Daisy - Chapter 9 - Final Thoughts

Today was Gatsby's funeral. He died because he wanted to protect me, but I probably could have saved myself. Tom has money and people he knows in the government. I was shocked at first when Tom told Wilson that Gatsby was the driver but then I realized that it was the only thing to do. Wilson would have killed us instead!
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Tom told me he saw Nick in the city the other day. He said Nick seemed weird, something about not wanting to shake his hand. He told that Nick is moving away back to the West. I wonder why he did not tell me this himself. It is weird, Nick used to call me at least once every week. I wish I could have attended Gatsby's funeral too. I heard about it and I tried not being reached by Nick even though he kept budging. Maybe he though I wanted to go. I did. But I could bear the sight of him again. I never want to look back and see Gatsby behind me. I will be protected by my rich husband from all the troubles in the past if any were to come back to me. I thought Nick would have stayed here all along but I was wrong. Maybe it is the lifestyle here that makes it so hard to bear for Nick. He does not belong in the East, I knew that from the beginning. But I thought he would have at least notified me before he left. Or would have called to say goodbye to me. I heard that Jordan was engaged to someone else, maybe Nick is sad about that. After all coming East and marrying a rich and famous golfer is a big deal and something that every sane person would want to do. Looking to all the things that happened this summer, I can tell how stupid I was to even consider leaving all this back and going away with Gatsby. It was a rather interesting summer. But luckily I have come back to my senses and went back to my husband. I feel like this past few months have all been a dream and Gatsby was not even there.

Daisy - Chapter 8

Jay Gatsby is dead. He was the first man I ever loved. If he had come back from the war a little early I would have married him and not Tom. I would never have been involved in the Eastern way of life; the wealthy lifestyle. I cannot fathom the idea of him never being in my life. I cannot believe that he died because of my carelessness. I know that I chose Tom over Gatsby but still I cannot believe he died. Tom says he had it coming. I do not know why but Tom seemed a little depressed about the death of the woman I ran over. He said that Gatsby had killed a woman in cold blood and now he deserved to die. And I could not say anything. I did not even try protect Gatsby. I could not even tell Tom that I had killed him. Gatsby protected me from all this coming down on me and I cannot even tell my husband that I killed that woman let alone ask him to vouch for me. I need to get away from here as soon as I can. I do not want to stay anywhere that reminds me of Gatsby and the things we did together. I cannot believe he is gone now. And I cannot believe that I will never see him again. My husband's wealth would suffice for me but the feeling of having betrayed Gatsby still hurts me deep inside. The fact that I changed my mind about him on the last minute hurts me too. But there is nothing that I can do at this point. I will be happy with Tom and when it comes down to the choice I made, I think I made the right one. Even though Gatsby could protect me from what I have done, even though I know he will always love me and not make me worry about him like I  do with Tom, Gatsby could never have provided me with what Tom can. All the wealth and the money I desired all along since I was a little kid.

Daisy - Chapter 7

Why did Gatsby call his parties off? I cannot believe he told me the truth about them, that he only held them to get to me! I wonder what is going to happen tonight. I wonder if I will be able to tell Tom about me and Gatsby. I wonder if I can leave Tom without looking back. I cannot believe how hot the weather is, I hope nothing goes wrong and we leave this house with Gatsby today and never look back.
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How could everything go so wrong!? I was supposed to just tell Tom that I wanted to be with Gatsby! Then we were supposed walk away together! How on earth did everything go so wrong? We were supposed to leave with Gatsby not go into the city and let Tom and Gatsby have at each other. I was so convinced that I wanted Gatsby up to now. But I heard every word that came out of Tom's mouth and he is right. Gatsby is not like Tom. Tom knows what being rich is. He knows how a 20th century Easterner should act. He is not like Gatsby. Gatsby is a simple man. He is not truly. He may have money, but he does not have the nobility to be an Easterner. He thinks money is enough to buy me but this is not true. The way he earns the money is also important. No matter how many parties he has, he will never change the fact that he is a bootlegger and he gains money by illegal means. Fixing the World Series? Even I could not think of that. Gatsby was a rich man, and I thought he was the one I wanted but I was quite wrong. Why is that woman moving toward the car!?!?
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I cannot believe I ran over that woman. She just jumped out into the front of the car, and I could not stop. I tried stopping later on but I could not. Gatsby took the wheel and we rode on. I was too shocked to stop and go back. I did not want to go check on her in case I killed. I could not bear that kind of shock. Gatsby took me home and left now. I cannot see him again and I want to get away from here with my husband, as soon as possible. Some time should pass until this washes over, then maybe I can come back.

Daisy - Chapter 6

When I heard that Tom was going to visit Gatsby, I was terrified. What would I do if Gatsby, on a whim, told Tom that we loved each other? But hopefully nothing of the sort happened. Tom even wants us to go to Gatsby's party on Saturday. Maybe he even liked Gatsby. I hope he does not learn about us anytime soon.
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That party was not what I had expected from a man like Gatsby! I've heard millions of people talk about mad parties and how much fun they have when they go to them but how could this be one of the parties they are talking about? It was so boring this time. I did not have any fun. It was full of drunk people, just walking around picking fights with each other. I could say without hesitation that, this was a very uneventful night for me, quite the opposite of what I had expected. I had expected that Tom would learn about me and Gatsby. I don't know what I would have done if that had happened. Gatsby is rich and all but Tom is different. He has been rich his whole life, he knows how a rich man should act. I could call him "noble" without hesitation, something I could not say about Gatsby. Gatsby did not use to be this way. He was poor, I even heard somewhere that he was a janitor. And maybe Tom is right, maybe Gatsby did make all this money by bootlegging. Maybe he is just a simple criminal. Maybe he is not the type of rich I deserve. Of course I love him but Tom being there I don't think I could run away with Gatsby. My heart is Gatsby's but my mind is always with Tom and it will always be with him. But I'm afraid that Tom might have suspected that something is going on between me and Gatsby. Him being rude to Gatsby bothered me too but it did have a reason behind it. If I suspected that a man was trying to steal my wife, I would have been rude to them too. Gatsby could never provide me with the wealth Tom could. This is not 1917 and we are not in that car anymore. This is not November and Gatsby is going to war.

Daisy - Chapter 5

Last week Nick called to his house for tea and told me not to bring Tom. So I told Tom to go to the city while I went to Nick's house in West Egg. I was wondering what is going on...

Finally! Oh my God, this is the happiest I have ever been in my life. I got to meet Gatsby once again. It was perfect. I am thankful that Nick is Gatsby's neighbor. I am thankful that he understands me! I have not been this happy since that night in the car 5 years back. I wish I had never left Gatsby since then. I wish I had stayed with him all along.

The first time I saw him today, I was stunned. It was almost like a dream. I could not speak. I was so scared he was not the same that I could not talk to him. He seemed uncomfortable being next to me again. He most certainly had changed, he was rich. He was not the same poor person in that car. Anyway, he had everything I needed. He most certainly had the love that Tom did not have for me. Then he spoke to me, and I heard that same tone in his voice. He was the same person that was in love with me five years ago. Oh how I had missed his voice and his looks. I had almost forgot about Nick when Gatsby ran out after him. But when he came back, he was everything but shy. He started talking to me and I was back to normal. We talked all night and he kissed me again. He kissed me again and again. It was like the first time I had kissed anyone. His lips touched mine, and I was back in that car with him that night. I did not realize Nick came in and saw us and then left until Gatsby told me later that night. He told someone to play some music but I did not even hear music being played until I walked out the door that night. I was so happy I could do anything. I could even leave Tom to run away with Gatsby.

Daisy - Back in Louisville

I used to be quite popular in Louisville. I knew almost everyone. Every army officer in town used take me places. I used to enjoy the company of a male officer who used to take me to dinner and give a good time. But there was one officer, Jay Gatsby, that I actually liked. He was the one I wanted to stay with all my life. But on the day I met Gatsby, I knew I could not be with him all my life, no matter how much I tried. He was all I wanted back then; when everything was so simple. When I had not become rich with Tom. That night we sat in Gatsby's car for hours just staring into each other's eyes and that was enough for me. Not like Tom. If I try doing that with Tom, I would give up in a matter of seconds. But Gatsby, he had something in his eyes that made you want to go deeper into his mind and see through him. He was different than the rest of us. He had that same look that Nick still has. The one that you would do anything to see again now.

Daisy - Night Before the Wedding

Just before I married Tom, I received a letter from Gatsby. It said a lot of things. I had previously told him that I was marrying Tom and therefore could not wait for him. Presently I had received his response. I held the envelope in my hand for almost half an hour before I could bring myself to open it. I was so scared of the words inside, I almost cried without opening it. This had the potential to be the last letter between me and the man I loved. The one I truly loved. Not the one I loved like Tom. Only if I had realized that before that night. I would never have agreed to marry Tom. But to tell the truth, I was amazed with his wealth and the amount of money he had. He used to get me presents every week. He used to buy me jewelry every time I was sad and I would wipe the tears from my face. But still there I was sitting in the bathroom with tears in my eyes and reading the letter. Then I read those last two lines that devastated me "...cannot write you anymore. All I can do is to wish you a happy marriage." Then I grabbed a whole bottle of wine and drank in the bathroom. Then in comes Jordan. She saw me and she knew. She knew I did not love Tom. Plus she had seen us before that November evening, in the car. She knew I should not marry Tom, but there was nothing either of us could have possibly done at this point. So the next day, I stopped crying suppressed the memories of Gatsby in November and married Tom Buchanan. I had not looked back to find Gatsby since now.

Daisy - Chapter 4

Jordan went into town to meet Nick today. I cannot how quickly they are progressing in their relationship even though they did not see each other for the first of summer. Nick probably was responsible because I know Jordan likes Nick. She likes the fact that he is different than the rest of the East, something about not being careless. I know he is my cousin and all but I could never be Nick's lover. He is not rich at all and he does not look like he intends to get rich any time soon. Jordan knows about Gatsby though, she was with me that night before the wedding....

Daisy - Chapter 3

Jordan went to one of Gatsby's parties again tonight. She said she met Nick there and they talked all night and met new people. She even talked about some Owl-Eyed guy being drunk and talking about Gatsby's bookshelves. But I was not nearly satisfied with what she told me! There is something more to that night that she is not telling me about. I asked him if she saw Gatsby and she smiled, said "I went to his house didn't I?!" and walked away. Why would she do that? Does she even know the events that transpired between me and Gatsby? Is she aware that he is still in love with me? Does she know how much I like him still? Or does she understand how lonely I feel every time Tom leaves me to go into the city? No, she has no idea. I wonder if Gatsby even knows I live here, or if he'd recognize me if he saw me on the street. I am not like before, I have changed. I have grown, I have gotten more mature. But I know the one thing that has not changed. I still love Gatsby like I loved him that night 5 years ago in November.

Daisy - Chapter 2

Tom and Nick have gotten to be good friends. I mean I do not even get to see Nick this often and Tom is going to New York with him? It does not seem normal; sure they might have known each other from Yale and we did spend two days in Chicago together but Nick is not the type of person Tom usually likes. Nick is too nice for Tom and he is not wealthy at all. Maybe Tom just wanted to show him around, he's new to town after all. But I still cannot shake this feeling that something is wrong and Tom is doing something other than just going to town with Nick. Maybe he does have a mistress. No matter what, this just does not seem normal to me. Tom never comes home smelling like alcohol! Tonight he did smell like alcohol. I find it hard to believe that he went to a party without me! I thought he took me to every fun place he went to. We were not like this, we used to move around all the time and we used to be so happy. Now he does not take me anywhere and I have Gatsby on my mind all over again.

Daisy - Chapter 1

I heard that Nick has moved to West Egg recently, I have not seem him in quite a while. I should probably call to him to dinner. He was always one of the good cousins, the ones that I liked. He should not be lonely here, I'll try to introduce him to Jordan Baker, so he does not get lonely here. Who knows, maybe they will even fall in love! Like Tom and I did way back.
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Oh Lord, that was an unusual night! It was good seeing Nick again but he seems utterly disgusted by our lifestyle. I don't know maybe it is because it is his first week here but he seemed different than usual, he looked happier back west where he came from, or maybe it is just me. It could also have been that Tom was so rude to get up in the middle of dinner to talk on the phone. It might have been rude of me to spy on him but I'm quite suspicious of him; I believe he has a mistress. But I the most amazing part of the night was when Jordan mentioned Gatsby! Oh, how I miss Jay Gatsby. I tend to remember that night in November five years ago. It always gets me excited to remember that night. I would give anything to go back to that night, to that time and tell Gatsby to never leave for war! And I hear that he is wealthy now! How amazing would my life be with him. I'd have tons of money and jewelry and host parties with him. I wish, I could see him now.
Nick and Jordan seem to like each other too, I hope they get to be friends or even lovers soon!

Reflection on Gatsby

Overall, this was an exciting book. It was quite fun to read and it has taken its place amongst my favorite books. A few things I felt that were not so good was the fact that Nick was so cynical and he seemed to hate everything implicitly about the East since the beginning but did not bring these up until the very end. I remember his father told that he should not boast about his money because others might not have been lucky enough to have much money when they were growing up but the East is completely against this idea. It changes people into something that they were not. I liked the way that Gatsby was depicted. Even though I had expected something completely different from this plot, it was a great book. It was great in the sense that it told the reader about how the Eastern people live and while telling us how corrupt their lifestyle is. This was a book that had different topic than the normal books we tend to read in class and I was very pleased to have finished the book this time!

Chapter 9 - The Conclusion

The chapter was like the explanatory chapter for the whole book, it was one where every aspect of the book was explained to the reader by Nick. The story became more about the eastern life in this chapter rather than the death of Gatsby. This is the chapter where all the story became explicit and the themes were not hidden deep within the story of Gatsby's dreams. This is how all the themes of the book are now out on the open and how Nick tells us his views of the East. And finally it is proven that Gatsby does have a different past, and that it is not just a myth, when his father, Henry Gatz, comes to Gatsby's funeral. The funeral itself signifies the values of the eastern way of life, the way that no one that comes to Gatsby's parties show up at the funeral goes to prove that the eastern people are ungrateful and are very different from what Nick is used to. Even though the story goes on in the East, Nick says that it is the story of the West because all the main characters are originally from the East. This is a great observation by Nick because it reminds the readers of this fact and it shows them how they are actually changed by the East. How they have become people (except Nick) who only value money and nothing else, how they only care about themselves and not others.

The chapter also ties up loose ends in the story. Jordan and Nick's relationship has now come to an end and Jordan tells Nick that she is engaged to someone else, but for some reason it doesn't seem credible to me and it seems that Jordan did it just to make Nick jealous of her and for him to notice what he is missing out on. Then Nick sees Tom, who he hates at this point. Tom is the evil character in this book even though he says Meyer Wolfshiem is bad, it is Tom who is truly bad inside and he owes this badness to the Eastern way of life. Then as the final realization, Nick sees how careless people Tom, Daisy and Jordan really are. Fitzgerald uses the geography for the final time when he talks about how the island must have looked like to the people who first discovered and compares it to the beauty of Daisy and Gatsby's untouched relationship.

In the end, this was a sad chapter in seeing how lonely Gatsby really was. We take one last glance into his dark business life and see that something is also wrong there but it is proven that Gatsby is not someone who likes to do things the legal way. Despite the large amounts of rich people attending Gatsby's parties now, no one even wants to see Gatsby. Even though this all happens and sets the sad mood to the chapter, there is Gatsby's real father who shows us an artifact of his early life and tells Nick that he is proud of what Gatsby has done with his life, but again he is only happy with Gatsby's wealth. Nick going back West was the correct choice for him in these circumstances with Gatsby gone Nick has no one he can remotely relate to in his life.

Chapter 8 - Gatsby's Death

This chapter was my favorite one so far. Not because it had action but because it was unexpected. I would not have expected that Wilson would end up killing Gatsby in the end. Let's face it, it was obvious that Gatsby was going to die in the end but I would have guessed that his death would be in the hands of Tom Buchanan, but instead it was Wilson who killed him.

The way Fitzgerald plots the events is very interesting. I would have never guessed that such a useless character like Myrtle would end being the reason that Gatsby is killed. I would never have thought she could have changed the plot so immensely. Gatsby's death was a like a deus ex machina for the book, something happens that no one expects and it ends the chain of events in the book. This chapter was a great one in the sense that it ended the story on a very different note than what I would have expected. Even though I believed Gatsby's death would be the best ending for the book, I could not help but feel sad when I read the last few lines of the chapter. The climate aspect was also included in these lines because it talked how Gatsby saw the falls of the leaves, and Nick talks about how the weather was cold when he came into Gatsby's house. This is the message that Gatsby is going to die even though we know about this.

T.J. Eckleburg's eyes are also used immensely in this chapter. Nick talks about how Wilson stared into his eyes that resemble God and ran away and killed Gatsby. It is also different that Wilson gets this idea of killing Gatsby from the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg. T.J. Eckleburg's eyes have played their big role in the book in this chapter. Again the idea of money winning over love is also revealed in this chapter. Gatsby is killed for something Tom has done which Gatsby was not even aware of. Gatsby was killed trying to protect Daisy from being charged with the murder of Myrtle.

Now for the more touchy-feely side of the chapter... The most touching part of the book was the last words that are passed from Nick to Gatsby. Telling Gatsby that he is worth more than any of them is sad and also very effective for the reader. The death of Gatsby comes just as Nick talks about Gatsby's thoughts about Daisy and his dream having disappeared. It is a bittersweet moment for Gatsby realizing his dream is gone because he now has what he wants and it is also a thematic moment for the book where the American dream and Gatsby's hopes and dreams contrasted. Final chapter will reveal more about this contrast between the two dreams..

Chapter 7 - The Confrontation and an Accident

Besides the fact that it was too long, this chapter was a very exciting one. Finally things between Tom and Gatsby are out on the open. The silent conflicts they have had since beginning are now loud conflicts which actually hurt people. Even though there is no physical contact between the two, the words that are spoken by both parties are sharp as knives. The anger is present can be told by the author's style. The madness that Tom feels when he sees Daisy kiss Gatsby is written on paper by the author most artistically. The way that he wants to go into town with them show this. Again the climate is still included as the hottest day of the summer; the most eventful day of the summer.

It is funny to see that someone who knows nothing about Gatsby, actually has found out about the truth about his past and is now using it against him. The way Tom destroys Gatsby shows us that money always beats good, the failed part of the American Dream. With one word out of Tom's mouth, Daisy goes back to him and stops talking about her feelings for Gatsby. While Gatsby still believes in love, what finally affects Daisy's decision is how much money they have, and with whom she can be happier.

The second part of the chapter was quite extraordinary for me. Many unexpected things could have happened, Daisy could have ran away, Tom could have killed Gatsby, but instead, Gatsby runs Myrtle over with the car. Or at least everyone thinks so. And Tom being Gatsby's enemy, immediately rats him out and tells Wilson he knows who killed Myrtle. But of course, we learn that Daisy killed Myrtle and Gatsby is protecting her and keeping her out of trouble. Meanwhile, when everyone is searching for Gatsby's car, he is out to protect the woman he loves. His hope of his dream becoming true has thoroughly impressed me. The way he clings on the edge of that dream amazes me and tells me something more about Gatsby's character. The way Gatsby acts after his confrontation with Tom, we know he knows that his dream is gone but will never admit it. The way we see Daisy and Tom talking at night, we know they are now back to normal and are moving on with their marriage, something that Gatsby does not understand yet. Now it's time for Gatsby's demise or his breakdown, which ever the author finds more appropriate.

I found this book to be a great one up to this point. Up to now everything is very explicit, every symbol and every theme is buried deep under the letters on the page. As I have said before, I like deciphering these things and I like interpreting them. This book has a great deal of this and it is one that I can relate in many ways. I am eager to read the rest of the story. And I can't go without saying that I hope Gatsby dies in the end, because I cannot see a more exciting ending to this magnificent story.

Chapter 6 - Gatsby's True Past

Finally we get some true information about the past of this mysterious character. Even though many people seem to think they know something about Gatsby, they do not. It was different from what I had expected. I would have thought Gatsby was always smart and indeed he had gone to Oxford. But this was not the case against all my expectations. On the contrary, Gatsby was a poor man at first who got rich after he met Dan Cody. It was also very interesting that he had changed his name for some reason. Gatsby turned out to be completely different from what I would expect him to be. I was amazed by how the author explains every strange thing that Gatsby does, but uses different sources for all of them. I was surprised to learn that Gatsby does not drink because he saw how Dan Cody was. After all, before he got rich, before he went to war, Gatsby was a normal person.

The second part of this chapter was quite different than normal. Normal we'd expect Daisy to visit Gatsby but this time, Nick finds Tom Buchanan in Gatsby's house. He is as shocked as we are. Next week, Tom visits Gatsby's party and starts to suspect his wife and Gatsby are having a relationship. This is the point where Nick, along with Gatsby knows that this will not work, even though Gatsby fails to admit it. Nick realizes that the dream Gatsby has and is trying to realize is already with Gatsby meeting Daisy again. This can relate closely to the theme of the American Dream. They both have failed because they were not really there in the first place. Gatsby could never go back to those times with Daisy a long time has passed between now and then. They weren't rich back then and Daisy didn't need to be pleased with money but now that has changed. And the fact that Gatsby has to get money to get Daisy on his side shows to me that this relationship is done before it has even begun. Yet, Gatsby rejects this and keeps on believing that Daisy will leave Tom and come running back into Gatsby's arms. Now for the confrontation between Tom Buchanan and Gatsby...

Chapter 5 - Tea with Daisy

I saw in this chapter how hopelessly in love Gatsby is. He knows that what he is asking of Nick is not totally okay, but he still wants him and so Gatsby offers Nick a trimming of his grass. We can tell by the author's writing that he is very nervous. Gatsby is seriously in love with Daisy and he wants to meet her as soon as he can. He even offers Nick a job with Meyer Wolfshiem to make him invite Daisy over for tea.

The end of the chapter was very interesting for me. The fact that Nick realizes right away that this is all a dream that Gatsby wants to recreate was very interesting for me. I hope to learn more about what happens to this dream later on in the book. But considering the themes, this dream is not going to end well for Gatsby. This is obvious to me because Nick also thinks about how Daisy could live up to Gatsby's dream. As he tells Daisy about why he bought this house I was very surprised that it was because he would be across the sea from Daisy.

In this chapter, Fitzgerald explicitly tells us about the symbol that is the green light that Gatsby reaches towards. He tells us this through Gatsby's talk with Daisy. Gatsby tells Daisy that he sees this as his hopes to be with her one day in the future and to see her again.

The climate changes in the chapter were also significant since they were directly related to what happened throughout the chapter. It is raining when they first meet and later on gets sunnier, just like their relationship, getting better with time. I am very eager to see how Gatsby's dream is going to develop.

Chapter 4 - Lunch with Gatsby

This is the chapter that Nick learns about everything that goes on. He learns that Gatsby actually is in love with Daisy form a past affair they have had earlier in their lives before Gatsby went to war. Gatsby's aim for throwing all the parties is revealed in this chapter, which I believe is the most interesting part of the chapter. It was also important that we saw how Gatsby told Nick his love for Daisy as a sign of his personality. This shows that he is actually shy about his love for Daisy.

Learning that Gatsby throws all these parties for the hope that Daisy will show up one day is interesting for me since we had not seen Gatsby's this side; the side which he keeps his feelings and all his past memories.  We also learn more about Gatsby's past and how he has become what he is. We also learn more about Gatsby when we see him meet with Meyer Wolfshiem: the guy who fixed the World's Series. We learn more about his wealth and about what he does. His acquaintance with Wolfshiem shows us that he might be involved in some illegal business and that maybe he is not as innocent as we thought he was. 

Nick's view of the whole issue, is also very interesting. He is disappointed when he learns he has to meet Jordan Baker to learn about Gatsby's issue. He is also willing to arrange a meeting between the two but is not very happy about it. I was impressed by the chapter overall, because it gave us more information on al the characters, such as the last scene where Jordan and Nick kiss. This was a great chapter in the sense that it sets events in motion since Gatsby's intentions are revealed and that we know Daisy and Tom's marriage is superb, I get the feeling that something might happen. But overall this chapter was a great one. It also was successful in merging the two storylines, Tom and Daisy and Gatsby.

Chapter 3 - Meeting Gatsby

Gatsby is the type of person I would want to have as a neighbor. With parties he throws, the hospitality he has, I would try to get on his good side. I would try to meet him as soon as possible. But no, this is not what Nick thinks he should do. Hey! when he first meets Gatsby, he doesn't even recognize him! But I like Gatsby's spirit at this point and how he will treat anyone with equal sincerity. He seems like a very warm blooded person, inviting Nick to hydroplane the very next day.

Even though there wasn't much going on through the chapter, I liked learning about the one thing that Nick has been talking about since the beginning of the novel; Gatsby's parties. Nick is finally involved in one these parties and observes everything quite clearly. Even though he doesn't know almost anyone in person, he always has something to say about them. I really liked the fact that even though people say things about Gatsby, Nick doesn't really care about them and never actually believes they are true. I like how the author gave the feeling that Nick was quite isolated even though he in a huge group of wealthy people. Talking about Jordan not being around, I really am curious about what Gatsby talked to Jordan about.

I like Gatsby's character up to this point. Even though it doesn't seem so, Gatsby has a mysterious character! He gives huge parties, but he never really drinks, or gets involved in the parties. I would like to know what Gatsby's motivations are. Why he throws these parties every weekend, while he doesn't even seem to enjoy them himself. On the other hand, his past also remains a mystery to the reader. Even though we hear all sorts of things about Gatsby from other people around Nick, I was never convinced that any of them were true. We have yet to learn about Gatsby's true past.

At this point, the book has transformed into something new and is, for now, following Gatsby's life rather than Daisy and Tom. The author had a discreet transition between these characters in question. I like the fact the I met Gatsby in this chapter. I also look forward to learning about what Gatsby asked Jordan Baker.

Chapter 2 - The Eastern Life

The first thing I noticed about the second chapter, was that even though we were progressing through the story, I had not met the character that the novel was named after; Jay Gatsby. Even though we hear Jordan Baker mention his name, and we see him reach out to green light at night, we still have not gotten a chance to be introduced to this man in person.

Chapter 2 starts out with the introduction of the two main symbols in the book. The valley of ashes and the eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg are introduced to the reader almost simultaneously. Contrary to the first chapter, this one was more fun to read and was also more fluent. At this point in the book, somethings actually started to happen and Nick was involved in them. This was the first time in the book where we met the actual people that live in New York. We took a closer look at Tom and Myrtle's relationship and why they do this to their partners. The fact that Tom hits Myrtle when she mentions Daisy goes to prove that Tom still is in love with Daisy and what Myrtle says about them being in real love is a complete lie for Tom.

The part that I was also interested in was the party that Nick attended. He was a complete stranger in the environment, like the reader, so we were able to obtain some good information about what is going on at the party. The one thing I wondered was how the people found alcohol during probation. Unfortunately I did not get an answer for the question. Overall, I feel like to book is starting get exciting as we move more into the Eastern lifestyle and as Nick gets t converse with other. Although, I still have no idea what the plot will be about I hope to meet Gatsby in person in this new chapter.

Chapter 1 - Details, Details and more Details

If I had to say two things about the first chapter, I'd use the words details and big words. The first few pages of the book, made me want to drop it and just go swimming instead. I had to try very hard not to. Up to the point where Nick goes to Daisy's house, the chapter was quite weird. The first chapter, wuite frankly, was very boring for me.  Nick describing his past and how he came to live in West Egg, are way more descriptive than needed. I think having less description could also help the flow of the events, and make the book more easy to understand and, truth be told, more exciting to read. I found that some words used in the first chapter were hard to understand. Maybe it is the style of the author, or the way books are supposed to be written back in Fitzgerald's day, but  I found the style quite different than what I'm used to in other books.

Although I'm not at all impressed with the style, I have come to like a few things presented in the first chapter. First of them were the ideas about the 1920s life in the East. For example, even though everyone knows that Tom Buchanan has a mistress, nobody does anything to prevent it or to confront Tom about it. Not even Daisy. The other things that interested me most were more about the author's ideas and how he used symbols in the book to explain things. The green light, that Nick sees Gatsby reach for, is an obvious symbol, one which I am sure will be repeated throughout the book.

Finally, one of the most impressive quotes I've read in a long time. The first time that Nick actually talks about Gatsby, he says "Gatsby turned out all right in the end. It was what preyed on Gatsby, what foul dust floated in the wake of his dreams that temporarily closed out my interest in the abortive sorrows and shortwinded elations of men." This is one the best quotations I have heard in a long time. Plus, the fact that Nick actually tells us how Gatsby will turn out in the end adds to the plot of the book. Moreover, it makes the reader think more about Gatsby's personality. So I hope the second chapter will consist of less detail and more events.

(P)Reflection

I've been wanting to read his book for a long time now. I've already started to read it twice, but somehow forgot about it before I could finish it. So when I learned that we were going to read it for the summer, I was quite excited! Because this time, I can't just toss it aside and forget about it. I actually HAVE to finish what I started this time. Knowing that this book is mostly about the American dream, and how untrue it is, I wanted to learn more about it. Because I had some information about the book from before, I knew that it gave very specific detail. Other than this, I believe I had nothing else in mind about the book. Another reason I'd like to read this book, is simply because I love reading classics. I like thinking about the main themes of the book and to think items as symbols, and what they represent. Hopefully, this book will be worth the wait!