Chapter 4 begins with Nick recalling a time in which he wrote down the names of all the guests that had attended Gatsby's party that summer. He does this as a way to try to degrade all the people who kindly accepted Gatsby's lavish parties but had no real desire to get to know Gatsby as a person. One day Gatsby drives up to Nick's house and invites him out for lunch. Nick notices that Gatsby is never still, always preoccupied with something unbeknownst to Nick. Gatsby is hiding a deep secret that he fears will ruin his reputation if revealed. Gatsby begins to tell Nick of his upbringing in the Midwest and his studies done in Harvard. However, when Nick asks Gatsby what part of the Midwest he's from, he answers San Francisco which is clearly on the western coast of the US. This raises questions as to the validity of his story. How can a man suddenly attain so much wealth? Gatsby talks of his time in the war and the awards he received by every country including Montenegro. So as to validate his claim and leave a good impression on Nick, Gatsby pulls out the medal he was awarded from Montenegro and a photograph of him and his Oxford pals. On their way to lunch, a policeman stops Gatsby and Gatsby proceeds to show him a white card. There is no explanation as to what the card said but it made the officer cower down and completely forget why he had stopped Gatsby in the first place. Gatsby seems to have a certain charisma that forces people to do whatever he so desires.
Once they arrive at their lunch, Gatsby introduces Nick to his friend, Mr. Wolfsheim. Mr. Wolfsheim is a mysterious character and there's a lot of ambiguity as to what he truly does. He is certainly involved in business, possibly the alcohol business considering this novel was written during prohibition. At lunch, Nick recognizes Tom Buchanan and quickly goes to introduce him to Gatsby. This is extremely awkward as Gatsby is in love with Daisy, Tom's wife. Gatsby leaves before he is actually to Tom.
After lunch with Gatsby, Nick meets up with Jordan. Jordan begins by telling him the story of Gatsby's and Daisy's past. A few years back, she was a young girl in Kentucky where Gatsby, the young soldier was stationed. Gatsby and her fell deeply in love however Daisy married Tom after Gatsby left for war. Now that Gatsby was back, he bought the house across from Daisy in order to be closer to her. He threw extravagant parties hoping that one day Daisy would be lured in. After no sign of Daisy, he hoped to find someone who knew her. When he recognized Jordan as one of her friends, he asked her if she could request for Nick to invite Daisy over and have him casually drop by. In this chapter, it becomes clear to the audience the reason for Gatsby's parties, his longing for love, and his true desires. Gatsby didn't come to West Egg to divulge in the greedy and self-absorbing lifestyles of the 20s, he came here to reconnect with Daisy. He fears that Daisy will not love him so he comes up with a fake facade that he hopes will impress Daisy. The green light at the end of the bay represents Daisy.
Once they arrive at their lunch, Gatsby introduces Nick to his friend, Mr. Wolfsheim. Mr. Wolfsheim is a mysterious character and there's a lot of ambiguity as to what he truly does. He is certainly involved in business, possibly the alcohol business considering this novel was written during prohibition. At lunch, Nick recognizes Tom Buchanan and quickly goes to introduce him to Gatsby. This is extremely awkward as Gatsby is in love with Daisy, Tom's wife. Gatsby leaves before he is actually to Tom.
After lunch with Gatsby, Nick meets up with Jordan. Jordan begins by telling him the story of Gatsby's and Daisy's past. A few years back, she was a young girl in Kentucky where Gatsby, the young soldier was stationed. Gatsby and her fell deeply in love however Daisy married Tom after Gatsby left for war. Now that Gatsby was back, he bought the house across from Daisy in order to be closer to her. He threw extravagant parties hoping that one day Daisy would be lured in. After no sign of Daisy, he hoped to find someone who knew her. When he recognized Jordan as one of her friends, he asked her if she could request for Nick to invite Daisy over and have him casually drop by. In this chapter, it becomes clear to the audience the reason for Gatsby's parties, his longing for love, and his true desires. Gatsby didn't come to West Egg to divulge in the greedy and self-absorbing lifestyles of the 20s, he came here to reconnect with Daisy. He fears that Daisy will not love him so he comes up with a fake facade that he hopes will impress Daisy. The green light at the end of the bay represents Daisy.