I read an online page that cited evidence from different parts of the book on how Gatsby could possibly be African American. This is a really cool take on the book and brings up small details that I never thought about before but I am not sure if I am entirely convinced of it.
One of the most compelling pieces of evidence is the promise of “40 acres and a mule” after the Civil War from the Union to freed slaves. In the novel, Nick observes that Gatsby’s property was, “more than forty acres of field and garden” (Fitzgerald, 5). Like the article had stated, it is super interesting that Fitzgerald opted to describe it as more than specifically forty acres rather than any other number or estimate. Though it could be a coincidence, I think this was Fitzgeralds way of showing how Gatsby had WAY more than the average person and the average black person after the Civil War.
Another theme that keeps true with the novel is the failure of Gatsby at the end. It lives up to the failed dreams and hopes of the freed slaves after the war because they were often not given much land, let alone 40 acres at all. The idea that Tom was suspicious of Gatsby’s race can be argued through him bringing up interracial marriage and the allusion to the book about the rise of other races in power. Furthermore, Tom would not have liked Gatsby in the first place, but I think it is interesting that in a setting where there were no other races around Tom but white, he was on edge about how society is going downhill through the fortune other races are receiving.
The death of Gatsby could be tied to Tom wanting to take down the success of other races by whatever means is necessary, as him and Daisy are “careless people.”
Gatsby can demonstrate racist ideology of how African Americans are lesser than, as well as the gangster. He was seen as different because of the ways he gets his wealth, dresses, and acts. At the same time, he can also be seen as different because of his race, and the other characters like Tom can create as much as a power divide between them like the way he would between anyone else that is not his race.
Reading it from this perspective makes sense, and can be used to fill in a lot of the open-ended questions and interpretations of the book. I think that the Baz Luhrmann film would also be really cool to see if someone who was black played in the role of Gatsby, perhaps someone like Michael Ealy.