The Great Gatsby Comprehensive Review

This flashcard set covers the key characters, primary symbols, central themes, historical context, and advanced vocabulary words found in the study of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.

Jay Gatsby

Born James Gatz; a self-made millionaire who threw lavish parties to attract Daisy; deeply delusional about his ability to repeat the past.

Nick Carraway

The narrator; Gatsby's neighbor; Daisy's cousin; describes himself as "one of the few honest people that I have ever known."

Daisy Buchanan

Gatsby's golden obsession; Tom’s wife; shallow and careless; famously hopes her daughter will be a "beautiful little fool."

Tom Buchanan

Daisy’s wealthy, brutal, and racist husband; has a blatant affair with Myrtle Wilson; represents the arrogant, old-money elite.

Jordan Baker

Daisy’s friend and Nick’s romantic interest; a cynical, dishonest professional golfer who represents the modern "flapper" era.

Myrtle Wilson

Tom's mistress and George's wife; desperately wants to escape her lower-class life; is accidentally run over and killed by Gatsby's car.

George Wilson

Myrtle’s husband; a lifeless mechanic in the Valley of Ashes; acts as the executioner when he murders Gatsby and kills himself.

Meyer Wolfsheim

Gatsby’s business partner; a notorious underworld gambler who famously fixed the 1919 World Series; symbolizes Gatsby's criminal ties.

"Can’t repeat the past? …Why of course you can!"

Quote by Jay Gatsby showing his tragic obsession with recreating his past romance with Daisy.

"I hope she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool."

Quote by Daisy Buchanan revealing her cynical view of how women survive in her shallow social world.

"They’re a rotten crowd… You’re worth the whole damn bunch put together."

The final thing Nick Carraway says to Gatsby, showing his ultimate loyalty.

"It was a careless powerful pattern that made their cars… They were careless people, Tom and Daisy…"

Quote by Nick Carraway reflecting on how the ultra-wealthy destroy lives and retreat into money.

The Green Light

Situated at the end of Daisy’s dock; symbolizes Gatsby's hopes, dreams, and unattainable longing for the future and for Daisy.

The Valley of Ashes

The bleak industrial wasteland between West Egg and NYC; symbolizes the moral decay, poverty, and social dumping ground of the wealthy.

The Eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg

A fading billboard in the Valley of Ashes; symbolizes the eyes of God watching over a morally bankrupt and corrupt society.

The Color Green

Symbolizes the future, hope, money, wealth, and the elusive American Dream.

The Color Yellow/Gold

Symbolizes authentic, established "old money" wealth (gold) mixed with corruption, decay, and cheap imitation (yellow).

The Color White

Symbolizes facade purity, innocence, and upper-class femininity (heavily associated with Daisy and Jordan's clothing).

The American Dream

The idea that anyone can succeed through hard work; the novel argues that it has become corrupted by a relentless pursuit of wealth.

Old Money vs. New Money

The rigid social divide between East Egg (inherited wealth, cruel manners) and West Egg (earned wealth, vulgar behavior).

The Roaring Twenties / Jazz Age

The historical era of the 1920s characterized by economic prosperity, illegal speakeasies, jazz music, and a rebellion against traditional morals.

Prohibition

The 18th Amendment that banned alcohol, which directly created the rise of bootlegging and organized crime (how Gatsby made his fortune).

Zelda Fitzgerald

F. Scott Fitzgerald's beautiful, volatile wife; she was his muse for Daisy Buchanan, and their turbulent lifestyle mirrored the novel.

The "Lost Generation"

A term for the generation of writers who came of age during WWI, disillusioned by the war's violence and the emptiness of modern consumerism.

Feigned

Pretended, faked, or counterfeited.

Supercilious

Arrogant, haughty, and looking down on others (heavily used to describe Tom).

Fractiousness

Unruliness, irritability, or quarrelsomeness.

Colloquial

Casual, informal, conversational language.

Languid

Lacking energy; slow, relaxed, or lazy (used to describe Jordan and Daisy on the couch).

Infinitesimal

Immeasurably small; microscopic.

Vacuous

Empty; lacking intelligence or thought; mindless (used to describe the party guests).

Corpulent

Fat, bulky, or stout (Nick is surprised Gatsby is not a corpulent man).

Somnambulatory

Related to sleepwalking; done in a trancelike state (used to describe Wolfsheim's habits).

Nebulous

Hazy, vague, indistinct, or cloudy.

Meretricious

Apparently attractive but having in reality no value; cheap and gaudy.

Vicarious

Experienced in the imagination through the feelings or actions of another person.

Garrulous

Excessively talkative, especially on trivial matters (used to describe the neighborhood gossip after the accident).

Amorphous

Without a clearly defined shape or form; shapeless.