The Great Gatsby

This classic novel is full of imagery and themes for discussion. I think one reason it continues to endure as a school literature staple is that for students just entering the analytical world of literature the connections and themes painted within this novel are rich and easily identified. The author is a master of painting a visual picture. I was a sucker for the Robert Redford Film and it is one of the few novels I read as a student that came to life on the screen in a way that was much as I had imagined.
I lowered my rating to 3 stars because at the same time I felt like I wanted more. It felt like the characters were almost caricatures of the era, or perhaps props used as vessels to tell the store of the themes of class and privilege and money and power and appearance upon the glitzy backdrop of a by gone era. Lessons to learn within this novel I understand but I would rather have been taught them by more deeply developed characters.