There are many cases in media where there is a question of whether or not to hold onto the past or let go. With so many contradicting opinions it’s hard to figure out what is the right choice. Two pieces of media that deal with this topic are The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and Star Trek: The Original Series by Gene Rodenberry. James Kirk and Jay Gatsby have many similarities: both are one of the main characters of their respective media, they idealize a girl who is seen as unreachable, and both of them made their way up in status. However, these characters differ when choosing how to deal with holding on to the past, Kirk lets go of it , Gatsby does not. What happens after both of these characters differ in many ways. With the symbolism of the story and how their choice in the past affects the characters, it proves it is better to let go of the past than hold on.
The Great Gatsby is a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It takes place in the 1920s and is about Jay Gatsby as narrated by his friend Nick Carroway. In the novel Gatsby’s main character motivations are based on one girl, Daisy. Gatsby is obsessed with Daisy, many of his actions are ways to try to get close to her, or get to see her. During a car ride with Jordan, Nick finds out, “Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay.” (Fitzgerald 78). This alone shows Gatsby is obsessed with Daisy if he is willing to buy a house across the street just to be with her, a girl from his past. However, Daisy is out of reach, as one of the first things we learn about her is that she is married to Tom Buchanan. This alone does not stop Gatsby from trying to get with Daisy. Jordan asks, on behalf of Gatsby, “if you’ll invite Daisy over to your house and let him come over some afternoon.” (Fitzgerald 78) Again, this is Gatsby trying to get with a girl from his past, even if she is married. He is stuck in the past it seems, well she has moved on and found someone else. In the end of the book, Gatsby makes a mistake, which costs him his life, a mistake which was made to protect Daisy. He lies and covers up a manslaughter Daisy committed, even though Daisy would never take the blame. He ends up getting shot by the husband of the person’s life she took. Nick when reminiscing about Gatsby starts talking about one of the main symbolisms for Gatsby in the book, the green light. When describing how Gatsby saw his dream as close. Alas, never knowing how far away it was behind him Nick states, “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us.” (Fitzgerald 180) This symbolism for Gatsby is very important when discussing Daisy, Gatsby was so fixated on making the present akin to how past he saw it that it led to his own death. He was holding out, hoping that somehow he would be able to change things. In the end, his obsession with Daisy made him lose the one thing that made him Gatsby, the green light, his hope for a future.
Star Trek: The Original Series, is a show by Gene Rodenberry, about the adventures on the USS Enterprise set in the future. The City on the Edge of Forever, is the 28th episode of the first season of the show. In this episode the main cast is sent back to 1930’s America, this includes the captain, James T. Kirk. Kirk ends up finding a woman, who he quickly becomes infatuated with. In the episode he has to make the choice of whether or not to let the girl die, or to let her live and risk the whole future. In the end of the episode he chooses to let her go and die, however that was not an easy decision to make. McCoy, one of Kirk’s friends, is shocked when Kirk chooses to let her die after hearing Spocks voice telling him to let her go. Spock is talking to McCoy, “He knows, Doctor.” (Rodenberry) Kirk knows the actions he chose and what they led to, even if they lead to him losing the woman he loved he chose to do it and let go of the past. Spock often times in Star Trek symbolizes the logical choice, by him telling Kirk to let go of the past it shows that oftentimes the logical thing is to let go of the past. Kirk on the other hand often symbolizes the emotional side of things, even so him choosing to let go of the past even though it is hard allows him to still carry on. Having both the logic and emotional side in the decision makes it easier for a correct decision that benefits you. However, that does not mean that there was not an emotional toll of the situation on Kirk. When getting back on the ship, he ignores questions about what happened, only responding with “let’s get the hell out of here.” (Rodenberry) This also shows that no matter what decision is made, it will still hurt, even if one does not want it to.
In the end, one can see that through themes it may be better to let go of the past. Having to listen to Spock to be told what to do shows that Kirk’s decision was both based on logic and emotion unlike Gatsby whose choices were largely based on his emotions. This allowed Kirk to let go of the past even if it was a difficult choice and even if it was painful. Gatsby on the other hand lost himself to his obsession with the past and his life because of his inability to let go of the past. This shows that oftentimes it is the best decision to let go of the past even if it is hard and difficult to do. Even if he had to be prompted by the logical side to do it, he was able to push down his emotional side and let go of the past. Even though it was hard and hurt him, he did not lose what made him himself when focusing on the past. However, this happened to Gatsby, because of his fixation on the past he lost many things from this.
Works Cited
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. Scribner, 10 Apr. 1925, p. 180.
Rodenberry, Gene. The City on the Edge of Forever. Desilu Productions, 6 Apr. 1967.
