Question

Many works of literature feature an unreliable narrator: they contain first-person accounts narrated by someone whose credibility or perspective is eventually thrown into question
Either from your own reading or from the list below, choose a longer work of literary merit in which the narrator's reliability is revealed to be in question. Then, in a well written essay, analyze how the


revelation of the narrator's questionable reliability contributes to an interpretation of the work as a whole.

Answer 1

Answer:

The popular literary work - The Great Gatsby

Explanation:

ESSAY WORK

Interestingly, in this story the narrator Nick tries to describe the characters Tom, Gatsby and Daisy to readers from his own perspective. This was evident in the use of the word 'I' as Nick describes events.

However, Nick seems to be unreliable because at a point in time in his narration he said, "I am one of the few honest people I ever know". This statement creates a feeling of doubt about his narration to the reader.

The whole interpretation of the story is affected by his constant bias between the characters; speaking favourably to one character- Gatsby over the others. Thus he portrays Gatsby as the leading icon, which influences how the reader sees Gatsby.