The Great Gatsby

Nick urges Gatsby to go away, but he refuses. Why?

Daisy

How does Nick catch Gatsby in a lie?

Gatsby had said that he had inherited his money, but he said it just took him three years to get it

What happens during the confrontation between Tom and Gatsby in the hotel

Gatsby wants Daisy to say she never loved Tom but she says she loves both of them

What is the significance of the green light at the end of chapter 1?

Gatsby's been watching it from across the bay for all these years

Gatsby's parties are juxtaposed to Tom's by Fitzgerald. How do they compare?

Gatsby's parties are on a much grander scale however the end results are not much different: everyone gets drunk and acts foolishly

Who lives next to the narrator

Gatsby- huge, marble swimming pool, 40 acres, towers, etc.

What do we learn from Gatsbys list of resolves

He dreams of self-advancement began early and he believed in the American dream

Why do you think Fitzgerald included owl eyes at the funeral

He points out hundreds of people would come for parties and one came for funeral; e was the only person who saw something real about Gatsby

The details of Gatsby's funeral are left to Nick. Why?

He's the only one who cares

What seems to be of most concern to Klipspringer

His tennis shoes

Fitzgerald juxtaposed two views of gatsby. What are they

In his role as Wolfsheim's assistant and the All-American sons of Henry Gatz

Why does Fitzgerald include Gatsby's flashback about Daisy?

It unpacks a bit more of the mystery, this time how he really feels about Daisy

What does the call from Slagle tell the reader

More evidence of Gatbys criminal activities

Nick goes with Tom to visit Myrtle. Describe her and her husband. What happens during the course of the evening?

Myrtle isn't pretty but has vitality about her; her husband is fairly handsome, blond, spiritless man. Myrtle goes on a train to New York to meet with Tom

What foreshadows Gatsby's death?

Nick had a dream and has a sense of danger

Why does Nick tell Mr. Gatz that he was a close friend of Gatsbys

Nick wanted to comfort the old man who was proud of his son

How is this a story of the West if it happened in the East

Nicks feels they all possessed some common trait which made it impossible for them to adapt to Wastwen lfe

What does Nick mean when he says to Gatsby, "You're worth the whole damn bunch put together"? Is Nick being hypocritical?

No, now Nick likes Gatsby more because he worked for love and happiness unlike the others

What does Nick realize about Jordan?

She is more concerned about herself than anything else

To what "grail" does Gatsby refer?

The cap Jesus used in the Last Supper

What is the symbolic significance of autumn at the novel's end? Why is there a "sharp difference" in the weather?

The falling leaves and draining the pool symbolize the end of Gatsybs life

Discuss the carelessness of tom and daisy

Tom essentially killed myrtle gatsby and George and daisy actually killed myrtle and they both walk away leaving their mess and they can do so because they are rich

Compare the behaviors of Gatsby and Tom.

Tom is rude and Gatsby is hospitable

Who unexpectedly drops in at Gatsby's on Sunday? what do you imagine is the reason for the visit?

Tom, because he wanted to find out the relationship between Daisy and Gatsby

George Wilson typifies the ordinary man. What else does Fitzgerald's portrayal of him suggest?

Uncomfortable and submissive

What other travelers are seen just after Nick and Gatsby cross the Queensborro Bridge?

a dead man and his mourning friends, a limousine with a white driver driving blacks

Describe the valley of ashes

a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and take the form of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and men who move dimly and crumbling (symbolizes the crumbling of society into ashes)

what is the narrator especially careful not to forget?

a sense of the fundamental decencies (born either good or bad) is parceled out unequally at birth

what does Gatsby represent to Daisy

a way to relieve her boredom

who are the Tom Buchanans and where do they live

across the bay in East Egg

What favor is asked of Nick on Gatsby's behalf?

ask Daisy for tea and Gatsby will come over too

Why is Klipspringer unable to refuse Gatsby's request that he plays the piano?

because Gatsby is above him

Why is Wolfshiem's comment, "He would never so much look at a friends' wife" ironic?

because Gatsby is the opposite

This chapter completes the narrative of Gatsby's life. Why is Fitzgerald's use of flashback more effective than chronological order?

because Nick doesn't learn about Gatsby til later but it is useful information now

During a car trip, Gatsby tells Nick his life story. Why doesn't Nick believe him? What proof does Gatsby offer?

because he rushes the phrase educated in Oxford and the way he says it makes it seem like he's lying, he has a ribbon with his name on it and a picture with him at Oxford

Describe Daisy and Gatsby's meeting

both very nervous and awkward

What shows Myrtle's lack of sophistication?

calls Daisy by her first name

explain what West Egg and East Egg are

city a pair of enormous eggs, identical in contour and separated by a courtesy bay

What advice did the narrator's father give him?

don't criticize someone because all people haven't had the privileges you've had

What did Daisy do the day before her wedding to Tom?

get drunk

what use of foreshadowing is used by Fitzgerald?

getting the reader interested in Gatsby before we meet him

Tom's physical description is important later in the novel. How does the narrator describe him?

gruff husky tenor, "cruel body", enormous power, muscular

What about Gatsby is suspicious to Nick?

he expected Gatsby to be florid and corpulent person in his middle years

What crime does Gatsby say Wolfshiem committed? What is Nick's reaction?

he fixed the World's Series, Nick didn't realize it was one man who just did it

What gossip about Gatsby does Nick learn at the party?

he is a nephew or a cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm's and that's where he got his money from

how does Nick change as a result of Myrtle's death

he is angry with how everyone responds and can't deal with the drama anymore

How does the meeting with Daisy affect Gatsby?

he is distracted and daydreaming

This chapter can be seen as the beginning of Gatsby's downfall. Offer suggestion as to how this might be true

he is obviously obviously loves Daisy and will do anything for her and when he is with her he ignores the whole world

What are some of the rumors about Gatsby heard at this party?

he killed a man once, he was a German spy during the war, he was in the American army during the war

what is Tom's hypocritical reaction to Daisy's affair

he suddenly becomes like a moral guardian (tho he is having an affair)

Who is "owl eyes" and what surprises him? Explain what he meant by Gatsby not cutting the pages.

he thought the books were fake,

Discuss Gatsby's five years as Cody's associate. Include his creation of a new persona.

he took care of Cody and when he died Cody left his money to Gatsby but his mistress took it; Gatsby was determined to be wealthy and not to drink

What is extremely unusual about Mr. Wolfsheim?

his looks- small eyes, flat nose

What does Nick find most striking about Gatsby?

his smile

discuss the three emotional states Gatsby moves through upon meeting Daisy

his unreasoning, joy and consumed with wonder at her presence

what has George Wilson learned

his wife has been having an affair but doesn't know with who

according to Jordan, who phone Tom during dinner?

his woman in New York

Why is the song "Ain't we Got Fun" both appropriate and ironic?

it is true, their lives are about having fun while the rich get richer and the poor get children

Describe the weather and its relevance to the plot

its very hot, dramatic tension- things heat up

Does Tom try to keep his affair with Myrtle a secret?

no

Nick notes that the illusion of ones world breaks down when outsiders enter it. Explain

now that Daisy's here there isn't a dream anymore, and she is here with Tom which is not what Gatsby wanted

What term of familiarity does Gatsby use when addressing Nick?

old sport

What have been the results of the narrator's habit of reserving judgement?

opened his curiosity and people tell him their secrets

What does Nick mean when he says he is one of the few who were invited?

people just showed up, hardly anyone was formally invited

Describe Daisy.

sad and lovely face- bright eyes and mouth

what does Gatsby mean when he says that Daisy's voice is "full of money"

she has old money like he will never have

explain how Pammy's appearance affects gatsby

she is out of place from his dream

What is ironic about Jordan's comment about large parties?

she says large parties are intimate and there isn't privacy at small parties

What does Myrtle observe and to what conclusions does she jump

she sees Jordan and thinks its Tom's wife

Why do you think Daisy cries when she sees all of Gatsby's beautiful shirts?

she sees what she could have had if she waited for Gatsby

What does Nick discover about Jordan later that summer?

she was very dishonest and couldn't be at a disadvantage

Explain the significance of the puppy episode

shows how Tom throws around money and Myrtle thinks this is a sign of them being a family but Tom won't stay with her forever

What was Tom doing shortly after the wedding?

sleep with a maid

Describe Jordan Baker

slender, small-brested girl, with an erect carriage, gray sun-strained eyes, girlhood friend of Daisy's

What does Gatsby flaunt at Tom? What hypocritical remark does Tom make in reply?

that he knows Daisy

what is ironic about Tom's comment, "You can buy anything at a drug store these days"?

they didn't sell what he needed

What is meant by Nick's comment, "so we drove toward death through the cooling twilight"

they drove towards Myrtle's dead body and he knows this because he wrote the book after

Gatsby's unexpected departure from the restaurant upon meeting Tom is a transition for what Jordan is about to tell Nick in the next section of the chapter. What startling news does Nick discover about Daisy and Gatsby?

they slept together five years before

Why has George, throughout the novel, wanted to buy a car from Tom

to get a quick profit but now to move his family away to fix marriage

What does Gatsby propose that offends Nick?

to give him a job to pay him back for helping with Daisy

Nick keeps a list of party guests on a train schedule dated July, 5 1922. Why does Fitzgerald include this section?

to show how many random people from all over with different jobs came to this one person's house

Compare Tom and George in their knowledge that their wives are having affairs

tom gets mad about it, George plans to take her away

Who did Myrtle think was driving the car? Who was really driving?

tom; daisy

what attitude do Daisy and Jordan have?

uninterested, minding their own business

How do we get the distinct impression that Tom is a racist? What is his explanation for "civilization going to pieces"?

whites are the "dominant race" and they need to watch out for the other races who are proven to rise against them

Do you agree with the expression "money can't buy happiness." why?

yes because you can have all the money in the world but never be truly happy, money and possessions don't mean anything compared to true joy and love and happiness

The illusion is falling apart. Gatsby knows Daisy did not have a good time. What advice does Nick offer? How does Gatsby react?

you can't repeat the past but Gatsby thinks you can