1.
What is Nick’s occupation?
2. Where is Nick from?
3. Describe East and West Egg.
4. Who were “Midas, Morgan , and
Maecenas” (p. 10)? (You will need to use the internet to find your answers)
5. What color appears to be
associated with Daisy? Any
suggestions why?
6. What sort of biases/prejudices
do we learn Tom holds?
1.
Contrast the Valley of Ashes to East/West Egg.
2. Who/what is Dr. T.J. Eckleburg?
3. Who is Kaiser Wilhelm?
4. What kind of dog does Myrtle
buy? What is Tom’s reaction to the dog and how might his prejudices be
symbolized in the animal?
5. What is ironic about Myrtle’s
transformation once inside her NYC apartment?
1.
Describe Gatsby’s party? What
sort of people are in attendance?
2. Who is David Belasco?
Why might Owl Eyes see a connection between him and Gatsby?
3. What additional rumours/gossip
do we hear about Gatsby in this chapter?
4. Why did one of the guests
receive a package from Croirier’s and why?
5. Describe Gatsby.
What is your first impression of him?
6.
Nick is often referred to as the model of morality in this novel. What
truth do we learn about Nick at the end of the chapter and how might it affect
our impression of him?
1. What do we learn about a) Tom’s
infidelity and b) Daisy’s past
with Gatsby in this chapter?
2. What things do we learn about
who Gatsby is in this chapter? Does
Nick believe him?
3. Who is Arnold Rothstein and how
may he have been the model for Fitzgerald’s Meyer Wolfsheim?
4. What do the cufflinks that
Wolfsheim wears indicate about him? How
does this reflect on Gatsby if he is so closely related to him?
5. What are your predictions about
the outcome of this story as it stands after reading chapter 4?
1.
What is the initial reaction of Gatsby and Daisy once they see each other
again?
2. What is difference
between the two once Nick re-enters the house (p.86)?
3. What can you assume may have
transpired between the two?
4. What lie does Nick catch Gatsby
in on page 87?
5. Why do you suppose Gatsby may
have wanted Daisy to come to Nick’s house instead of meeting somewhere else?
What purpose did it serve and why would this be important to Gatsby?
6. On pages 92-93 after he’s
observed Gatsby’s reunion with Daisy, Nick shares with the reader the
following reflection:
“There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy tumbled short of his dreams – not through her own fault, but because of the colossal vitality of his illusion. It had gone beyond her, beyond everything…No amount of fire or freshness can challenge what a man can store up in his ghostly heart.”
What does Nick mean by this and what does it reveal about the true nature of Gatsby’s quest for Daisy?
1. What do we learn is the truth about
Jay Gatsby’s background?
2. Who was Dan Cody and what
influence did he have on Gatsby?
3. When Tom and his friends drop in
on Gatsby how do they treat him? What
does this indicate about their view of him?
4. On page 102 Daisy comments to
Tom, “ …if you want to take down any addresses here’s my little gold
pencil.” What does this reveal
about her knowledge of Tom and her frame of mind regarding him?
5. Why didn’t Tom and Daisy quite
fit in at Gatsby’s party?
6. What, ultimately, does Gatsby
want from Daisy, according to Nick?
7. What illusions does
Gatsby hold in regards to his and Daisy’s relationship?
1.
What does Nick mean by saying Gatsby’s “career as Trimalchio was
over” (p. 108)?
2. Explain Gatsby’s reaction to
Pammy.
3. How do Tom and Gatsby’s
personalities clash in this chapter?
4. How is Tom’s argument to hold
on to Daisy hypocritical on page 124?
5. Why do you think Fitzgerald may
have chosen to emphasize the heat of the day in this chapter?
What does it add to the atmosphere?
6. What bizarre twist does the
novel take in this chapter?
7. What do you think Nick mean by
saying that he left Gatsby “standing there in the moonlight- watching over
nothing.” (p. 138)
1. What had drawn Gatsby to Daisy when he first met her (p. 144)?
2a. What does Nick mean when he says Gatsby took Daisy under false
pretences (p.143)?
b. In this sense, how did he differ from Tom?
3. Why did Daisy choose Tom if she was really in love with Gatsby?
4. What does Nick's comment on p. 146, "you're worth the whole damn bunch
of them put together." reveal about his opinions of Gatsby ?
5. What significance has the billboard of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg taken on for
George Wilson?
6. What happens to Gatsby in this chapter?
1. Who made the arrangements for Gatsby's funeral? Why is this
unusual?
2. Considering how many people attended Gatsby's parties, why was the
attendance at his funeral odd?
3. What was Tom's role in Gatsby's death? Considering his
circumstances, do you blame him for his actions?
3. From what we have learned about Jay Gatsby's personality throughout the
novel, how is learning about his childhood schedule appropriate?
4. Nick refers to Tom and Daisy as "careless people." If we remember
that this novel is often considered to reflect Fitzgerald's views/observations
of society, what is the comment he may be making? What might he be saying
about people like Jay Gatsby?