What happens in Chapter 2 Great Gatsby?
The Great Gatsby: Chapter 2 Summary & Analysis Next Chapter 3 Themes and Colors Key Summary Analysis Nick describes a "waste land" between West Egg and New York City where the ashes from the city are dumped. The ashes cover everything, including the men who live there.
Why is Nick important in Chapter 2 Great Gatsby?
Summary and Analysis Chapter 2. Chapter 2 begins with a description of the valley of ashes, a desolate and forsaken expanse of formerly developed land that marks the intersection of the city with the suburbs. In addition to its desolate feel and uniform grayness, this forlorn area is home to a decaying billboard that calls attention to itself.
What does Gatsby tell Nick about himself?
The Great Gatsby Chapter 2 - Summary. Nick is taking the train into New York City with Tom Buchanan. Nick explains that everyone in New York knows about Tom's mistress and that Tom makes no effort at all to keep it a secret that he is cheating on his wife. The two man leave the train and walk to a car repair garage. Click to see full answer.
What is the summary for Chapter 2 taking sides?
Jan 13, 2020 · If The Great Gatsby were college, Chapter 2 would be the drunk frat party that gets way out of control, with Tom Buchanan as that guy yelling at everyone to chug. That's because this chapter is all about Tom's double life: Nick meets his mistress, gets wasted at her small apartment party in Manhattan, and gets an up close and personal view into Tom's violent …
What happened at the end of chapter 2 of The Great Gatsby?
What is the conflict in chapter 2 of The Great Gatsby?
What do we learn about Nick in chapter 2?
What mood is created in chapter 2 in The Great Gatsby?
Who is Tom's mistress?
Tom leads Nick to George Wilson's auto garage, and Nick learns that Tom's mistress is Wilson's wife, Myrtle. Wilson is good-looking, but beaten-down and lifeless and has ashes in his hair, while Myrtle strikes Nick as vibrant and oddly sensuous. Tom talks with Wilson about selling a car.
Who is Myrtle's sister?
Myrtle's sister Catherine soon shows up, as does another couple. Everyone gets very drunk, including Nick. He says the party is only the second time he's been drunk. The drunken party shows both the "fun" and hidden desperation of the Roaring Twenties.
What does the Valley of Ashes represent?
The "Valley of Ashes" represents the people left behind in the Roaring Twenties. The dust recalls Nick's reference to the "foul dust" that corrupted Gatsby. Eckleburg's eyes witness the bleakness, and represent the past that the 1920s wasted. One day, as Tom and Nick ride a train from Long Island into the city, ...
Who is Myrtle's husband?
The two men proceed to a car repair garage owned by George Wilson, a "spiritless man" who is also Myrtle's husband. Tom chats briefly with Wilson about business matters. Myrtle, a sensuous, fleshy woman in her middle thirties, joins the men.
What is the valley of ashes?
Chapter 2 begins with a description of the valley of ashes, a desolate and forsaken expanse of formerly developed land that marks the intersection of the city with the suburbs. In addition to its desolate feel and uniform grayness, this forlorn area is home to a decaying billboard that calls attention to itself. Depicted on the advertisement are the Eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg, which are described as "blue and gigantic — their retinas are one yard high." It was in the valley of ashes that Nick first meets Tom's mistress, Myrtle Wilson. The two men are headed to New York when Tom insists they get off the train in order for Nick to "meet [his] girl."
Who was the ruler of Germany in 1871?
Kaiser Wilhelm ruler of Germany, 1871-1918. Remember, the U.S. had not long prior fought WWI (1914-1918) wherein the Allies (Great Britain, Russia, France, the United States., Italy, Japan, and so on) fought against the Central Powers (Germany, Austria, Hungary, and others).
What would happen if The Great Gatsby was college?
If The Great Gatsby were college, Chapter 2 would be the drunk frat party that gets way out of control , with Tom Buchanan as that guy yelling at everyone to chug. That's because this chapter is all about Tom's double life: Nick meets his mistress, gets wasted at her small apartment party in Manhattan, and gets an up close and personal view into Tom's violent tendencies.
Why is Gatsby so rich?
According to her, Gatsby is so rich because he is Kaiser Wilhelm's cousin. Catherine then tells Nick that both Tom and Myrtle hate the people they're married to; she wonders why they don't divorced and marry each other instead. When Myrtle overhears, she says something obscene about George Wilson.
Who is George Wilson's wife?
They go to a garage owned by George Wilson, who seems to be in the middle of buying a car from Tom. Myrtle Wilson, George's wife, comes down to the garage. She isn't beautiful, but is attractive because she is plump and lively. Tom quickly makes a plan to meet her in the city.
Who is Myrtle's sister?
Then some guests come over: Myrtle's sister Catherine, as well as a photographer named McKee and his horrible wife. Myrtle lords it over her guests. The McKees fawn over her and Tom, complimenting her dress and devising ways of photographing her artistically. Tom plies them with alcohol.
Where does Tom meet Myrtle?
Tom drags Nick to meet Myrtle at Wilson's gas station, in the middle of the "valley of ashes" that is industrial Queens. They arrange to meet in Manhattan, where Myrtle hosts a little party in her apartment. Myrtle lords it over her guests and reveals how miserable she is in her marriage.
What does Tom buy Myrtle?
Myrtle decides she would like a dog, and Tom buys her a puppy from a condescending passing salesman. Nick tries to leave Tom and Myrtle, but they insist he come up to their apartment very far uptown. The apartment is small, gaudily decorated, and uncomfortable. Tom brings out a bottle of whiskey.
What does the color gray represent in the book of Fitzgerald?
Men there are gray. The houses are gray. The train tracks and the cars are all covered with an ashy gray dust, just as George Wilson’s clothes are when we see him at the garage. Gray thus becomes a symbol of death and lifelessness. Tom even goes so far as to say that George Wilson is “so dumb he doesn’t even know he’s alive.”
Where does Nick and Tom go to party?
Tom pretends to be inquiring about his business, like a friend, but Nick knows that Tom wants to see Myrtle. Sure enough, when she comes down, she sends George away to fetch a chair, and Tom whispers instructions for where she should meet him. As soon as she sneaks away, her true personality comes out, and Myrtle reveals herself to be vain, vivacious, and shallow, not unlike Tom. Her dress is tight and revealing, and on the way to the party Tom stops to buy her a magazine, cold cream, a bottle of perfume, and even a little dog. This pleases her, and she becomes self-satisfied and near insufferable as she telephones her sister and invites her to the party. It takes place in a top-floor apartment, where Nick gets drunk for the second time in his life and where Tom and Myrtle enjoy a little alone time before their guests arrive. Once the party gets into full swing, it feels like the Jazz Age: interminable and absurd, over-familiar and superficial, and completely unperturbed by the fact of Prohibition, which should in theory make the liquor they drink impossible to obtain, but in practice drives them to bootleggers and speakeasies that sell them illegal alcohol. Nick is so soaked in booze by the end of this party that he can barely get himself home.
What is 30 Rock known for?
His namesake plaza in New York City (home of the building colloquially known as “30 Rock”) is a good example of his status in the New York City financial industry and his fame in early 20th Century America.
What does Fitzgerald use cars for?
Cars. Fitzgerald uses cars to characterize two of the men in this chapter: Tom and George Wilson. George, a mechanic and garage owner, spends his entire life buying, fixing, and selling cars, most of them rundown and not worth much. Tom, on the other hand, drives a nice car, owns another one he’s thinking of selling, and wouldn’t be caught dead working in such an old and unprosperous-looking garage. Fitzgerald uses their cars to emphasize the difference in social status between these two men.
Who is Myrtle's sister?
Myrtle’s sister Catherine mentions to Nick that Gatsby might be the cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm, and that this may be where he gets his money. While untrue, this rumor is a byproduct of the mystery that surrounds Gatsby, which Fitzgerald will continue to build in subsequent chapters.
What is the valley of ashes?
The Valley of Ashes. Fitzgerald describes the landscape between East Egg and New York City as a symbolic valley of ashes where civilization has begun to decay and men shamble around in gray clothes, gray cars, and gray houses covered with ashes. This is a potent symbol of desolation and decline, and it stands in stark contrast to the opulence ...
What is the theme of the American Dream?
The American Dream. Fitzgerald continues to develop the theme of the American Dream, using the symbolic valley of ashes to show the readers what has happened to that dream in the modern era. Financial and social stratification, fueled by the rapid growth of industry in America, has left many of its citizens behind. Men like George Wilson, for instance, have no hope of bettering themselves, because the modern world leaves them no options to climb the social ladder. George Wilson owns a garage and nothing more. These men live in the ashes and nothing more. For many Americans, Fitzgerald argues, the American Dream will never be a reality. In later chapters, we’ll see how the desire to realize that dream affects the main characters.
What is the valley of ashes?
1. A “valley of ashes” is what Nick calls the industrialized area of Queens that separates West Egg from Manhattan, and it is an important symbol in The Great Gatsby. Though the ground is not literally made of ashes, its pollution gives it a gray appearance that resembles ash.
What does "growing smaller" mean?
The verb “to grow” is usually used to describe an increase in size, as well as a progression to maturity that involves some type of expansion. Therefore, to describe something as “growing smaller” is a contradiction. [19] —Owl Eyes Editors.
When did prohibition end?
As a result, from 1920 to 1933, the United States government imposed a constitutional ban on the production, distribution, and consumption of alcoholic beverages, commonly referred to as “Prohibition.”. Despite Prohibition, many continued to drink copiously.
What does "to grow" mean?
The verb “to grow” is usually used to describe an increase in size, as well as a progression to maturity that involves some type of expansion. Therefore, to describe something as “growing smaller” is a contradiction. — Owl Eyes Editors.
What is the Great Gatsby about?
Set on the prosperous Long Island of 1922, The Great Gatsby provides a critical social history of Prohibition-era America during the Jazz Age. Fitzgerald's fictional narrative fully renders that period—known for its jazz music, economic prosperity, flapper culture, libertine mores, rebellious youth, and ubiquitous speakeasies. Fitzgerald uses many of these 1920s societal developments to tell his story, from simple details like petting in automobiles to broader themes such as bootlegging as the source of Gatsby's fortune.
Where is the book The Great Gatsby set?
Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway 's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and Gatsby's obsession to reunite with his former lover, Daisy Buchanan .
Who is the narrator of The Great Gatsby?
The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway 's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and Gatsby's obsession to reunite with his former lover, Daisy Buchanan . The novel was inspired by a youthful romance Fitzgerald ...
Who designed the cover of The Great Gatsby?
Painter Francis Cugat 's final cover design greatly impressed Fitzgerald, and he incorporated aspects of it into the novel. After its publication by Scribner's in April 1925, The Great Gatsby received generally favorable reviews, though some literary critics believed it did not equal Fitzgerald's previous efforts.
What happened to Nick after Gatsby's death?
After Gatsby's death, Nick comes to hate New York and decides that Gatsby, Daisy, Tom, and he were all Midwesterners unsuited to Eastern life. Nick encounters Tom and initially refuses to shake his hand.
Where did Jay Gatsby come from?
Jay Gatsby (originally James "Jimmy" Gatz ) – a young, mysterious millionaire with shady business connections (later revealed to be a bootlegger), originally from North Dakota.
Who published The Great Gatsby?
Charles Scribner's Sons published The Great Gatsby on April 10, 1925. Fitzgerald cabled Perkins the day after publication to monitor reviews: "Any news?" "Sales situation doubtful," read a telegram from Perkins on April 20 " [but] excellent reviews". Fitzgerald responded on April 24, saying the cable dispirited him, closing the letter with "Yours in great depression". Fitzgerald had hoped the novel would be a commercial success, perhaps selling as many as 75,000 copies, but by October the book had sold fewer than 20,000 copies after its original release. Fitzgerald received letters from contemporaries Willa Cather, Edith Wharton, and poet T. S. Eliot praising the novel. Although gratified by these letters, such correspondence was private opinion, and Fitzgerald sought public acclaim from professional critics.
