The+Great+Gatsby

The Great Gatsby by F.Scott Fitzgerald

Essential Questions Life
 * The American Dream**
 * What is the “American Dream”?
 * What influences the American Dream?
 * Has the American Dream changed from generation to generation?

**Disillusionment/Disintegration of the American Dream**
 * What are the causes of disillusionment?
 * How do people deal with disillusionment?

Illusion vs. Reality/ Public Identity vs. Private Identity

 * To what degree can a person create his/her identity?
 * What affects a person's identity and the way he/she is perceived by others?
 * What is the difference between illusion and reality?
 * How can a person distinguish illusion from reality?
 * Is there such a thing as //reality//, or are all things constructed?

Love and Relationships/Unrequited Love

 * Is love a component of all relationships? Explain.
 * How does one determine whether or not one is //in love//?
 * Does love ever end, or does it merely change?

Literature How does setting affect character motivation? How does a time period affect an author's writing?

= = The Gatsby trailers **Anticipatory Set**

Strongly Agree/Somewhat Agree/Neutral/Somewhat Disagree/Strongly Disagree
Please respond to the following statements. Be ready to discuss your ideas.


 * 1) Money is the root of all evil.
 * 2) You can never relive/recapture the past.
 * 3) People get what they deserve in life.
 * 4) Money cannot buy happiness.
 * 5) Most people strive to live a moral life.
 * 6) Most people want to be rich, powerful, and respected.
 * 7) Most people live a lie, pretending to be something that they are not.

Author Study
Link to Biography.com, F. Scott Fitzgerald
 * Who is F. Scott Fitzgerald? **
 * What influenced Fitzgerald's writing? **

Please see hand-outs from the teacher. (Secondary Solutions)

Setting/Historical Context

The Roaring '20s Prohibition Return of the Soldiers from WWI The Jazz Age


 * Please see hand-outs from the teacher. (Secondary Solutions)

Reading Notes You will take notes as you read the book. Please set up your two-column notes as follow: Why are these events significant? || What do we, as readers, learn about the characters through their actions and motivations? || Motifs || Which colors were mentioned in this section? Who or what was associated with that color? What is implied by the color association?
 * Plot || What significant events have happened in this chapter?
 * Characters || What do the characters value?
 * Questions || What questions do you have about the reading? ||
 * Color Imagery/
 * Pay close attention to the mention of white, yellow, green, blue, and gray.

Which motifs appeared? Why does Fitzgerald include this recurring structure, object, or pattern? Motifs-- Valley of Ashes, glasses of T.J. Eckleberg, green light ||
 * Reflection || What did you think about the events in this chapter? Did they remind you of any other piece of literature that you have read and/or seen? ||
 * Prediction || What do you think will happen next? Why? ||

Vocabulary and Study Questions = = media type="custom" key="27687915"
 * Chapter One**

Chapter One 1. From what point of view is the story being told? In what tense? 2. Chapter 1 begins with a quote: “Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.” What does this quote mean? What conclusions/predictions can you make about the narrator from this quote? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. List 5-7 important details that we learn about the narrator from this chapter. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. How does Nick compare East and West Egg? Who is Nick’s neighbor? How does Nick describe his neighbor’s house? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. Describe Tom in 3-5 sentences. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. Describe Daisy in 3-5 sentences. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. About what has Tom been reading? What does this book’s philosophy indicate about Tom’s views? What does this say about American society at the time? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. What do we learn about Tom from the phone call? How does Daisy deal with the interruption? 9. What does Daisy mean when she says “And I hope she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool”? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">10. What rumor had Daisy heard about Nick? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">11. Describe Tom and Daisy’s relationship. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">12. What strange sight does Nick see at the end of Chapter 1? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">*13. What are the advantages/disadvantages of having Nick narrate the story of The Great Gatsby, rather than having Gatsby tell the story himself?

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 * Chapter Two **

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. Describe the valley of ashes. What might the ashes symbolize? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. Describe the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg. What might they represent (or symbolize)? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. Describe Tom’s “girl” in 3-4 sentences. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. What business transaction is going on between Tom and Mr. Wilson? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. Compare/contrast the personalities and physical characteristics of Myrtle and Daisy. Be sure to list 3-5 similarities and/or differences. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. Why do you think Tom is attracted to Myrtle? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. What is the lie Tom told Catherine? Why do you think he lied? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. Describe Mr. and Mrs. Wilson’s relationship. How did Myrtle know she made a “mistake” when she married Wilson? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">9. Explain how Tom and Myrtle met. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">10. What does Tom do to Myrtle when she repeats Daisy’s name? What do you think of Tom’s reaction? Why do you think he did it? Was it appropriate? What hints from the first chapter indicated Tom was capable of this behavior? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">11. Why is the ending of Chapter 2 so disjointed? What had Nick been doing all evening that might have caused this strange narrative? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;"> *12. Make a comparison of the homes of Nick, Gatsby, Tom and Daisy Buchanan, and George and Myrtle Wilson. How does each home reflect the personality of its occupant?
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chapter Two **

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 * Chapter Three **

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. In 3-4 sentences, describe the scene at Gatsby’s house on the weekends. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. What arrives at Gatsby’s house every Friday? What leaves on Monday? What does this tell you about how long Gatsby’s parties last? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. How does Nick receive his invitation to Gatsby’s party? Why was his invitation unusual? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. What is Nick’s immediate impression of the party guests? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. What happened to the girl who tore her dress the last time she was at Gatsby’s? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. What rumors have been circulating about Gatsby? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. What illegal activity takes place at Gatsby’s party? Why is it illegal? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. What discovery has the Owl-Eyed man made in Gatsby’s library? What does his discovery say about this sector of American society in the 1920s? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">9. What is ironic about Jordan’s statement comparing large and small parties? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">10. On what does Owl-Eyes blame the accident after Gatsby’s party? What is ironic about his claim? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">11. What “haunting” feeling does Nick sometimes have? What does his description of his feelings and the indication that others feel this way say about American society or life in the city at the time? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">12. How does Nick feel about Jordan? What does he finally conclude about her? What does he finally conclude about himself? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;"> *13. Explain how the description of the parties/gatherings contributes to the creation of the characters who attend them.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chapter Three **

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 * Chapter Four **

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. What do the girls at the party think Gatsby did to get rich? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. Why do you think Fitzgerald gives a long list of those guests who attended Gatsby’s parties that summer? What “subtle tribute” did these people give Gatsby? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. Who is the “boarder”? How did he get the name? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. Describe Gatsby’s car in 3-4 sentences. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. What new information does Gatsby give Nick about himself? List at least 5 important pieces of information. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. What is Nick’s reaction to Gatsby’s story? What makes Nick suspect that Gatsby is lying about his past? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. What two things does Gatsby always carry? What do you think of him carrying these things with him at all times? Why do you think he does this? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. How does Gatsby get out of a speeding ticket? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">9. Describe Mr. Wolfshiem. What kind of man is he? Why do you think he is associated with Gatsby? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">10. What did Tom give Daisy the day before their wedding? What happened that evening? Why did Daisy have a breakdown? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">11. What happened with Tom in Ventura? Who was he with? What is notable about this incident? 12. Why, according to Jordan, is it not a coincidence that Gatsby lives where he does, at West Egg? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">13. What did Gatsby want Jordan to ask Nick? What does Gatsby want Daisy to see? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">*14. Explain your interpretation of the quote, “There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy and the tired.” In terms of the novel, who are the ones being pursued, the ones doing the pursuing, the ones who are busy, and the ones who are tired? Justify your choices in a few sentences.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chapter Four **

Chapter Five media type="custom" key="27688015"

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. Explain what Gatsby does to prepare for his meeting with Daisy. Why do you think he does all this? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. What happens to the clock on the mantle? What do you think this awkward moment symbolizes? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. How long has it been since Daisy and Gatsby have seen each other? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. How does Gatsby behave upon seeing Daisy again? What is your impression of his behavior? Why is this ironic, considering the title of the novel? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. What inconsistency does Nick catch about where Gatsby’s money came from? From where does Gatsby tell Nick he got his money? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. Why does Gatsby show Daisy all of his shirts? Is Daisy truly crying because she’s “never seen such beautiful shirts before”? Or is she crying about something else? What could that be? Explain her reaction. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. To what is the author referring in the statement: “Possibly it had occurred to him that the colossal significance of that light had now vanished forever…His count of enchanted objects had diminished by one”? What does the green light symbolize? Explain it significance to the novel. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. Who is Klipspringer and what does Gatsby have him do? Why? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">9. What could the weather in this chapter symbolize? How does the weather change? What could that change symbolize? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">*10. Gatsby finally winning Daisy is as much a triumph as it is a tragedy. What, now, does he have to look forward to? Write down three quotes from Chapter 5 that illustrate this statement.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chapter Five **

Chapter Six media type="custom" key="27688031"

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. Who is James Gatz? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. Why did he change his name? How old was he at the time? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. How was Dan Cody involved in shaping Gatsby into the man he is now? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. Why did Gatsby not get the money that Cody left for him? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. For what reason do you think Fitzgerald interrupted Gatsby’s story for the visit from the horseback riders? Why doesn’t Gatsby understand that he isn’t really welcome? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. Why does Tom attend Gatsby’s party? What is ironic about this? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. How does Tom’s presence affect the atmosphere of the party? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. What does Gatsby want Daisy to do? What is Nick’s response? Do you agree or disagree with his statement: “You can’t repeat the past”? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">*9. How do the flashbacks to Gatsby’s young life contribute to the development of his present character
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chapter Six **

Chapter Seven media type="custom" key="27688041"

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. Why did Gatsby fire all of his servants? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. What does Daisy do while Tom is on the phone in the other room? What does she tell Jordan to do? Why do you think she does this? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. What kind of relationship does Daisy have with her daughter? Why is Gatsby surprised by the child’s “existence”? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. What does Gatsby say that Daisy’s voice is “full of”? Why? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. Why does Wilson suddenly need money from Tom? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. How does the weather contribute to the mood of this chapter? What could the weather symbolize? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. What does Daisy tell Gatsby that catches him off guard? What was he expecting to hear? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. As they are leaving the hotel, what milestone does Nick remember that he had forgotten in all the excitement? What is the significance of this? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">9. Who does Tom believe killed Myrtle? What really happened? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">10. Who is “watching” over the incidents in the valley of ashes? Of whom is this symbolic? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">*11. As Gatsby and Nick arrive at the Buchanan’s house, the scene is nearly identical to a much earlier scene in the novel. Daisy and Jordan are sitting on the couch in their white dresses and Tom is on the hall telephone talking with “his girl.” What does the repetition of this scene suggest?
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chapter Seven **

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 * Chapter Eight **

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. Why does Nick suggest that Gatsby go away even though he knows that it was Daisy who killed Myrtle? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. Why does Gatsby refuse? What is he holding on to? What do you think of his behavior? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. How did Daisy and Gatsby meet? How did Gatsby deceive Daisy from the beginning? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. How did Daisy go on living her life while Gatsby fought in the war? What did Daisy do while Gatsby was at Oxford? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. Where did Gatsby go with the last of his army pay? Why? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. Why does Nick insist Gatsby is “worth the whole damn bunch put together”? What does he mean by this? Why is he still glad he said it? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. What does Wilson firmly believe happened to Myrtle? What clue(s) lead him to believe this? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. What does Wilson imagine about the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">9. Define the word “holocaust.” What does Nick mean when he says, “the holocaust was complete”? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">*10. What do you think is Fitzgerald’s purpose in relating the story of Gatsby’s return to Louisville while Daisy and Tom are still on their wedding trip?
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chapter Eight **

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 * Chapter Nine **

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">1. Why is Nick in charge of arranging Gatsby’s funeral? Why is this surprising? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">2. How does Henry Gatz hear about the funeral? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">3. Why does Klipspringer call Gatsby’s house? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">4. Why does Mr. Gatz show Nick Gatsby’s schedule from his youth? What does this show you about the kind of person Gatsby was meant to be? Why do you think this was an important/unimportant part of the novel? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">5. Why do you think Fitzgerald included that the owl-eyed man came to Gatsby’s funeral? Why do you think the owl-eyed man might have come? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">6. What happens to Nick and Jordan’s relationship? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">7. What had Tom told George about the car the afternoon of the shooting? Why did Tom feel justified? <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">8. Do you agree with Nick’s statement “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy—they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made...”? Justify your response. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">*9. In his final comment, Nick says: “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter—tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther... And one fine morning— So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past”? What does this quote mean? Why is this quote significant to the theme of the American Dream in the novel?
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6666666666667px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chapter Nine **

Full set of questions

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 200%; line-height: 1.5;">Post-reading Activities <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Discussion Questions <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Scribner reading group guide
 * You can print a copy of these questions from the embedded icon below.

1. The Great Gatsby features an epigraph by “Thomas Parke D’Invilliers” (a writer invented by Fitzgerald) about winning a lover by any means. How does this short poem set the scene for the novel to come? Why do you think Fitzgerald would open The Great Gatsby with a fictional epigraph, rather than a real quote or poem?

2. Compare East Egg and West Egg. What kinds of people settle on each side of the bay? Why would a couple like the Buchanans reside in East Egg, and men like Nick and Gatsby on the other side? How does the division between these two villages compare to differences between the American East and West?

3. Discuss the role of honesty in The Great Gatsby. Which characters pride themselves on telling the truth? How does duplicity affect the relationship between Nick and Jordan, and the marriage of Tom and Daisy? What falsehoods has Gatsby relied upon to advance in society?

4. Compare two classic party scenes in the novel: the first party at Gatsby’s house that Nick attends, and the impromptu gathering at Tom and Myrtle’s apartment in New York City. How is each party enlivened by booze, romance, and chaos? How are the guests at each party similar, and how are they different? How does Nick’s drunken perspective color each scene?

5. Consider the role of gossip in the novel. What kinds of rumors do Gatsby’s guests spread about their host, and why? Why does public opinion have such a strong hold over the characters in the novel?

6. In Chapter VI, just after Daisy and Gatsby reunite at Nick’s house, Nick reveals the story of his friend’s transition from James Gatz to Jay Gatsby. Why does Nick choose this point in the story to tell Gatsby’s history? How does this chapter serve as a turning point in the novel?

7. Compare James Gatz to the man he became: Jay Gatsby. What do we learn about Gatz’s ambition as a youth? How did he make his transition to Gatsby? What elements from his past did he retain, even as he left his identity behind?

8. Eyes are a prominent feature throughout the novel – T. J. Ecklesburg’s spectacles watch over the “valley of ashes,” “Owl-eyes” attends Gatsby’s parties and funeral, and Nick senses Myrtle’s jealous gaze upon Tom and Jordan when they stop at Wilson’s gas station. What is the significance of this theme of surveillance? Who is being watched throughout the novel?

9. “‘Can’t repeat the past?’ [Gatsby] cried incredulously. ‘Why of course you can!’” (page 110). Discuss Gatsby’s attempts to recreate history. Why is he so eager to go back to life before he went to war, when he was a young officer in love with Daisy? What has Gatsby lost and gained since those days in Louisville?

10. At the moment of the accident that killed Myrtle Wilson, “first Daisy turned away from the woman toward the other car, and then she lost her nerve and turned back” (page 143). How else does Daisy lose her nerve on that drive from New York City to East Egg? Why does she turn back to Tom, instead of choosing a life with Gatsby?

11. Gatsby says about Daisy, “Her voice is full of money.” (page 120). Discuss how class and affects the romances in the novel. Would Daisy be just as alluring without her status? Would Gatsby or Tom be attractive without their fortunes?

12. Nick observes, “I see now that this has been a story of the West, after all,” (page 176) since none of its characters are from the East. How have ideas about the “West” changed since Fitzgerald’s day? What is particularly “Western” about each of these characters: Nick, Tom, Gatsby, Daisy, and Jordan? Do you agree with Nick that they are “unadaptable to Eastern life”? Why or why not?

13. Consider the setting of the novel: 1922 Long Island. Can you imagine this story within another time or place? Do you consider The Great Gatsby timeless, or do you think its characters and themes are deeply rooted in the postwar prosperity of the Roaring Twenties?

14. The novel ends with Nick thinking about “Gatsby’s wonder when he first picked out the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock” (page 180). Consider the symbol of the green light. What dreams and hopes does the light stand for? Is Gatsby’s “extraordinary gift for hope” an asset or a hindrance to his ambition, in the end?

15. If this was your first time reading The Great Gatsby, discuss what you knew about this American classic before you began reading, and how it met or defied your expectations. If you’ve read the novel before, think back to the first time you read it, and discuss how the novel has changed for you over time. Do you understand it differently today than you did in the past?