chapter 1, the great gatsby

1) Nick uses the words hope and dream to highlight the irony of the American Dream. The American Dream does not exist, its dead.


2) I think his dad was a good man. He had money, but at the same time, he cared more about people's souls than their social class. Nick had the opportunity to go to Yale and travel in the US, but he also had to work for it. Yes, he does reserve judgement. 


3) It was June 7, 1922


4) Nick came from a respected family in Chicago, and later moved to the east coast. He went to Yale, although his family didn't drown in money. His friends are rich people, so it seems like he considers himself as one of the rich ones. He is a little snobbish!  Until now he seems to be a very honest person. He is open and we get to know what is going on.


5) Jordan Baker doesn't let other people (men) control her. She seems to be a strong woman, more like women today. In their society women weren't supposed to be like that. They were supposed to be like Daisy said "beautiful little fools". 


6) Nick was intimidated by Jordan, because she had such a strong and unusual characteristics. 


7) Tom is not a good person. In fact he is a manipulating womanizer and racist. He is rich, plays polo and is married to Daisy. Tom used to play football in college too, something that also makes him feel better than other people. He also doesn't like Jordan, because she is a woman who is successful as a golf-player. We also know that the women Tom has affairs with are in a lower social class then he is. The reason is because if anyone would find out, it wouln't matter that much, because no one cares about the lower class. 


8) Nick thinks Daisy's voice is soft and charming. When she talked to John she was mad because he didn't come to her wedding, but after that she was all happy again. This shows us that she can be fake.  


9) She said that the best thing a woman could do was to be "a beautiful little fool", which describes her perfectly. She is blonde and naive. What she is saying is that women should just be objects, sit down, look pretty, don't say anything smart... This contrasts with Jordan Baker. 


10) Tom is not a good person. He makes people feel bad, so he'll feel better. He also know that he has status because of his money. He is a very controlling person, who knows how to make people do as he wants them to do! He is an horrible husband, who cheats on her. His poor wife is even too scared (and dumb) to do anything with it. It's just wrong! He read a book called "The Ride of the Colored Empires" which is about the colored races taking over the white people. This makes him mad, which also shows how racist he is. Nick didn't really say anything about it. 


11) Nick lives on the West Egg (old money) while the Buccanhans (Tim and Daisy) live on the East Egg (new money). They do care more about people's status than what really matters.