Chapter III

New Characters:

Gatsby’s chauffeur

A pair of stage twins

Owl-Eyes

Answer questions in writing:

1. What kinds of cars does Gatsby use to transport guests?

2. How do the guests behave?

3. What does Nick wear to the party?

4. How does Gatsby interact with the guests?

5. What observations does Owl-Eyes make about Gatsby’s library?

6. What is Nick’s first opinion of Gatsby?

7. What happens at the end of the party when guests are leaving?

8. What does Gatsby’s formal gesture of waving farewell remind us of?

9. What story does Nick recall about Jordan, and why does it suddenly come up to him?

10. How does Nick provide a contrast to Jordan?

Vocabulary focus (write your own situations (three minimum) with the words):

A moth

A ticket of admission

An amusement park

To wander…ill at ease

In the vicinity

A commuting train

A host

Whereabouts

Contempt/contemptuous

Hilarity

Familiar

On the tip of one’s tongue

Sinister

The car went into the ditch

To have an affair with smb

Dishonest/dishonesty

A rotten driver

Vocabulary list

(Present orally original situations of the novel, using the following words and phrases)

Gaudy, to ask smb.’s whereabouts, in the vicinity, to pick one’s words with care, to excuse oneself, to start on the subject, to call smb. on the wire, to be an Oxford man, to stimulate smb.’s curiosity, at the request of smb., sinister, to give smth. another thought, to go up in the hydroplane, to throw mean looks, casual events, to go places, to get out of the tangle, to be broken off, cardinal virtues.

I. Give in writing a summary of Chapter III.

II. Be ready to discuss the following:

1. Speak on the atmosphere of huge, extravagant parties at Gatsby’s mansion in West Egg. How does the author create it? What colours prevail in the description of the party? What do you think they suggest? What is the role of the music accompanies the action in Chapter III? Observe how the author uses the verbs of motion and speak on the effect their frequency produces.

Why does the author compare Gatsby’s guests with moths in the opening lines of the chapter? Generalize your observations of the way the author introduces Gatsby’s guests to the reader. Is Carraway just a disinterested observer of the unfolding events? Comment on the following: “And on Mondays eight servants, including an extra gardener, toiled all day with mops and scrubbing-brushes and hammers and garden-shears, repairing the ravages of the night before.” Compare this paragraph with the description of the end of the party.

How does the author portray a particular period and make the reader feel the spirit of the epoch (mention the details that belong to the Jazz Age).

2. Did anyone rightly know who Gatsby was? What legends accumulated around Gatsby’s name? Could those who accepted Gatsby’s hospitality recognize their host? Why did Owl Eyes suspect that Gatsby’s books were not real?

Describe Gatsby’s appearance.  Comment on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s words: “I myself didn’t know what Gatsby looked like or was engaged in…” What do telephone calls suggest? How is Gatsby characterized through his speech? Make a brief analysis of his vocabulary. Point out examples to illustrate the queer combination of a certain formality of his speech with jargon. Do you believe that Gatsby was at Oxford? Prove your opinion. The pages in Gatsby’s books were not cut. What does it suggest?

What is the effect of presenting Gatsby through the eyes of Nick Carraway?

3. Say why the author emphasizes Jordan’s inability to handle an automobile safely (speak on the broader implication of the conversation about Jordan’s carelessness with automobiles). Note another reference to careless driving.

What was Nick’s attitude towards Jordan? Did he blame her for her dishonesty? What does Carraway accentuate in the ending? Is this assertion true? Why was he straight with Jordan (but with the working girl “he’ll let it all blow quietly away”)?

Reread the description of New York. What feeling did it arouse in Nick?