(PP. 35-40) Literature S3: Chapter 5 → Chapter 9 (ACADEC '25-'26)

How does Chapter 5 of The Great Gatsby start?

Nick arrives back home later at night, and Gatsby meets him outside of his house and tries to make small talk

What is the small talk Gatsby wants to make at the start of Chapter 5 of The Great Gatsby about?

Whether he’s agreed to invite Daisy for tea, so Nick says he intends to invite her over the day after next

What happens on the day of the scheduled tea between Nick and Daisy?

A gardener arrives to cut Nick’s lawn, along with a massive “greenhouse” worth of flowers—all arranged by a very nervous Gatsby

Who arranged the massive “greenhouse” worth of flowers?

A very nervous Gatsby

What does Gatsby do right before Daisy is scheduled to arrive at Nick’s for tea?

He begins panicking, insisting that she’s not coming and that he’s going to return home

When does Daisy’s car arrive at Nick’s for tea?

The instant Gatsby begins panicking and says he’s going to return home

What does Nick notice after he lets Daisy in to have tea with her?

Gatsby has left

Does Gatsby return to Nick’s house after leaving when Daisy arrives for tea?

Yes, just a few moments later, Gatsby knocks on Nick’s front door

Why did Gatsby leave suddenly when Daisy arrived for tea?

He left the house through the back and come back to be let in the front door

How does Nick feel when Gatsby leaves the back and comes in the front when Daisy is over for tea?

He’s confused

What is Daisy and Gatsby’s reunion, rather than a passionate reconnection or a joyful celebration?

It’s stiff and awkward

What does Daisy greet Gatsby with in her voice?

A “clear artificial note”

How is Gatsby positioned when he and Daisy initially meet at Nick’s house?

Gatsby stands in the living room “reclining against the mantelpiece in a strained counterfeit of perfect ease”

How is Daisy positioned when she and Gatsby initially meet at Nicks house?

Daisy sits on the couch “frightened but graceful”

What begins to take over as Daisy and Gatsby begin to warm up a bit, or at least become less awkward around each other?

A “certain physical decency” begins to take over

What does Nick discover after he leaves Gatsby and Daisy alone and spent time outside?

They’re both sitting on the couch, “looking at each other as if some question had been asked, or was in the air, and every vestige of embarrassment was gone”

What do Gatsby and Daisy do after they’re finally comfortable with each other at Nick’s house?

They return to Gatsby’s mansion, with Nick following behind

How does Gatsby seem in Daisy’s presence after they become comfortable with one another?

They both are clearly energized, but Gatsby seems reborn in Daisy’s presence

What does Nick note about Gatsby after he becomes comfortable with Daisy in Chapter 5?

Gatsby was “consumed with wonder at her presence” and that “hadn’t once ceased looking at Daisy, and [it seemed to Nick that] he revalued everything in his house according to the measure of response it drew from her well-loved eyes”

How does Daisy seem changed when she becomes comfortable with Gatsby?

Her nervousness is gone, and she is now filled with amazement at Gatsby’s mansion, particularly in his clothing

In what famous scene of The Great Gatsby is Daisy overwhelmed?

She’s overwhelmed by the quantity and quality of Gatsby’s closet

What does the scene of Daisy being overwhelmed by Gatsby’s closet demonstrate about Fitzgerald?

his talent for description, but it also tells us something about both Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship to material goods and the comforts they bring

What happens at the start of the scene where Daisy is overwhelmed by Gatsby’s closet in Chapter 5 of The Great Gatsby?

He took out a pile of shirts and began throwing them, one by one, before us

What kind of shirts did Gatsby throwing in the scene where Daisy is overwhelmed by his closet?

Shirts of sheer linen and thick silk and fine flannel, which lost their folds as they fell and covered the table in many-colored disarray; shirts with stripes and scrolls and and plaids in coral and apple-green and lavender and faint orange, with monograms of Indian blue

What kind of colors did Gatsby’s shirts have in his

How did Daisy react to Gatsby’s closet?

With a strained sound, Daisy bent her head into the shirts and began to cry stormily

What did Daisy say in reaction to Gatsby’s closet?

“They’re such beautiful shirts,” she sobbed, her voice muffled in the thick folds. “It makes me sad because I’ve never seen such—such beautiful shirts before”

What do Gatsby and Daisy achieve in Nick’s eyes at the end of Chapter 5 of The Great Gatsby?

Something closer to the physical and emotional intimacy they once shared

What does Nick notice at the end of Chapter 5 of The Great Gatsby as he eventually leaves Gatsby and Daisy alone in Gatsby’s mansion?

A large photograph of an older man hanging above Gatsby’s desk

Who is the older man hanging above Gatsby’s desk?

A man named Dan Cody, which sounds vaguely familiar to Nick

What happens at the start of Chapter 6 of The Great Gatsby?

Gatsby’s notoriety increases enough for a reporter to show up at his door asking if Gatsby is willing to share any information at all about himself

What rumors about Gatsby continued throughout the summer in Chapter 6 of The Great Gatsby?

Gatsby was said to be responsible for an underground pipeline bringing alcohol into the U.S. from Canada, as well as not actually living in his house but in a “boat that looked like a house and was moved secretly up and down the Long Island shore”

What was Gatsby rumored to be living in in Chapter 6?

A “boat that looked like a house and was moved secretly up and down the Long Island shore”

Are any of the rumors spread about Gatsby through the summer in Chapter 6 true?

No, as Nick reveals, as he recounts what Gatsby would eventually tell him about his past

Who was Jay Gatsby born as?

James Gatz

Where was Jay Gatsby actually born?

North Dakota

Where did Jay Gatsby initially claim he was born?

San Francisco

What family was Jay Gatsby born to?

Poor farmers

When did Jay Gatsby change his name?

When he was 17

Why did Jay Gatsby change his name?

He met Dan Cody

Who was Dan Cody?

A businessman and millionaire who had been sailing around the country on his yacht and who also happened to take a liking to young Gatsby

What Lake was Gatsby working odd j on when he met Dan Cody?

Lake Superior

How does Nick describe Gatsby in Chapter 6 of The Great Gatsby?

A young man who had an enormous imagination and who believed he deserved—or at least was destined for—the finest things in life

In what year did Gatsby meet Dan Cody?

1902

What is unclear about the relationship between Gatsby and Dan Cody?

The exact nature of their relationship, and Gatsby and Nick don’t define it beyond “a vague personal capacity”

What kind of relationship could Gatsby and Dan Cody have?

Boss and assistant, Partners in crime, or, as some scholars argue, lovers

What does Dan Cody do after meeting a young Gatsby?

He takes Gatsby with him around the world

What does Dan Cody leave to Gatsby?

An inheritance

What happens to the money in the inheritance Dan Cody leaves for Gatsby?

It’s swindled away under mysterious circumstances before Gatsby can receive it

When were Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald photographed at the beach?

March 1922

What beach were Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald at in March 1922?

The beach in Westport, Connecticut

What characteristic of Gatsby remains unclear throughout the novel?

The source of his wealth

Why does Nick reveal the past of Gatsby?

Because he wants to set the record straight about Gatsby’s history

What does Nick note about the time after Gatsby and Daisy’s reunion?

He doesn’t interact much with Gatsby, instead spending most of his time with Jordan

After how long does Nick visit Gatsby at home after his and Daisy’s reunion?

A few weeks

What was Nick surprised to see after visiting Gatsby after not seeing him for a few weeks?

Tom Buchanan arrives along with two friends, Mr. Sloane and an unidentified woman, who clearly see themselves as better than Gatsby

What does Gatsby mention to Tom when he visits Gatsby’s mention?

That he knows Daisy

How does Tom react to Gatsby mentioning he knows Daisy?

It upsets Tom enough that he chooses to attend Gatsby’s next party with Daisy rather than letting her attend alone

How does the party that Tom takes Daisy to appear to Nick to be, rather than a moment of triumph for Gatsby?

Hollow and embarrassing

Why is the Gatsby party that Tom takes Daisy to hollow and embarrassing?

Because Nick admits he sees it now through Daisy’s eyes, and the eyes of the truly elite

What does Tom become suspicious of Gatsby about in Chapter 6 of The Great Gatsby?

How he made his money

What is Daisy’s reaction to the Gatsby party that Tom takes Daisy to?

She’s “appalled” by the party but also attracted to its romantic possibilities: it’s a place that lacks character of life on East Egg, but also lacks the restrictions that life puts on her

Who does Gatsby find after the party is over in Chapter 6, and what do they discuss?

Nick, and they discuss whether Daisy enjoyed the party

What opinion is Gatsby convinced that Daisy held toward the party she was taken to?

That she didn’t enjoy it, and in part it’s because he is convinced that Daisy ought to fully give up her life with Tom now that they’ve reconnected

What is clear to Nick about what Gatsby wanted Daisy to say?

He “wanted nothing less of Daisy than that she go to Tom and say: ‘I never loved you.’”

What does Nick point out as probably impossible to Gatsby?

Daisy telling Tom that she never loved him

What does Nick point out about the past to Gatsby about Daisy?

That, however amazing it was, can’t be repeated

What is one of the most famous lines of The Great Gatsby?

“‘Can’t repeat the past?’ he cried incredulously. ‘Why of course you can!’”

When was one of the most famous lines in The Great Gatsby uttered?

Chapter 6

What does Nick understand that Gatsby is chasing at the end of Chapter 6?

A lost feeling, pursuing not just Daisy but the version of himself that existed when he was with Daisy

What does Chapter 7 of The Great Gatsby start with?

After his discovery that Daisy doesn’t enjoy his outlandish parties, Gatsby dismisses all his servants and waitstaff and replaces them with a smaller crew of assistants

What is the smaller crew that Gatsby hires at the start of Chapter 7 associates of?

Meyer Wolfshiem

What does Gatsby spend more time doing after calling off his parties in Chapter 7?

He spends more time with Daisy, rekindling their lost relationship and growing more emboldened in their affair together

On what day did Daisy and Gatsby kiss?

The hottest day of the summer

In what chapter do Daisy and Gatsby kiss?

Chapter 7

Who was at the Buchanan’s when Daisy and Gatsby kiss in a room next to Tom?

Jordan, Nick, Gatsby, and Tom

What does Daisy tell Gatsby after kissing him?

That she loves him

When does Tom realize what is happening between Gatsby and Daisy?

As they’re lounging in the heat

How does Tom react to realizing Gatsby and Daisy’s affair?

He becomes upset but manages to maintain his composure just enough to agree with Daisy’s suggestion that they all spend the day in NYC

What serves as the beginning of the tragic end of the Great Gatsby?

The trip into NYC in Chapter 7

What will the series of events lead to that does the trip into NYC that Chapter 7 sees initiate?

Nick’s disillusionment and the breakdown of Daisy and Gatsby’s love affair

How does Tom begin the trip to NYC in Chapter 7?

By trying to one-up Gatsby, insisting that they take 2 cars to the city but also insisting that he drive Daisy in Gatsby’s car

What 2 cars does Tom suggest they bring to NYC in Chapter 7?

Gatsby’s large, yellow car and Tom’s blue coupe

What is Tom’s suggestion in Chapter 7 clearly designed to do?

Rattle Gatsby and to assert his dominance in the relationship

How does Daisy ultimately salvage the tense moment caused by Tom’s suggestion at the start of Chapter 7?

By making Tom drive Jordan and Nick in Gatsby’s car

What intent is clear behind Tom’s suggestion in Chapter 7?

Tom is now aware of what’s going on and intends to cause a scene, one way or another

What does Tom explain to Jordan and Nick on the drive to NYC in Chapter 7?

That he’s been investigating Gatsby and uncovered some incriminating information

What do Tom, Jordan, and Nick do before they arrive in New York?

They stop for gas at George Wilson’s shop

Who is the other husband that has realized something in Chapter 7 of The Great Gatsby?

A haggard George Wilson

What does George Wilson remark to Tom as he fills up the gas tank in Chapter 7 of The Great Gatsby?

That he “just got wised up to something funny the last two days”

When does Nick realize that George doesn’t know that Tom is the man having an affair with Myrtle?

When George tells Tom that he “got wised up to something funny the last two days”

Who is watching Jordan and Tom in the car as they’re filling up with gas in Chapter 7 of The Great Gatsby?

Myrtle

What does Nick see in George, Myrtle, and Tom in Chapter 7?

What he calls “the confusion of a simple mind”

What sense does Fitzgerald clearly create in the scene at the gas station in Chapter 7?

Foreboding: Tom is angry at Gatsby, George is angry at Myrtle, Myrtle is angry at Tom, and their jealousy and rage seemed doomed to explode

Where does the group meet up and rent a room in Chapter 7 of TGG?

They meet up in the city and rent a room at the Plaza Hotel

What can be heard beneath the group in the Plaza Hotel in Chapter 7?

The celebration of a wedding in the hotel ballroom

When does the group hear the wedding celebration beneath them in Chapter 7?

While they prepare drinks in the hotel room

What creates an ironic soundtrack to the eventual conflict that erupts in Chapter 7?

The celebration of a wedding beneath the room in the Plaza Hotel

What does Tom ask Gatsby in the Plaza Hotel room?

Whether he was actually an Oxford man

What does Gatsby say to Tom asking if he’s actually an Oxford man in Chapter 7?

He says that, technically, he briefly went to Oxford after the war but only stayed for 5 months