Daemian Hawke DumasDaniel GouldAdvanced Placement Junior EnglishMarch 30, 2014Jay Christ, An Analysis of Christianity in the Great GatsbyI must have read F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby cover to cover about half a dozen of times since it was first assigned in my Junior AP English class, and I still discover new motifs and themes with each new encounter. There are many, from Fitzgerald's use of colors to provide foreshadowing to geography and how he describes various aspects of 1920s society. But one thing continues to emerge with the utmost consistency, and that is the constant appearance of Christianity. The Christian religion plays a role in small, yet numerous, sections of The Great Gatsby and is a major theme of the novel. Many scholars debate the idea that Jay Gatsby portrays a Christ figure, which is the basis for understanding the role. religion plays. Many phrases, even single words and numbers, contribute to the parallel between Gatsby and Jesus. The most rudimentary example of this is in his very name. "Gatsby" is a German surname meaning "Son of God" (Nameberry). A more complex example relating to the parallel between Gatsby and Christ occurs when Nick describes Gatsby's transition from James Gatz. He says, “He was a son of God—a phrase which, if it means anything, means just that—and must be about His Father's business, in the service of a vast, vulgar, harlot beauty” (104). The first part of the quote is pretty self-explanatory, while the second part needs explaining. In fact, it is itself a biblical quote. In Luke 2:49, Jesus asks, “Do you not know that I must be about my Father's business” (Luke 2:19)? The activity he's referring to is actually the quest to redeem m... middle of paper... the parties he threw are definitely over. Nick recalls that “There was an inexplicable amount of dust everywhere” (183). These two quotes along with the Genesis quote have significance in the story. The "descendants" in the biblical quote represent Gatsby's actions in the story, that is, everything he did to try to reunite with Daisy. “Dust” represents how those actions were fruitless; all of Gatsby's hopes and aspirations are now nothing. Nothing but dust. Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby is renowned for containing many hidden messages and themes throughout the novel, and it is clear that the author had a soft spot for Christianity. Biblical echoes could be found many times, many more than those listed in this report. It is this quest, this wonder of mystery caused by these hidden messages that makes Gatsby one of the greatest works of American fiction..