Question

the great gatsby
so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.
—f. scott fitzgerald
the great gatsby
what does this quotation mean?
we work toward the past, but are pulled in by the future.
no matter how hard we try, we can never escape our pasts.

Explanation:

The final line of The Great Gatsby describes people striving forward (beating against the current) only to be repeatedly pulled back to their past. The core meaning is that efforts to move ahead do not free one from their history.

Answer:

No matter how hard we try, we can never escape our pasts.