Blanks in The Great Gatsby from the Perspective of Receptional Aesthetic

杜文秀

Receptional aesthetic appeared in Germany in 1960s， and its representatives are W. Iser and Hans Robert Jauss， they think that aesthetic study should focus on the readers reception， reflection， reading process and readers aesthetic experiences， explaining through questions and answers， to study the dynamic interaction among writers， works and readers， examining the aesthetic experiences in historical and social conditions.

1） The uncertainty and blanks in the text are the bridge connecting creation and reception， and the necessary intermediate station between creation and reception. 2） Receptional process is that the readers use their own experiences， and fill the blanks and uncertainties with their own imagination， so that different readers get different images and meanings of the work， which means， the receptional process is the process of recreation. 3） In the premise of enough information， the more uncertainties and blanks the work has， the more profound meanings it possesses. Otherwise， it will not be a good work. W. Iser thinks that since the end of 19th century， the uncertainties and blanks in works have been increasing， this is an important trend in western literature.

Iser states that the obvious character of literary work is：the phenomenon the works describing has no certain relation with reality. All works have uncertainties， the readers can scandalize the uncertainties in two ways：they can measure the work by their own standards， or revise their own prejudices.

Some critics said Nick represents the writer， of course， there are many similarities between them. Fitzgerald is a productive writer， living an extravagant life in upper classes， so he is familiar with the scenery of various parties. But there is no evidence to equal them. Some critics said Gatsby represents Fitzgerald. Similar to Gatsby， Fitzgerald also comes from a common family， but Gatsbys story is made up by the writer， they dont have the same experiences.

There are many blanks in The Great Gatsby. Although Gatsby is the title and the protagonist of the novel， he doesnt appear in the beginning， and all we know about him comes from others gossips. Someone said he once killed one people. The narrator Nick hasnt saw him when he join in his party under his invitation. Nicks attitude toward Gatsby is also changeable and unbelievable. When Gatsby said he was an Oxford man， Nick laughed at him secretly. The readers may agree with Nick that Gatsby is a liar. All these rumors make suspense that what kind of people Gatsby really is， and how he became man of wealth and only in the end of the story， Fitzgerald reveals his family background and positive personality through his writing inserted in his book. From the beginning， Nick confirmed us that he followed his fathers advice that he should not judge others rashly. Nicks girl friend Jordan Baker also valued him the honest man. When Gatsby provided Nick a good opportunity to make a fortune， Nick refused. After Gatsby died， Nick is one of the few persons who cared about Gatsby. From this perspective， Nick is decent and kind. He can not totally represent the writers view of life， but he is a positive character comparing to upper class people. His attitude and judges may mislead readers.endprint

When Gatsby and Daisy finally encounter each other after 5 years separation， Nick accompanies with them for a while then leaves them alone. He sees Gatsby joyful and Daisy with tears. So what do they talk with each other？ does Daisy still love Gatsby？ This part is skipped which leaves the readers with imagination.

When the corpse is reported on the newspaper， neither the writer nor the narrator tell who the victim is. Later we know the dead woman is Toms mistress and Daisy rush her into death. When Nick sees Tom and Daisy conspiring in intimacy， the readers are not informed what conspiracy they are scheming. Only until Gatsby is shoot in his pool， do we know Daisy， in order to get rid of punishment， attributes the crime to Gatsby. Full of hatred and desperation， the mad worker Myrtle Wilson wrongly believes Gatsby had been driven the car， and he kills Gatsby. These blanks make the story more intriguing. In the beginning， Nick thought Daisys appearance charming， later he keeps a reserved attitude to her affectation. Until the end， Nick spoke the truth that all those guys together are inferior to Gatsby. They did wrong things and let others clear up a messy situation.

From all above， we can see Fitzgeralds excellent writing skills and the novels enduring charm.

References：

[1]Hoover，Bob（10 May 2013）.“‘The Great Gatsby still challenges myth of American Dream”.Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.Retrieved 10 May 2013.

[2]Kellogg，Carolyn.“Last gasp of the Gatsby house”.Los Angeles Times.Retrieved26 April 2013.endprint