Hidden Messages?

Earlier this week we discussed the possible views that Fitzgerald could have been portraying with his novel, The Great Gatsby. The possible perspectives were African American, Feminist, Queer, and Psychoanalytic. Many of the proposed arguments that were supposed to support that viewpoint were very far-fetched to say the least. For example, Mr.McKee is described as "a pale, feminine man" (34) and a scene where "[Nick] was standing beside [Mr.Mckee's] bed and he was sitting up between the sheets, clad in his underway, with a great portfolio in his hands" (42). At a glance it seems like nothing more than a simple description of Mr.McKee and an event that Nick vaguely remembers due to not being very drunk. However, if our brains are primed to hunt out the most obscure connections between what Fitzgerald is saying and what we want it to say, it can be easy to assume that Fitzgerald actually has hidden messages throughout the novel. This can be related to the crazed hidden messages that Rock n' Roll songs were thought to have when played backwards. Try it out yourself. The link is composed of a list of some "backmasked" songs. However, first, close your eyes when listening to see if you can piece together what the supposed message is. Then open your eyes and look at the video to see what the supposed message is and see if you can hear it then.
 
http://www.vh1.com/news/52612/15-songs-satanic-backwards-messages/

Most likely, you could not hear it the first time, but you could the second time. It shows that unless the brain is deliberately trying to find these messages, it will not find them. I believe that Fitzgerald didn't have any secret messages that he was trying to convey to his readers, but instead, it is just people who are deliberately trying to look for and make connections.