The Change Within Me

This week we started to read The Great Gatsby, which is one of the most popular books in the world selling over 25 million copies. At the start of the book, the narrator talks about two unusual islands that "jut out into the most domesticated body of salt water in the Western hemisphere." These two islands are known as the West Egg and the East Egg. These are very peculiar names for an island but the author does this for a reason. Every egg has a different orientation no matter what. Some are elongated and some are stout. This highlights the fact that no two places are the same. Throughout Nick Carraway's life, he has traveled miles and miles and every place has some significance to him. He has lived in the West and soon went to Yale before going to war. All of these different places have transformed him into the man he is and have changed his mind set to go to the east. This is where he sees the most prominent difference in lifestyles. In the West Egg island, all the families have recently become rich, while the residents of east Egg have been known as the old rich where they have adjusted to this lifestyle a long time ago. Although these differences are clearly highlighted, many overlook the Valley of Ashes. This area is about half way between West Egg and New York.  We can look at this area as a cracked egg because of how it is scrunched about between two more wealthier areas. The people of the Valley of ashes are very poor and basically live in the slums. Taking this idea into perspective, we can really think of every place we are at as an egg.