Reliability of Nick Carraway as a Narrator in "the Great Gatsby"

September 18, 2003
The Great Gatsby
As soon as Nick Carraway introduces himself in the first chapter of the book, he makes it clear to the reader what kind of a person he perceives himself as. He tells us, “I’m inclined to reserve all judgments, a habit that has opened up many curious natures to me and also made me the victim of not a few veteran bores”. Later in Chapter III he tells us, “Everyone suspects himself of at least one of the cardinal virtues, and this is mine: I am one of the few honest people that I have ever known”. These comments allow the reader to know what kind of narrator the story will be revealed by. However, despite the narrator’s assurance of his qualities, the fact that he is so aware of them should leave the reader wondering how accurate the narrator’s perceptions of himself are.
Although Nick may make ...