The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
"The Great Gatsby," a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald first published in 1925, is set in the summer of 1922, primarily in New York City and Long Island. The story follows Nick Carraway, a young bond salesman who moves to West Egg and becomes embroiled in the lives of his wealthy neighbors. Central to the narrative is the enigmatic Jay Gatsby, known for his lavish parties and mysterious background. The plot explores themes of love, wealth, and the American Dream, particularly through Gatsby's obsession with his former love, Daisy Buchanan, who is unhappily married to Tom Buchanan.
As Nick navigates the complexities of the relationships around him, he witnesses both the glitz of the affluent lifestyle and the underlying moral decay. The novel culminates in tragedy, reflecting the social tensions of the time, including issues of class and infidelity. Since its publication, "The Great Gatsby" has achieved classic status in American literature, significantly influencing popular culture with numerous adaptations for stage and film. Its exploration of the Jazz Age and the disillusionment that followed continues to resonate with contemporary audiences, inviting diverse interpretations and discussions.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
FIRST PUBLISHED: 1925
TYPE OF WORK: Novel
TYPE OF PLOT: Social realism
TIME OF PLOT: 1922
LOCALE: New York City and Long Island, New York
Principal Characters
- Nick Carrawaya young bond salesman
- Daisy Buchananhis cousin
- Tom Buchananher husband
- Myrtle WilsonTom’s mistress
- Jay Gatsbya racketeer of the 1920s
The Story
Young Nick Carraway decides to forsake the hardware business of his family in the Midwest in order to sell bonds in New York City. He takes a small house in West Egg on Long Island and there becomes involved in the lives of his neighbors. At a dinner party at the home of Tom Buchanan, he renews his acquaintance with Tom’s wife, Daisy, a distant cousin, and he meets an attractive young woman, Jordan Baker. Almost at once he learns that Tom and Daisy are not happily married. It appears that Daisy knows her husband is unfaithful.
Nick soon learns to despise the drive to the city through unkempt slums; particularly, he hates the ash heaps and the huge commercial signs. He is far more interested in the activities of his wealthy neighbors. Near his house lives Jay Gatsby, a mysterious man of great wealth. Gatsby entertains lavishly, but his past is unknown to his neighbors.
One day, Tom takes Nick to call on his mistress, a dowdy, plump, married woman named Myrtle Wilson, whose husband, George Wilson, operates a second-rate automobile repair shop. Myrtle, Tom, and Nick go to the apartment that Tom keeps, and there the three are joined by Myrtle’s sister Catherine and Mr. and Mrs. McKee. The party settles down to an afternoon of drinking, Nick unsuccessfully doing his best to escape.
A few days later, Nick attends another party, one given by Gatsby for a large number of people famous in speakeasy society. Food and liquor are dispensed lavishly. Most of the guests have never seen their host before. At the party, Nick meets Gatsby for the first time. Gatsby, in his early thirties, looks like a healthy young roughneck. He is offhand, casual, and eager to entertain his guests as extravagantly as possible. Frequently he is called away by long-distance telephone calls. Some of the guests laugh and say that he is trying to impress them with his importance.
That summer, Gatsby gives many parties. Nick goes to all of them, enjoying each time the society of people from all walks of life who appear to take advantage of Gatsby’s bounty. From time to time, Nick meets Jordan there and when he hears that she has cheated in an amateur golf match, his interest in her grows.
Gatsby takes Nick to lunch one day and introduces him to a man named Wolfshiem, who seems to be Gatsby’s business partner. Wolfshiem hints at some dubious business deals that betray Gatsby’s racketeering activities, and Nick begins to identify the sources of some of Gatsby’s wealth.
Later, Jordan tells Nick the strange story of Daisy’s wedding. Before the bridal dinner, Daisy, who seldom drank, became wildly intoxicated and kept reading a letter that she had just received and crying that she had changed her mind. After she became sober, however, she went through with her wedding to Tom without a murmur. The letter was from Jay Gatsby. At the time, Gatsby was poor and unknown; Tom was rich and influential. Gatsby is still in love with Daisy, however, and he wants Jordan and Nick to bring Daisy and him together again. It is arranged that Nick will invite Daisy to tea the same day he invites Gatsby. Gatsby awaits the invitation nervously.
On the eventful day, it rains. Determined that Nick’s house should be presentable, Gatsby sends a man to mow the wet grass; he also sends flowers for decoration. The tea is a strained affair at first, and both Gatsby and Daisy are shy and awkward in their reunion. Afterward, they go to Gatsby’s mansion, where he shows them his furniture, clothes, swimming pool, and gardens. Daisy promises to attend his next party. When Daisy disapproves of his guests, Gatsby stops entertaining. The house is shut up and the usual crowd turned away.
Gatsby eventually informs Nick of his origin. His true name is Gatz, and he was born in the Midwest. His parents were poor. When he was a boy, he became the protégé of a wealthy old gold miner and accompanied him on his travels until the old man died. He changed his name to Gatsby and daydreamed of acquiring wealth and position. In the war, he distinguished himself. After the war, he returned penniless to the States, too poor to marry Daisy, whom he had met during the war. Later, he became a partner in a drug business. He was lucky and accumulated money rapidly. He tells Nick that he acquired the money for his Long Island residence after three years of hard work.
The Buchanans give a quiet party for Jordan, Gatsby, and Nick. The group drives into the city and takes a room in a hotel. The day is hot, and the guests are uncomfortable. On the way, Tom, driving Gatsby’s new yellow car, stops at Wilson’s garage. Wilson complains because Tom did not help him in a projected car deal. He says he needs money because he is selling out and taking his wife, whom he knows to be unfaithful, away from the city.
At the hotel, Tom accuses Gatsby of trying to steal his wife and also of being dishonest. He seems to regard Gatsby’s low origin with more disfavor than his interest in Daisy. During the argument, Daisy sides with both men by turns. On the ride back to the suburbs, Gatsby drives his own car, accompanied by Daisy, who temporarily will not speak to her husband.
Following them, Nick, Jordan, and Tom stop to investigate an accident in front of Wilson’s garage. They discover an ambulance picking up the dead body of Myrtle, struck by a hit-and-run driver in a yellow car. They try in vain to help Wilson and then go on to Tom’s house, convinced that Gatsby had struck Myrtle.
Nick learns that night from Gatsby that Daisy was driving when the woman was hit. Gatsby, however, is willing to take the blame if the death should be traced to his car. He explains that a woman rushed out as though she wanted to speak to someone in the yellow car, and Daisy, an inexpert driver, ran her down and then collapsed. Gatsby drove on.
In the meantime, Wilson, having traced the yellow car to Gatsby, appears on the Gatsby estate. A few hours later, both he and Gatsby are discovered dead. He shot Gatsby and then killed himself Nick tries to make Gatsby’s funeral respectable, but only one among all of Gatsby’s former guests attends along with Gatsby’s father, who thought his son had been a great man. None of Gatsby’s racketeering associates appear.
Shortly afterward, Nick learns of Tom’s part in Gatsby’s death. Wilson had visited Tom and, with the help of a revolver, forced him to reveal the name of the owner of the hit-and-run car. Nick vows that his friendship with Tom and Daisy is ended. He decides to return to his people in the Midwest.
In Popular Culture
In the decades after its publication, and in particular following author F. Scott Fitzgerald's death in 1940, the reputation of The Great Gatsby gradually grew until it acquired the status of a classic of American literature. During World War II (1939–45), the novel's popularity was boosted by its inclusion in a series of free books distributed to soldiers in the US military by the Council on Books in Wartime. The Great Gatsby also came to be widely included in school curricula throughout the US.
The novel was also adapted many times for both the stage and screen, starting with a 1926 stage adaptation that later served as a film, later lost, that was released the same year. In subsequent decades other film adaptations followed, including three released under the title The Great Gatsby: a 1949 adaptation starring Alan Ladd as Gatsby, a 1974 film starring Robert Redford as Gatsby, and a 2013 adaptation starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby. Some of the film and stage adaptations enjoyed a positive critical reception; for example, a 2024 musical adaptation of the novel earned a Tony Award nomination for best costume design for a musical.
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