Select the correct text(s) in the passage. Which three parts of this excerpt from F. Scott Fitzgerald's "Winter Dreams" reflect Dexter’s final disillusionment?
When, in a few minutes, Devlin went he lay down on his lounge and looked out the window at the New York sky-line into which the sun was sinking in dull lovely shades of pink and gold. He had thought that having nothing else to lose he was invulnerable at last—but he knew that he had just lost something more, as surely as if he had married Judy Jones and seen her fade away before his eyes. The dream was gone. Something had been taken from him. In a sort of panic he pushed the palms of his hands into his eyes and tried to bring up a picture of the waters lapping on Sherry Island and the moonlit veranda, and gingham on the golf-links and the dry sun and the gold color of her neck's soft down. And her mouth damp to his kisses and her eyes plaintive with melancholy and her freshness like new fine linen in the morning.
Answer (2)
Dexter's final disillusionment in the passage is reflected through his realization of vulnerability after loss, the acknowledgment that his dreams are gone, and his desperate attempt to cling to fading memories. Each selected part illustrates the emotional depth of his character and the central theme of the narrative. These reflections emphasize the pain of loss and the harsh reality he faces.
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In F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'Winter Dreams,' Dexter Green experiences intense emotions of disillusionment towards the end of the story. To identify the three parts of the excerpt that reflect Dexter's final disillusionment, we can break down the feelings and realizations Dexter goes through:
Loss Despite Invulnerability : The passage begins with Dexter thinking that he has become invulnerable because he has nothing left to lose. However, he reveals that he has lost something significant, similar to how he would feel if he had married Judy Jones and watched her fade. This shows his realization that he is not immune to disappointment—he has lost his dream idealized in Judy.
The Dream Was Gone : The phrase 'The dream was gone' signifies the ultimate end of Dexter's illusory perceptions of Judy and what she represented in his life. It reflects the shattering of his romanticized vision that he had preserved for so long.
Something Had Been Taken from Him : This statement underscores the realization that he has lost a crucial part of himself along with the dissolution of his dreams about Judy. It's not just an external loss, but an internal emptiness that he recognizes.
These reflections highlight Dexter’s awareness that his dreams, particularly those associated with Judy, were grounded in illusions and unreachable aspirations, marking the point of his final disillusionment with those dreams.
