A close analysis of the party looking at the narrator’s attitude to the society he describes

In this extract it becomes clear that the narrator feels quite alien in the society he describes, he remarks that he was “ill at ease” amongst them. He is quite unlike those in this society and this makes his attitude towards them both one of disgust and at the same time of partial pity and even mocking amusement.

The extravagance of the society he describes is his focus during this extract. He uses numerous lists and long flowing sentences to emphasise the great quantities which there are of everything. He also fills his descriptions with vibrant adjectives which bring extravagance to everything. Instead of the food just being food it is “crowded” food that is “glistening” and “dark gold”. The use of this type of vocabulary makes it clear that everything is of the best quality and is also always in excess. The way in which the narrator describes the overindulgence of the society he describes and their willingness to throw their money around displays very effectively his dislike for this way of life.

The narrator in particular makes a point of Gatsby’s excessive way of life through his repeated use of “his”. “His guests,” “his raft,” “his beach” and so on. These recurring references to Gatsby’s ownership of everything around him show almost mockingly just how important Gatsby considers himself to be.

The narrator’s dislike for the society he describes comes across in a number of ways, it particularly becomes apparent as he describes the nature of the relationships between the people at the party. He talks of “introductions forgotten on the spot” and “enthusiastic meetings between women who never knew each other’s names”, his observance of this fake and rather fickle behaviour makes it clear that his attitude to this society is far from being one of admiration.

His repeated mocking of the fact the he was “one of the few guests who had actually been invited” also displays his amusement and disgust at the fake people at the parties. People who sometimes “came and went without having met Gatsby at all”, people who used him and his parties by pretending to be one of his friends, people who belong to a society that the narrator dislikes.

The way in which the narrator describes Gatsby’s attitude to his workers is also very revealing. The best example of this is his description of Gatsby’s orange juicing method. He begins with “There was a machine in the kitchen that could extract the juice of two hundred oranges in half an hour”, this remark seems impressive and is another example of Gatsby’s extravagant lifestyle. But it is then followed, casually, by “If a little button was pressed two hundred times by a butler’s thumb”, the way in which this is said with ”little” implying that it is an effortless task gives us a clear view of Gatsby’s lack of appreciation for his workers and is used by the narrator to again display his dislike for this society and their morals.

The narrator’s description of the after party clean up job also display’s his sympathy for Gatsby’s workers and his dislike for the way in which Gatsby treats them. He talks of them “toiling all day” and of their responsibility to “repair the ravages of the night before”, he sees and appreciates the enormity of their task in a way that the society he describes doesn’t. He is aware of the class divide and speaks sympathetically of the ‘lower’ class the way in which this is so starkly different from Gatsby’s attitude makes it clear that the narrator is disapproving of the society he describes.

Within the narrator’s description there also comes across a feeling of pity for the awkwardness that is held within the society he describes. The drunken partygoer who begins to dance and has to be saved from embarrassment by the orchestra’s change of rhythm and fallacious talk of her celebrity status. This event adds to the fake appearance of the party and therefore also reveals the lie that is the society the partygoers belong to. The pitiful self-deception that the narrator observes is also displayed in the description of “gaudy...colours” and “hair bobbed in strange new ways”, the use of “gaudy” and “strange” makes the society feel uncomfortable within itself and again slightly awkward. His attitude is therefore again one of dislike and pity.

The verb tenses that the narrator uses in the extract at times give the effect of making Gatsby’s parties all seem the same and therefore give the impression of the narrator being bored by the society that he describes. The sudden tense changes that he uses involve a change from the past tense to the present so that sentences such as “By seven o’clock the orchestra has arrived” and “The party has begun” can be used to imply that this is how it is every party. By implying this he gives the impression of the parties being all the same and somewhat boring, his attitude towards the society that still enjoys these parties is therefore that they are also boring, fake and somewhat tiresome.

At the same time as disapproving of the society that he describes, the narrator is not entirely negative. He describes the party as being full of life and frequently uses colour and light in his descriptions, for example “yellow cocktail music” and the “constantly changing light”. His descriptions suggest that although he is impressed by the magnificence of the parties he does not hold the same view of the sector of society that attends them. They are fickle, fake, overindulgent and he generally dislikes their lack of morality and way of life. His attitude towards them is therefore one of disgust.