Chapter 4 – Gatsby’s Car

1. Sensory imagery to reveal Nick’s true judgements of Gatsby

2. Symbol of Gatsby’s car
3. Gatsby’s Façade  theme of lies and deceit

Introduction

This extract is from Chapter … of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel “The Great Gatsby”. The
novel follows the narration of Nick Caraway who is used to provide insight into J. Gatsby’s
decadent lifestyle through exploring themes of wealth, society and class and materialism.
Gatsby’s story is focused around his impossible love and obsession for Daisy Buchanan.
Fitzgerald This extract explores the moment in the novel where Gatsby came Nick's house
without notice in his car and invited him to lunch. Fitzgerald provides us with a

Rolls Royce – movement towards new technology = new money

Introduction for Gatsby:

‘The Great Gatsby’ is a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and published 1925. This novel
follows a cast of characters living in the town of East and West egg during the summer of
1922. It is primarily focused around Jay Gatsby’s decadent lifestyle and his obsessive,
unobtainable, unexplainable love for the debutant Daisy Buchanan. Fitzgerald explores the
theme of decadence, resistance to change, social class, and excess which creates a portrait
of the roaring 20’s and the failure of the American Dream. This extract is “….” and it during
the “….” part of the novel.

After attending several of Gatsby’s parties, gone on the hydroplane with him, Gatsby had
decided to come to Nick's house without notice on his car and invite him to lunch. In this
extract, we are provided with a detailed description of Gatsby’s luxurious car as well as the
conversation he has with Nick about his family origins and his upcoming. Through this
extract, Fitzgerald is able to capture themes of New money vs Old Money as well as the
themes of identity. Fitzgerald is also able to show Nick’s unbiased judgement but at the same
time presenting the concern for his unreliability.

Gatsby’s Car is a symbol of Gatsby himself

swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hat-boxes and supper-boxes
and tool-boxes and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that mirrored a dozen suns.
Sitting down behind many layers of glass in a sort of green leather conservatory, we started to
town.

"swollen" and "monstrous"

- have quite negative connotations, especially to describe such a "gorgeous" vehicle
- alerting us to the fact that something more is going on here.
- "Swollen" is often used in connection to some kind of infection or illness, and
"monstrous" connotes something grotesque, deformed.
- We imagine someone who is puffed up, someone who has made something of
themselves that is completely different from who they really are.
 - Gatsby himself has become larger and stranger by his acquisition of all the material
goods that seem to swell his car and draw attention to his giant size.

'rich cream color, bright xwith nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length
with triumphant hatboxes and supper-boxes and tool-boxes’

- The Rolls Royce is over the top, excessive, and meant to impress.
- fits Gastby's personality and persona - all for show.
- But this type of wealth is tacky and so will never be accepted by the old money.
- It tries too hard. From this perspective, the car symbolizes that Gatsby will always be
an outsider.
- “Nickel” a type of metal but also a coin from the US currency
- atsby's car symbolizes his place in society; he has money, but he will never be
accepted in Daisy's world of old family names and inherited wealth.
-

the car symbolizes Gatsby's downfall, as the car will crash and kill Myrtle. In the end,
Gatsby, for all this wealth, will come to ruin as well.

Gatsby’s façade

“labyrinth, of windshields that mirrored a dozen suns. Sitting behind many layers of
glass.”
- multi-layered glass seems like beautiful ways to distract or hide.
- Instead of clearly revealing the person within (G), they mirror "a dozen suns,"
protecting the identity within the labyrinth.
- Just as the car's windshields hide its driver, so does Gatsby's elaborate persona.

Try to prove by “the son of some wealthy people in the Middle West- all dead now”

 Refers to his wealthy family as “some” which suggests an emotional detachment. Suspicion
 Shows Gatsby’s facade as no real detail is presented about his family
 “all dead now” is awkward phrasing further showing no emotional attachment

“hurried the phrase educated at Oxford, or swallowed it, or choked on it as though it had
bothered him before.”

 Hurrying the phrase suggests his lack of confidence in himself and his fear of being
questioned
 foreshadows his downfall as it occurs when he is finally questioned about it and his disguise
falls apart
 He is also trying to force himself to believe it and accept it showing his fear and struggle

Throughout the extract, Fitzgerald is able to develop of perspective of Nick which begins to question
and doubt Gatsby for who he really is but then is drawn back to a belief of Gatsby’s story.
Nicks perception of Gatsby

In all the times he had spoken to Gatsby in the past month, “he had little to say”

 Contrasts to the strong confident image

 connotes a sense of insecurity in being judged for what he says
 May be because Gatsby is afraid of ruining things with Daisy

Gatsby lack of speech led to his “undefined consequence gradually fading” to Nick until he was
“simply the proprietor of an elaborate house next door”

 Nick’s sense of disappointment in Gatsby as he had picture him to be so much more

 Nick does not reserve judgement for Gatsby at this point- Shows he is little and insignificant,
Reliable

“He looked at me sideways- and I knew why Jordan Baker had believed he was lying”

 Nick realises that Gatsby may be lying

 theme of appearance vs reality as listening to Gatsby instead of looking at him, Nick begins to
doubt everything

Nick’s doubtful perspective is quick to change “ I suspected that he was pulling my leg, but a
glance at him convinced me otherwise.”

 Suspicion is quickly abrupted once he gives Gatsby a glance

 Power Gatsby’s appearance has over Nick due to his admiration
 the theme of appearance and reality as Gatsby’s appearance is enough to convince Nick-
Unreliable naïve