The Great Gatsby is the most misunderstood novel (2021)

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Article republication & context

  • Commenters note the BBC piece was originally from 2021 and lightly edited/republished for the 2025 centennial of Gatsby’s publication.
  • The hook in 2021 was the then‑upcoming copyright expiry and a Nick Carraway–focused novel that had been delayed for legal reasons.

Copyright, derivative works, and public domain

  • Several comments puzzle over why a novel like Nick had to wait for Gatsby’s U.S. copyright to expire.
  • Explanations: Gatsby followed older U.S. “95 years from publication” rules; later “life + 70” changes weren’t retroactive.
  • Some argue it’s unreasonable that using characters/setting is blocked for ~95 years, and that the real constraint is fear of litigation, not clear law.
  • Other examples (e.g., Enola Holmes, Sherlock Holmes’ emotions) are cited as nuisance/edge-case copyright suits.

Is Gatsby really “misunderstood”?

  • Many say Gatsby is straightforward on a plot level and the novel’s critique of wealth, class and illusion is not subtle.
  • Others insist the heavy symbolism and layered narration make it less “simple” than remembered school readings.
  • Several readers report understanding it very differently when revisiting as adults, seeing more tragedy, hypocrisy, and moral emptiness.
  • Some think the article’s “most misunderstood” framing is unproven and the piece reads more like promotion for spin‑offs.

Teaching classics too early

  • Multiple threads argue high‑school readers often lack the life experience to grasp social nuance in Gatsby, Orwell, Huxley, etc.
  • This can lead to shallow “love story/party” readings, boredom, or teacher‑imposed interpretations that later feel misleading.
  • A few suggest that assigning bleak or complex works to teenagers is partly ideological (controlling how they see the texts).

Interpretation vs authorial intent

  • One line of debate: is it even meaningful to say a novel is “misunderstood”?
  • One side: art is open-ended; readers can validly take different meanings, even ones the author would disapprove of.
  • Counterpoint: interpretations must be grounded in the whole text; some readings are plainly unsupported or reductive.
  • Another view: if the “intended” meaning and dominant reader meaning diverge completely, that’s a failure of craft.

Aesthetics vs critique in popular culture

  • Several liken “Gatsby‑the‑aesthetic” to cultural uses of Scarface, Fight Club, or Patrick Bateman: people embrace the surfaces (glamour, power fantasy) while ignoring or downplaying the critique.
  • One commenter argues this isn’t always misunderstanding; fans may knowingly enjoy the aesthetic while being aware the work condemns it.

Gatsby’s themes & American society

  • Extended exchanges frame Gatsby as:
    • A fable about American identity, the “green light” of the ever‑receding future, and the emptiness beneath material success.
    • A critique of 1920s financialization and parasitic elites (Tom and Daisy) that parallels later booms, including tech.
  • Non‑U.S. readers relate Gatsby to distinctively American concerns: relentless striving, then confronting hollowness after “success.”
  • Others push back, noting similar themes in European and Russian literature, though the American case may be starker because of weaker historical ballast and very successful capitalism.

Derivative retellings and gender-flips

  • The article’s attention to new Gatsby spin‑offs (Nick backstory, gender‑flipped modern retelling, murder mystery sibling) is seen as tangential.
  • Gender‑swapped versions draw skepticism from some who feel they’re gimmicky or self‑congratulatory; others say they simply target a different audience and are fine as such.
  • Some suggest that if you want to explore new dynamics (e.g., one gender change, new prejudices), it may be better to write an original story rather than re‑skin a classic.

Modern “classics” and cultural fragmentation

  • A side discussion asks which 2010s–2020s works will fill a Gatsby‑like role as future “windows” into our era.
  • Suggestions range widely: prestige TV (Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, Silicon Valley), superhero franchises, The Social Network, Tár, Minecraft, Taylor Swift, meme accounts, casual mobile games.
  • Several note how fragmented media consumption is now; the shared canon that made Gatsby central to U.S. culture may be harder to recreate.