Question

The following is a passage from the novel "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald:

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.

What does this passage mean?

Answer 1

This passage from "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald is the last sentence of the novel and is often interpreted as a commentary on the human condition.

The phrase "boats against the current" is a metaphor for people who are trying to move forward in life but are facing resistance from the past. The word "current" suggests the flow of time, and the phrase "borne back ceaselessly into the past" implies that people are constantly being pulled back into their past experiences, memories, and mistakes.

In other words, the passage suggests that people are often unable to escape the influence of their past, no matter how hard they try. The use of the word "ceaselessly" emphasizes that this is a never-ending struggle. The passage can be seen as a commentary on the futility of trying to escape one's past and the inevitability of being shaped by it.