Great gatsby study guide questions and answers pdf

Themes All Themes. Symbols All Symbols. Theme Wheel. Everything you need for every book you read. The way the content is organized and presented is seamlessly smooth, innovative, and comprehensive. A concise biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald plus historical and literary context for The Great Gatsby. In-depth summary and analysis of every chapter of The Great Gatsby. Visual theme-tracking, too. Explanations, analysis, and visualizations of The Great Gatsby 's themes.

The Great Gatsby 's important quotes, sortable by theme, character, or chapter. Description, analysis, and timelines for The Great Gatsby 's characters. Explanations of The Great Gatsby 's symbols, and tracking of where they appear. An interactive data visualization of The Great Gatsby 's plot and themes. Brief Biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald F. Scott Fitzgerald grew up in Minnesota, attended a few private schools where his performance was mediocre , and went to Princeton University.

In , Princeton put Fitzgerald on academic probation. He enlisted in the Army. On base in Alabama in , he met and fell in love with Zelda Sayre, who refused to marry him unless he could support her. He returned to New York to pursue fame and fortune. The publication of his first novel, This Side of Paradise , in , made Fitzgerald a literary star.

He married Zelda one week later. Though now considered his masterpiece, the novel sold only modestly. The Fitzgeralds returned to the United States in Fitzgerald published several more novels, including Tender is the Night , but none matched the success of his first.

Deep in debt because of their ritzy lifestyle, the Fitzgeralds began to spiral into alcoholism and mental illness. Fitzgerald died of a heart attack on December 21, Zelda died eight years later in a fire. Jazz is an American style of music marked by its complex and exuberant mix of rhythms and tonalities. The Great Gatsby portrays a similarly complex mix of emotions and themes that reflect the turbulence of the times. He admits that he was born into wealth, attended a prestigious university, and traveled the world.

Assuming that the driver was Gatsby himself, Wilson decided to kill him. But such a tragic ending is just a simple misunderstanding. The first lines of the book introduce the reader to the narrator, as well as explain his perspective on the events. Nick Carraway, a bond salesman from a wealthy family, reflects on his past. By leaving his readers with an empty feeling, Fitzgerald communicates several messages.

Finally, the author invites his readers to discuss the personal perception of their past and future. Jordan Baker uses the change of seasons as a metaphor for new beginnings in life.

She tries to cheer up Daisy, who is depressed and tired of life. His efforts to bring it back are barely worth it. He is extravagant, like his parties, but he is also incredibly lonely. Many people around refer to him as a gorgeous person. In fact, he is immature and has no knowledge of the world he became a part of. Jay Gatsby has made a name for himself among wealthy socialites. In the book, he throws lavish parties every other weekend. However, Gatsby remains mysterious to his party guests.

They believe he might be a German spy, a bootlegger, and a war hero. Moreover, some believe he is a relative of the Kaiser. He is rumored to have killed people as well! The reason Gatsby stops giving parties is that he wants to spend more time with Daisy.

Besides, he had to do without being suspicious. So, the purpose of the events disappears once Daisy accepts his affection. Therefore, he holds back from parties in favor of in-person communication. Why, of course, you can! The character noticed that the storm was coming. So, he decided to warn the sailor about the bad weather. While being thankful for the notice, Cody started a conversation with Jay and offered him a job.

Nick is a first-person narrator in the novel. It appears to be as pompous as its owner. Nick calls Tom and Daisy careless because their lifestyle is free of any problems.

Sure, they have challenging situations, but they leave all the unsatisfying stuff behind and move on. Nick has different life values and sees Tom and Daisy as spoiled children. Unlike others, he knows how to distinguish the real from the fake. He is astonished that in a world of false, the only real thing is books. This excerpt indicates the fact that he is not content with the lifestyle he has in his homeland. The Great Gatsby appears to be the tragic story of a person who possessed everything, yet had nothing.

Jay Gatsby is an extravagant rich man who very quickly earned a fortune doing some illegal business. Many people are truly amazed by him. But he is still a lost child who has no idea how to live in the world and be himself. The story shows the societal decadence due to the overall prosperity.

In historical context, it was brought by the industrial revolution. The first thing that Nick tells about himself is that he refrains from passing judgment on others. The Great Gatsby is written from the first-person perspective. Nick Carraway narrates the events of the novel in first-person, but he is not a reliable narrator. In general, it can be stated that Nick is not a quite reliable narrator due to several reasons.

For instance, he may not be present during a significant event. Nick might not be a trustworthy character. So, he always receives much attention from literary critiques. Everyone tries to understand his role in the story. In chapter 6, Gatsby reveals that he wants to reunite with Daisy. He wishes to forget the fact that she was with Tom for the last five years.

He is willing to pretend that these years never existed, and their relationship was continuous and wholesome. Gatsby was surprised by the fact that Daisy has a child as he saw her as a daydream rather than a woman. The main character was deeply in love with a dream girl who barely had flesh. So, she could not possibly be associated with such earthly aspects as childbearing. Foreshadowing is a powerful literary device that Fitzgerald used to keep the reader intrigued!

At the end of chapter 1, Nick sees Gatsby standing at the shore, trembling. He was stretching out his arms and into the distance towards a green light. In The Great Gatsby, there are several love stories that are intertwined.

Gatsby loves Daisy, she loves both Gatsby and her husband, her husband Tom loves Myrtle, but she is married to George. But the most exciting love triangle is between Gatsby, Daisy, and Tom. It is just strange that Daisy chose a man who never loved her.

Jay Gatsby was born James Gatz and changed his name when he was seventeen. He did it to tailor it to his new lifestyle and reflect his wish to obtain wealth and status. Daisy and Tom Buchanan are a perfect match for each other. They deserve each other since both spouses are obsessed with wealth and luxury.

Daisy cries because she has never seen such beautiful shirts, and their appearance makes her emotional. The scene solidifies her character and her treatment of Gatsby. She is vain and self-serving, only concerned with material goods. After failing to complete his education, he decided to start a new life.

Gatsby invents an alternative story about himself to become a different man he dreamed of being. Accompanied by live jazz orchestras, they were typical for that period. Fitzgerald reflects on the material values and the struggle to get a higher social class in the book. It appears to be a popular idiomatic expression, but with a much deeper meaning. The quote has a symbolic meaning of carelessness towards life from Jordan and other residents in East Egg.

Besides, it is a foreshadowing element of the climax of the novel. Nick Carraway is one of the main characters in The Great Gatsby. However, it is clear that any criticism coming from Nick is not intentional. Overall, he is a pretty reliable narrator.

Nick shares the social circle with Daisy and Tom, who he knows from his youth. He remembers Tom from his time at Yale, and Daisy is his cousin, who he visited after the war.

The man is a wealthy acquaintance of his. He is noted to be arrogant, broad, and muscular, with an imposing build.

Myrtle shows a lot of liveliness and vitality in the beginning. But she becomes more artificial and reserved after putting on a different dress. Myrtle Wilson does not have a central role in the narrative of The Great Gatsby.

However, she is still an essential part of the novel. It is evident that Myrtle is lively and eccentric, unlike Daisy.

However, the readers can sense that she is not much of an intellectual. Hundreds of people enjoying drinks and gossip till early morning. And these events served one principal purpose. And its success is measured by the extent to which she likes it. There are several ways in which the movie by Baz Luhrmann differs from the classic novel. The story portrayed in the film departs from the original text in different scenes. For instance, they are at the very beginning and during the apartment party.

Nevertheless, the movie production team did a great job of depicting the classic story. Gatsby wants to rekindle his relationship with Daisy, who is now married to Tom. At the same moment, the love triangle decides to rule out the situation between each other. However, it is contradictory because all this greatness cannot provide him with the only thing he needs — love. Jordan, having spent most of her life in the East Egg, at some point got tired from the company she was spending time with.

East Egg was the part of Long Island where old money was living. So the surroundings there were quite monotonous, leaving Jordan no choice but to crave new emotions. Furthermore, Jordan was always followed by a young man who was showing too much affection to her. Daisy is the person who causes the death of Myrtle Wilson. However, this truth stays unrevealed. Daisy drives the car, which belongs to Gatsby, at this tragic moment.

And he is determined to protect her and takes the blame upon himself. The author of The Great Gatsby introduces the narrator with this phrase. Nick is a modest and courteous person. It evokes sympathy for Nick among readers. Besides, this quote highlights social issues. One of them is that wealth provides prospects. The actual cause of the issue between Jordan Baker and Nick is simple to understand.

For Jordan, it only matters how Nick treated her. He realizes she and the people of her social circle are egoistic and quite ruthless. The first time Nick sees Gatsby when going back home from a party at the Buchanan house. He notices Gatsby mysteriously standing on the lawn with his hands stretched forward. It seems like he was watching the stars, but then it becomes clear that he glazes at the green light.

Nick is thinking about whether he should introduce himself to the new neighbor. She feels bad not because she dislikes the party, but because she enjoys it more than her own life.