great gatsby

• I hope she'll be a fool--that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.'

  Chapter 1

  Daisy

  Struggles of women

  Women had the right to vote, but people disliked this.

  Women were the property of their husbands.

  Daisy feels unfulfilled with her life.

  Daisy believes her daughter's life will be easier and more enjoyable if she is beautiful, but without the desire for independence and freedom.
• Old sport'


  Throughout

  Gatsby

  Used among wealthy people in England and America

  Used by Gatsby to build up his image as a man of old money.

  Tom and Jordan are both skeptical of Gatsby's use of the phrase, showing how difficult it is to pass yourself off as old money when you aren't.
• ...he was running down like an overwound clock'.

  Chapter 5, when Gatsby meets Daisy

  Gatsby displays a loss of control, which contrasts his carefully constructed persona.

  Foreshadows the tragedy of the climax: clocks are symbols of time, and Gatsby is 'running down'.
• Can't repeat the past? Why of course you can!'


  Chapter 6

  Gatsby

  Shows his naivete, optimism, and delusion about what is possible in life.

  Hint at desperation; desperate delusions.

  His attitude differs from Nick's cynicism.
• Your wife doesn't love you. She's never loved you. She loves me.'

  Chapter 7

  Gatsby

  Gatsby finds it impossible to believe that Daisy could have changed or loved anyone else since they were together.

  He sounds desperate and delusional.

  Shows how badly he wants his delusions to be true, but also how confident he is that they are.

  Link to 'can't repeat the past
• Gatsby believed in the green light'

  Chapter 9

  Nick

  Nick's final analysis of Gatsby is that he believed in a future he could never attain.

  Gatsby believed in a world and future better than the one he found himself in.
• ...just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages you've had.'

  Chapter 1

  Nick is judgmental, privileged, and thoughtful.
• Only Gatsby...was exempt from my reaction - Gatsby, who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn.'

  Chapter 1

  Lets the reader know that Nick will become close to Gatsby whilst everyone else earns his 'unaffected scorn'.

  Poses the question, 'Why does Nick come to care for Gatsby if he represents everything Nick hates?'

  'Unaffected scorn' furthers the reader's impression of Nick as judgmental.

  From this quote, the reader becomes suspicious of all characters except for Gatsby going into the story.
• I am one of the few honest people that I have ever known'.


  Chapter 3

  Nick

  The reader begin to suspect that Nick does not always tell the truth- if someone has to claim their honest, it suggests they do things that are not trustworthy.
• They're a rotten crowd...You're worth the whole damn bunch put together.'


  Chapter 8

  Nick, after Myrtle's death.

  Shows how Nick is now completely on Gatsby's side against the Buchanans and Jordan.
• Tell 'em Daisy's change' her mine!'

  '...hooked her back into her dress...the pearls were around her neck...'

  'Next day...she married Tom Buchanan without so much as a shiver...'


  Chapter 4

  Jordan, Daisy flashback

  Daisy cares about Gatsby so much that she threatens to call off her wedding to Tom, showing she truly loves him.

  The pearls and dress represent Daisy being put back into her prescribed social role.

  She marries Tom 'without so much as a shiver', showing her reluctance to to question her place in society, as dictated by her family, friends, and social status.
• It makes me sad because I've never seen such...such beautiful shirts before'.


  Chapter 5

  Daisy

  Daisy could be crying due to her materialism: she emotionally breaks down at proof of Gatsby's profound wealth.

  Daisy could be crying because of her strong feelings for Gatsby- she is touched at the lengths he went to in order to win her back.
• What'll we do with ourselves this afternoon, and the day after that, and the next thirty years?'


  Chapter 7

  Daisy

  Daisy expresses her sense of hopelessness and nihilism (the belief that life is meaningless) and shows how she struggles to find meaning or purpose in her life.

  Contrast to Jordan expressing her belief that life renews itself in the autumn.
• Her voice is full of money'

  '...that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it...'


  Chapter 7

  Gatsby and Nick

  Gatsby ties Daisy and her voice to wealth and money.

  This ties Gatsby and his love for Daisy to his pursuit of wealth, status, and material gain.

  Daisy becomes the representation of the American Dream.

  Daisy's voice being so attractive links to the idea that money is attractive- people are drawn in by Daisy, just like they're drawn in by money.
• Oh, you want too much! I love you now- isn't that enough? I can't help what's past!...I did love him once- but I loved you too.'


  Chapter 7

  Daisy

  Daisy fell in love with Gatsby and was heartbroken when he went to war, and then again when he sent her a letter before her wedding. She fell in love with Tom in the early days of their marriage and then had her heart broken again when she discovered he was cheating on her.

  Daisy is reluctant to risk another heartbreak.

  
  

  Daisy is also reluctant to give up the benefits of a marriage to Tom. If married to Gatsby, she'd have to give up her status as old money royalty and be the wife of a bootlegger.
• The intense vitality that had been so remarkable in the garage was converted into impressive hauteur'/

  Chapter 2

  Myrtle

  Myrtle is portrayed as trying to come off richer than she actually is.

  Myrtle and Gatsby are guilty of the same thing.

  Tom is immediately suspicious of Gatsby, but doesn't seem to mind Myrtle doing this. This is perhaps because when Myrtle does it, she doesn't pose any kind of serious threat to Tom and his lifestyle, whereas Gatsby does.
• Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand.'


  Chapter 2

  Tom is both violent and unwilling to be honest about his marriage.

  Both Tom and Myrtle are impulsive, willful and driven by their desires, but Tom physically asserts that his needs are more important that Myrtle's.

  
  

  The injury foreshadows Myrtle's death. Whilst mentioning Daisy's name gets Myrtle a broken nose, actually meeting her causes her to die.
• Throw me down and beat me, you dirty little coward!'


  Chapter 7

  Myrtle

  Myrtle insinuates that George is weak and less of a man.

  Their fight centers around Myrtle's body and its treatment.

  
  

  The reader sees how damaging Myrtle's relationship with Tom is. She demands that Wilson treats her in the same way as Tom, suggesting she accepts that her body is not her own, and foreshadows the physicality of her death.
• ...damp with perspiration...her left breast swinging loose...The mouth was wide open and ripped at the corners...'


  Chapter 7

  Myrtle's death

  
  

  Myrtle's physicality and vitality are emphasized even in death.

  Her death is portrayed in an overtly sexual way- echoing Nick's portrayal of Myrtle as a woman and mistress, and nothing else.

  Even in death she is objectified.

  
  

  Her death is much more violent than the broken nose earlier on. Whilst Tom breaking her nose cemented him as a violent character, her death highlights the destruction Tom and Daisy leave in their wake.
• Generally he was one of these worn-out men...'

  '...laughed in an agreeable, colourless way.'

  'He was his wife's man, and not his own.'


  Chapter 7

  George Wilson

  
  

  Nick's misogyny is revealed.

  Nick believes George being his 'wife's man' is his primary source of weakness, which underscores George's devotion to his wife.

  
  

  George's description grounds him in the Valley of Ashes. Unlike the other main characters who move freely between Long Island and Manhattan, George stays in Queens, contributing to his stuck, passive image.

  This makes his final journey to Long Island on foot eerie and desperate.
• God sees everything.'

  'That's an advertisement.'

  Chapter 8

  Wilson and Michaelis

  
  

  George is looking for comfort, salvation, and order when there is nothing but an advertisement.

  This hints at the moral decay of America during the 1920s.

  It also suggests how alone and powerless George is, which makes it somewhat understandable why he turns to violence to get his justice and revenge.
• ...if we don't look out, the white race will be- will be utterly submerged. It's all scientific stuff; it's been proved.'


  Chapter 1

  Tom

  
  

  The books Tom reads highlight his insecurity- even though he has been born into incredible money and privilege, there's a fear it could be taken away.

  Tom's insecurity lead to him showing off his power: flaunting his relationship with Myrtle, revealing Gatsby as a bootlegger, and manipulating George to kill Gatsby.
• Don't believe everything you hear, Nick.'


  Chapter 1

  Tom

  
  

  Tom advises Nick not to believe everything he hears, but specifically what Daisy has been telling him about their marriage.

  Nick is typically wary and skeptical of people when he first meets them, but later on in the book he drops some of the skepticism and comes to admire Gatsby, despite the latter being a bootlegger and criminal.

  This leaves the reader with an image of Tom as cynical and suspicious as opposed to the optimistic Gatsby- but perhaps more clear-eyed than Nick is at the end of the novel.
• It seemed to me that the thing for Daisy to do was to rush out of the house, child in arms- but apparently there were no such intentions in her head.'


  Chapter 1

  Nick

  
  

  Nick is wary of people he meets, and he sees through Daisy in Chapter 1 when he observes she has no intentions of leaving Tom despite her complaints about their marriage.
• Once in a while I go off on a spree and make a fool of myself, but I always come back, and in my heart I love her all the time.'


  Chapter 7

  Tom

  
  

  Tom grossly under reports his bad behavior (one of his 'sprees' involved breaking Myrtle's nose after sleeping with her while Nick was in the next room) and either not realizing or ignoring how damaging his actions can be to others.

  He is explicit about his misbehavior and doesn't seem sorry at all - he feels like his 'sprees' don't matter as long as he comes back to Daisy after they're over.

  
  

  This quote shows Tom to be a selfish rich man who destroys things and leaves others to clean up his mess.
• He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter.'


  Chapter 7

  Tom

  
  

  Tom's jealousy and anxiety about class are revealed. Although immediately recognizing Gatsby as a bootlegger rather than someone who inherited his money, Tom makes a point of doing an investigation to figure out where exactly the money came from.

  This shows that Tom feels threatened by Gatsby, and wants to be sure that he knocks him down thoroughly.

  
  

  At the same time, Tom is the only person in the room who sees Gatsby for who he actually is. This is where the reader can see how clouded Nick's judgement of Gatsby has become.
• Go on. He won't annoy you. I think he realizes that his presumptuous little flirtation is over.'


  Chapter 7

  Tom

  
  

  Tom is no longer afraid that Daisy will leave him for Gatsby, and allows them to drive back home together in order to rub it in Gatsby's face.

  This quote displays the pleasure Tom gets from demonstrating his power over others.
• He ran over Myrtle like you'd run over a dog and never even stopped his car.'


  Chapter 9

  Tom

  
  

  This line can be read in one of three ways:

  
  

  Daisy didn't actually tell Tom that she was the one driving, so Tom doesn't know that his wife killed his mistress.

  
  

  Tom has made peace with what has happened by convincing himself that Gatsby was to blame anyway.

  
  

  Tom is scared of speaking about Daisy's involvement even to Nick, so he doesn't.

  
  

  It is also ironic that Tom condones Gatsby's supposed treatment of Myrtle by running her over like a dog, yet Tom did not treat Myrtle kindly either.
• "...Do you always watch for the longest day of the year? I always watch for the longest day in the year and then miss it."


  Daisy - It shows that she thinks about something as trifling as the longest day of the year, but she still misses it. She has nothing to do and she still misses it.
• "Tom's getting very profound."


  Daisy - She's mocking Tom at the first dinner they all have together. He keeps going on about a topic that makes him sound even dumber.
• "Why - Tom's got some woman in New York."


  Jordan - When Tom and Daisy go off and have an argument Jordan tells Nick that Tom is having an affair.
• "It'll show you how I've gotten to feel about - things...She told me it was a girl, and so I turned my head away and wept. 'All right,' I said, 'I'm glad it's a girl. And I hope she'll be a fool - that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.'"


  Daisy - She's saying this to Nick. It shows that Tom wasn't there for the birth of their own daughter. It shows that Daisy's intelligent and aware of her surroundings. She knows what it's like to be married to a man that has affairs and she hopes and whats her daughter to be beautiful but ignorant because ignorance is bliss. She doesn't want her daughter to recognize the bad things in life
• "...Everybody thinks so - the most advanced people. And I KNOW. I've been everywhere and seen everything done everything."


  Daisy - She's 22 and she's already jaded. She's seen everything and done everything so she doesn't really have anything to look forward to."
• "Don't believe everything you hear Nick."

  Tom - Tom knows what Daisy has told Nick and he tells him not to believe it.
• "...We heard that you were engaged."


  Tom - Tom and Daisy, at dinner, bring up that Nick is engaged. It tells us a little more about him. It shows possibly why Nick moved east.
• "We're getting off I want you to meet my girl."


  Tom - It's weird because Tom is showing Nick, DAISY'S COUSIN, his mistress. Tom flaunts it. He does what he does because he's Tom Buchanan. He can basically do whatever he wants to do.
• "It does her good to get away."


  Tom - Tom is justifying his affair with Myrtle. He saying that taking her out of such an awful place is a good thing for her and that that makes him a good man.
• "Hold on, I have to leave you here."


  Nick - Nick is trying to get out of Tom's plans and doesn't want to be a part of it, but Tom isn't letting him.
• "You see? It's really his wife that's keeping them apart. She's a Catholic and they don't believe in divorce."


  Catherine - Daisy's sister and Nick are talking and Nick finds out that Tom told Myrtle that they can't get married and be together because Daisy is Catholic, which is a complete lie. Nick is surprised.
• "It was on the two little seats facing each other that are always the last ones left on the train."

  Myrtle - She is recounting the first time she saw Tom. It shows that she's a golddigger because the first thing she noticed about Tom was what he was wearing, not his hair or eyes, but his suit and his wealth.