STUDY QUESTIONS

1. Explain Nick Carraway's conflict and how it is resolved.

2. Give examples of Nick's morality and conservatism in the book

3. Describe Daisy Fay Buchanan. How did Gatsby meet her and why is he so attracted to her?

4. When, how, and why does Jimmy Gatz get the name of Jay Gatsby?

5. Explain Jay Gatsby's conflict and how it is resolved.

6. Compare and contrast East Egg and West Egg.

7. Who is Meyer Wolfsheim?

8. There are many parties in the book. Describe each of them and explain how each of them ends.

9. What is the Valley of Ashes and how is symbolic? Contrast the description of it to the description of New York City.

10. Who is T.J. Eckelberg? What is his significance to the novel?

11. Describe Myrtle Wilson and what happens to her.

12. What is the significance of automobiles to the story?

13. Compare and contrast Tom Buchanan and George Wilson.

14. Why is Gatsby never really corrupted by his money?

15. How does Nick judge Gatsby at the end of the book and why is it significant?

16. Describe Jordan Baker. How does Nick set things right with her before he leaves New York. Why is this important to him?

17. What is ironic about the fact that it is Wilson that murders Gatsby?

18. Describe Gatsby's funeral. Why does it help to convince Nick he has made the correct decision about returning to the Midwest?

19. What does Fitzgerald say about the American Dream in the novel?

20. Are there any parallels in the book between any of the characters and Fitzgerald and/or Zelda?

21. What things are learned through flashback in the novel?

22. How is the plot unified in spite of the many plots/sublplots and various flashbacks?

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