzgerald may not necessarily want his reading audience to believe in the rumors surrounding Gat Gatsby, but he does intend for select characters within the story to do so. Such a setting will give Gatsby the mysterious and uncertain aura that Fitzgerald wishes to construct.
3: The notion of people caring about the contents of a rumor is variable with respect to the persons involved and what the situation actually is. The notion of entertainment, however, tends to advance the spread of rumors, especially those striking enough to seem like breaking news within an audience.
4: The power of perception of an individual may supersede the actual situation surrounding an individual. Actions surrounding the rumor that has spread around an individual may be effected from outside input of the rumor, further propagating the points made by the rumor. With the respect to Gatsby and the negative and mysterious rumors that surround him, his social experience is slightly dampened; he is usually left alone at his parties if he does not make an effort to socialize. Even though the rumors affect him, his great wealth minimizes the blow; numerous and notorious people arrive at his parties.
The perceptions people have of one another are by far more powerful than individuals' true identity. As we see at Gatsby's party, individuals often judge without actually knowing the truth. Although some feel that once people hear the truth the record will be set straight about who they are, this is not the case. People still carry with them their preconceived notions of those around them and these biases never truely vanish. We see this with Nick. Although Gatsby has sat him down and attempted to tell Nick the story of his life, Nick still sees something mysterious and shady about Gatsby's past and fails to abandon his original perceptions of his neighbor. As of now, there are no consequences for Gatsby due to to the lack of knowledge his peers have of his true past. Perhaps some will manifest further along in the novel.....
ReplyDeleteThe perception others have of you is by far more powerful than your true identity. That is because people will perceive and make judgments without any reason or truth. The perceptions we make with our eyes are not always reality, but can challenge reality in ignorant people. The judgments we make are so strong, we sometimes believe them to be truth. For example, there are tons of rumors of Gatsby's past, but his true identity remains hidden. This is because people accept, and even enjoy these mysterious rumors to the point that they become a widely accepted false reality.
ReplyDeleteThe way others look at you and think of you have a huge impact on your image. These perceptions distort the reality of your personality and identity. In Gatsby's case, many people look at him as a fraud or others choose to accept the fact that he is rich and prosperous. Whichever path is taken, these assumptions of Gatsby cloud his true identity. I believe it was the authors intent to keep his true identity cryptic so that it would be ambiguous to the reader. Finally, I think that people choose to accept perceptions as the true because it is easier to do so than to actually research and sift through the perceptions to find the real truth.
ReplyDeleteWithout a doubt, the perceptions that men hold toward one another is greater than any truth spoken by a single man. For what takes one man to tell the truth about himself, two can tell a perception is the same time. From there onward, it is exponential, growing the rate of perception v. truth. If truth was reality of how people see one another, no politician would ever be elected. But because perception rules, humanity peers at their neighbors and decided their opinions upon one another with a snap judgement. While it isn't morally sound, it is the way the world works.
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