Nietzsche’s Approach on History and The Great Gatsby’s Historiographical Performance

For Nietzsche, history creates the dull illusion of the past. The constructed nature of historiography that narrates the past through the perspective of the present drains the vital energy of the past and transforms it into a carcass. As a cure, Nietzsche suggests incorporating an artistic approach into the practice of historiography. He explains that art has the opposite effect of history in terms of vitality. In his view, if history were transformed into a pure piece of art, then it would contain and be able to transmit the vital energy of the past. An artistic approach to historiography would recreate the sensation of the past; hence, the representation would sustain this vital energy. Nietzsche’s suggestion regarding the artistic execution of historiography provides fruitful ground to discuss the historiographical performance of diegetic historical film. Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby (2013) will be analyzed in the presentation from such a perspective.