The Great Gatsby Chapter Questions 1-9:
Why was the young Gatsby drawn to Daisy?
Nice and other guys like her.
Jordan declares to Nick that she "hates careless people." Explain the irony here.
Only cares about herself.
Keeping the last few paragraphs in mind, what does the last sentence in the story mean?
People try so hard to move on towards the future but it's like they just keep falling back into the past and wanting to relive it. People aren't moving forwards and keep returning to the dreams of their past.
Do you think Tom will leave Daisy for Myrtle? Support your answer
Perhaps. Tom is moronic and ignorant, but even he has his limits of stupidity.
When Wilson disappears for three hours, where do you guess he might have gone? (You won't know for certain until later).
Probably Tom or Gatsby's house.
Toward the end of the party, we have the unflattering description of husbands and wives and also the drunk who has crashed his care. What is Fitzgerald's deeper message to use here?
Rich people drive recklessly due to funding, and Owl Man gets into an accident due to being drunk. Money doesn't make anyone happy.
What is Daisy's opinion of Gatsby's party?
She doesn't like it, it offends her in the way that it's West Egg new money where everybody is tacky, wild, and drunk. She's elite and the party doesn't live up to her classy standards of East Egg. It appalls her.
How does Daisy behave the night before her wedding? Why?
She is drunk and attempts to give the necklace back to Tom and cancel the wedding. She's having second thoughts about marrying Tom because of a letter she received.
What is Daisy's reaction to this news?
She stares terrified between Gatsby and her husband, and she starts to withdraw into herself. She's never seen this side of Gatsby before and it scares her.
How do we know that Myrtle Wilson is not an intellectual?
She's a loudmouth fatty and wants to act like she has money, even though she doesn't.
We find out that Tom has "some woman in New York". What unflattering feature of Jordan Baker's personality is revealed in this scene?
She's fake.
What indication is there at this point that, in Myrtle's mind anyway, Tom has been more than a fling?
She's jealous.
THE END
THE END
What does the reader learn that Tom does not know?
That Daisy was driving the car that killed Myrtle, not Gatsby.
What shocking piece of information does Nick receive in his chance meeting with Tom? What is Nick's feeling about Tom and Daisy?
That Tom got Gatsby killed and that they're fake, terrible people.
Looking through the list of party-goers, find and paraphrase at least three pieces of evidence that the old money is in East Egg and the new money is in West Egg.
The East Eggers named Blackbuck are snooty and flip their noses up at everyone. East Eggers include legendary American family names, such as Voltaire and Stonewall Jackson, and they come from prestigious schools like Yale. West Eggers are mostly movie or entertainment producers and people with more-ethnic-sounding names like Poles O'Brien and Mulreadys, which sound like immigrant names.
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 1 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 1 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 2 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 2 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 3 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 3 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 4 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 4 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 5 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 5 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 6 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 6 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 7 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 7 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 8 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 8 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 9 Questions:
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 9 Questions:
What's the name of the book that Tom wants to discuss at dinner? What does this book's content show us about Tom?
The Rise Of The Colored Empire. Tom is a racist.
Why is it so important to Gatsby that Daisy says she never loved Tom?
Because Gatsby wants to erase the past and pretend Daisy never wanted Tom, so they can get married and move on.
Daisy says that Tom is "revolting." To what, can you imagine, is she referring?
Because Tom's saying that Daisy can't leave him but yet he cheated on her so many times. She had it with the sickening affairs and the "sprees''.
Why does Daisy have a tough time saying, as Gatsby wishes, that she never loved Tom?
Because at one point she did love Tom, and Gatsby. She's also afraid that once she says she never loved Tom she will be Gatsby's permanently.
Why does Tom make the point to Wilson that he just drove the coupe from New York and the yellow car does not actually belong to him?
Because he is afraid that Wilson will remember that Tom was in the yellow car earlier and think that he killed Myrtle. He wants to make sure Wilson doesn't suspect him or think he did it.
Gatsby asks the groundskeeper not to drain the pool. Why? In light of what happens at the very end of chapter 8, how is this exchange symbolically meaningful?
Because the pool represents Gatsby's dream.
If you were going to pick one color to connect with Daisy Buchanan, what color would it be? Explain your reasoning.
Black. Mysterious, but somewhat dark with perhaps unintentional malicious actions.
What unexpected common bond do Gatsby and Nick share?
Both were in the third division in France during the war.
What's happening between Nick and Jordan?
They are starting to like each other.
In what context do Dr. Eckleburg's eyes appear in this chapter?
To see all, and know all.
What's up with the puppy? Why do you suppose Fitzgerald included it as an element in this chapter?
To show that Myrtle wanted a family bond with Tom.
Why does this scene suggest ill for Gatsby?
Tom and Daisy are getting closer, and the closer they get the more Gatsby gets bumped out of the picture.
While the reader can have easily predicted Daisy and Tom's reactions to his party, Gatsby cannot. Why not?
Gatsby is new money-tacky, flashy, and showing it off. He wasn't born into privilege so he thinks like West Eggers. While Tom and Daisy are classy old money people with standards and sophistication. They're snobby and the party is below them but Gatsby doesn't understand because he isn't sophisticated like East Eggers.
What is weird about Nick's drive into New York with Gatsby? - List at least three things about Gatsby in this scene that strike you as odd.
Gatsby overshares about his background, being sure to mention that he inherited family money, but that all of his people are dead now, he says he is trying to forget something very sad that happened to him long ago. Gatsby emphasizes that he was "educated at Oxford," in a way that makes Nick think that he's lying. He's even carrying around a photo of himself at Oxford to use as proof, almost trying to convince people. Gatsby says his people are from the midwest, but then says they're from San Francisco.
In what ways is Gatsby's behavior at his party quite unlike the behavior of most of his guests.
He doesn't like to party, he watches guests.
Nick describes the people who attend Gatsby's parties and says "that once there, the guests conducted themselves according to the rules of behavior associated with amusement parks." Given this, what can you conclude is Nick's opinion of Gatsby's party guests?
He doesn't respect them much. The only time they can party due to prohibition.
Why do you suppose, Tom decides to let Wilson finally have the car he has been promising him?
He feels guilty.
What steps has Gatsby taken to ensure this reunion day is perfect?
He got a lawn mowing service, flowers, and checked the weather.
How can Wilson's actions at the end of this chapter be explained?
He had nothing left to live for.
Why does Gatsby take Nick and Daisy the long way around his house to the front door instead of just cutting through the back lawn?
He wants to show off his massive estate to Daisy.
As always, there is a grain of truth in what Gatsby says. In what sense is he an Oxford man?
He went to college there for 5 months.
Is Nick surprised that Daisy has not sent a message or flowers? Are you?
He's not really surprised. At this point, I think Nick expected it because that's just who Daisy is. That's how all of them are. They only care about themselves and disappear the minute it gets hard.
What were Nick's final significant words to Gatsby? Why is this a fitting goodbye?
It was the only compliment Gatsby had ever received from Nick, and Nick also stated that Gatsby worth all of them combined.
The description of the "valley of ashes" opens this chapter. Literally, what is the valley of ashes? What might it represent on a symbolic level?
It's gray and gloomy. The division between rich and poor.
What is the cause of problem between Jordan and Nick?
Jordan is artificial and Nick is real.
Describe the five characters into the city.
Jordan, Nick, and Tom take Gatsby's yellow car while Daisy and Gatsby take Tom's blue coupe.
Nick says, "I was looking at the elegant young roughneck.. Whose elaborate formality of speech just missed being abused. Sometime before he introduced himself I'd got a strong impression that he was packing his words with care." What is Fitzgerald trying to convey here about Gatsby? How should we feel about Gatsby here?
Looks can be deceiving. Looks formal, sophisticated, but he doesn't fit the category correctly.
Describe the hit-and-run scene.
Michaelis tells them that Myrtle was the victim, and that a car coming from New York City struck her then sped away.
What is Nick's social class/background? How did his family make its money?
Middle Class. They owned a wholesale hardware store.
Why does Jordan want to leave the group from East Egg?
Too boring. She seeks action and excitement.
What is the reader left to think about Daisy's emotional state and her relationship with Tom?
Unsettling, abusive.
When Nick returns from the war, why does he decide to go East?
Wants to be a broker and learn the bond business.
Why, do you suppose, Fitzgerald links the behavior of the characters to the hottest day of summer?
Well it's really hot weather and the heat makes the characters uncomfortable and more irritable, so it's really tense between Tom, Gatsby, and Daisy.
some of these were taken from another quizlet, only the days i was absent. so in total, about two chapters have been taken from other quizlets.
some of these were taken from another quizlet, only the days i was absent. so in total, about two chapters have been taken from other quizlets.
Who, do you suppose, sent the letter that caused Daisy to become so upset? What do you think the letter may have said?
Gatsby, that he had just come back from war.
Compare and contrast George Wilson and Tom Buchanan. Then, compare and contrast Myrtle Wilson and Daisy Buchanan.
George Wilson doesn't know he's being cheated on. He allows Myrtle to walk all over him. Tom Buchanan doesn't allow anyone to "use" or "cheat" him. Myrtle Wilson is cheating on her husband with Tom and wants money and a better lifestyle. Daisy Buchanan is fake and knows that her husband is cheating.
How has Gatsby earned most of his money, and what does Tom say that startles Gatsby?
He and Wolfsheim bought a lot of street side drug stores and sold grain alcohol over the counter. Tom also says Gatsby has something big going on but Walter Chase won't tell him because he's afraid Wolfsheim will kill him.
What indication is there that Tom really was fond of Myrtle?
He cries when he is in the car alone.
Who is Jordan Baker and what has Nick heard about her?
A scandal, no details.
Before meeting him, what does Nick tell us about Tom Buchanan?
A star football player, and had a ton of money. Peaked in his twenties.
Who is Owl-Eyes? What surprises him about Gatsby's library? Why would this impress him?
A freeloader. Real books that haven't been read.
As the tree of them look across the bay toward Daisy's house, Nick tells us, "Possibly it had occurred to him that the colossal significance of that light had now vanished forever. Compared to that great distance that had separated him from Daisy it had seemed very near to her, almost touching her. It had seemed as close as a star to the moon. Now it was again a green light on a dock. His count of enchanted objects had diminished by one. "First, explain what Fitzgerald means yb "the great distance" between Gatsby and Daisy. Then, explain the significance of the fact that the green light is now just a light on a dock and that Gatsby's "count of enchanted objects had diminished by one."
Daisy and Gatsby have grown and changed into different people. Daisy is now married and unavailable to him anymore Gatsby's fantasy is now proven to be unrealistic.
What causes Tom to realize that his wife has been having an affair with Gatsby?
Daisy and Gatsby make eye contact.
Okay, let's talk about that scene with the shirts. Obviously, Daisy's not crying because of the actual shirts. Analyze the passage and explain what, exactly, has caused Daisy to become so emotional as she wraps herself in all of those shirts.
Daisy became overwhelmed after she realized how much Gatsby has done to be with her.
What was the advice given to Nick by his father? How, do you suppose, this makes him a good person to tell this story?
Do not judge people, they haven't had the same advantages as you have had in your life. It makes him unbiased.
Why do you suppose that Jordan does not believe Gatsby when he says that he had attended Oxford College in England.
Doesn't fit the stereotype.
Besides Myrtle's, what other eyes "kept their vigil" on the activities along the roadway?
Dr. T.J. Eckleberg.
How is West Egg different from East Egg?
East had old money, West had new money. East was more extravagant and looked better.
Why does Gatsby not get the $25,000 left to him in Cody's will? What lesson did young Gatsby likely learn from this incident?
Ella Kaye blocked it legally and she inherited everything. he was left with all the lessons of being and acting rich, although he wasn't.
When Nick asks Gatsby what business he is in, Gatsby responds, "That's my affair," before he realizes that this is not an appropriate reply. Why does Gatsby give that answer, and why is it not an appropriate reply?
Gatsby gives the answer because he is probably doing something illegal. This is inappropriate because he just asked Nick to join him in business and that reply makes him look suspicious.
Gatsby disappears when another character unexpectedly arrives at lunch? Take a guess as to why Gatsby doesn't want to see this character.
Gatsby is avoiding Tom because of his past relationship with Daisy and his continuing fascination with her.
Nick says, "Then it had not been merely the stars to which he had aspired on that June night" when Nick first spotted Gatsby reaching out across the bay. What does Nick now realize about that night and about Gatsby's real estate purchase?
Gatsby still wants Daisy, Nick realizes that Gatsby purchased that particular house because it's across the bay from her house.
At the end of this chapter, Nick sees Gatsby on the lawn and is about to call him and introduce himself, but he does not. What stops Nick? What does Gatsby's "trembling" suggest?
Gatsby wanted to be alone. Gatsby wants Daisy.
When Gatsby briefly meets Daisy's little girl, he is somewhat unnerved. Symbolically, what does the little girl represent?
How irresponsible Daisy is.
Nick says "So he [Gatsby] invented just the sort of Jay Gatsby that a seventeen-year-old boy would likely invent, and to this conception he was faithful to the end." For James Gatz, what does he expect the future Jay Gatsby's life will be like? Specifically, at night, what sets James' heart in heart "in a constant, turbulent" riot?
Imagining the success he will have in the future, money, appraisal, etc. he created himself from his own ambition.
What does Gatsby understand about Daisy's voice that Nick does not?
It is full of money.
What's the weather like at the beginning of this chapter? Symbolically analyze this element of the scene.
It is storming and this represents the anxious feelings that Gatsby is feeling and the trouble to come from the reunion.
To young Gatz, what does Dan Cody's yacht represent?
It represents the future he thought he was meant to have. all the beauty and glamor in the world.
What does young Jimmy Gatz's daily schedule say about him?
It says Jimmy was working to be better, it says self improvement was very important to him. He was serious about it, he had goals.
What is Nick's view of repeating the past, and what is Gatsby's opinion? Why is Gatsby's opinion unrealistic?
Nick knows that you can't and shouldn't repeat the past, but Gatsby thinks he can just erase the last five years and start over again. His opinion is unrealistic because it's been five years and both of them have changed. Daisy has a daughter--you can't hit the undo button.
Why does Nick feel responsible for getting people to the funeral? Why do you suppose Wolfsheim reacts the way he does?
Nick was Gatsby's only friend Nobody else cared about him but Nick. Wolfsheim is in corrupt business, and can't risk anything.
In the last four paragraphs, Nick makes the symbol of the green light very concrete. What does the green light symbolize?
The green light symbolizes the orgastic future that's so close and at the same time so far away because people work toward it but it eludes them because they get stuck in the past.
After crossing paths with Gatsby, Tom says, "I may be old-fashioned in my ideas, but women run around too much these days to suit me." What's interesting (and hypocritical) about this line?
The most ridiculous of all women, Myrtle Wilson, is his personal mistress. it's interesting how Tom judges women when they are not sleeping with him and with someone else.
What two things does Nick see on/near the Queensboro Bridge that makes him think that Gatsby is, perhaps, telling the truth?
There's a funeral procession followed by somber people who are passed by a limousine driven by a white chauffeur. Inside the limo, two African-American men and a woman are having a fun time. This juxtaposition makes Nick think that anything can happen over the bridge.
Notice how often and in what context Doctor Eckleburg's eyes are mentioned. Symbolically, what might those eyes on that billboard represent?
They're being observed.
What is the scene that Nick observes taking place between Tom and Daisy in the kitchen?
They're sitting opposite of each other and Tom has his hand over hers. He is talking very intently with Daisy nodding. They aren't happy or unhappy. It seems like they're very close, almost plotting, trying to set their story straight.
In the first few pages of this chapter, we learn about Gatsby's background. When did James Gatz change his name to Jay Gatsby? Why did he leave college after just two weeks?
When he saw Dan Cody's yacht. He leaves because he doesn't feel it was his destiny, would not get him where he wanted to be.
Who is Meyer Wolfsheim, and what do we know about him?
Wolfsheim is a shady gangster who Gatsby does business with; he wears cuff buttons made out of human molars he was the man who fixed the 1919 World Series.
Jordan recalls the time in 1917 when she saw Gatsby and Daisy together From Jordan's description, do you think Daisy was genuinely interested in Gatsby?
Yes, they were so engrossed in each other that daisy didn't even see her until she was five feet away.