The Fisher Trimalchion
In a manner similar to that of archetypes, similarities arise between various works of fiction or legend and invite comparison. One such situation is that of The Great Gatsby, a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and the Arthurian legend of the Fisher King, keeper of the Holy Grail. The curse of desolation over the land, figurative or literal, plays a major role in both stories. Because of this, many figures in The Great Gatsby can be identified with elements of the Fisher King legend and understood more fully as a result.
First and foremost in the novel, the Fisher King is portrayed by Gatsby himself. The accursed land and even the Grail itself are more or less creations or manifestations of Gatsby rather than an external system that he influences, but all its aspects are nonetheless present. The decadence is purely subjective and is not perceived by Gatsby or those within his realm, at least not initially. The "kingdom" appears to be full of life, but just as the world itself tangibly degenerates starting with a collapse of ideals represented by Gatsby ceasing to hold parties and, finally, Gatsby's death, the illusion of its prosperity and value breaks down gradually through the discovery that the emotional and spiritual wasteland it becomes is only what it has always been.
A figure who by the simple act of asking questions might possibly break the curse of the land, the Knight of the legend is found in the character of Nick Carraway. Newcomer to a place whose barrenness is ignored or unseen by its inhabitants, eventual confidant to not only Gatsby but most of the major characters, Nick steadily uncovers both the facts of situations and their significance in the grand scheme of the closed structure Gatsby creates for himself. Myrtle's death is one of the most important events Nick encounters; his initial knowledge is more or less firsthand but takes cues from the reactions of Mr. Wilson, Tom, and others at the scene of the crime. Interestingly, while Nick considers Tom's judgment that Gatsby is the killer as the truth at first, he immediately accepts what Gatsby tells him differently as the real truth. Perhaps this is because, to a Knight, the King is always the highest authority.
Finally, the sickness of the Fisher King is Gatsby's illusory expectations of Daisy, time and the way the world works; the curse on the land is an unending string of meaningless, failed, or dysfunctional relationships manifested in the individual instances of the failed romances of Gatsby and Daisy, Nick and Jordan, and Tom and Myrtle. Out of all of the couples portrayed in the novel, only that of Tom and Daisy is intact at the book's end. This too can be considered a meaningless or failed relationship, given the emotional immaturity and strange "deficiency" of both Tom and Daisy as people. Obviously, Gatsby's sickness must end with his life. As the world itself is connected so completely to Gatsby, it too-and its curse-dissolves with the death of its King.
As in most scenarios, analysis reveals a more perfect comprehension of the nature of Gatsby and the situation in which he exists. A curse that seems inevitable and unending is finally broken, however tragically, by the catalyst of a simple knight seeking truth. The silent truth that was present in the days of ancient Britain still exists in modern literature: that the surest way to rekindle life is to expose the reality of lifelessness.
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