The Great Gatsby
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Contains spoilers for the entire book.
Discussion topics
Topic 01 of 08
Nick as narrator
Nick says he is one of the few honest people he has ever known. Do you believe him?
Keep the conversation going
- How does Nick's own part in the story colour the way he tells it?
- How do Nick's feelings about Gatsby change from the first page to the last?
There is no single right answer. Bring your own reading.
Discussion topics
Nick says he is one of the few honest people he has ever known. Do you believe him?
Keep the conversation going
- How does Nick's own part in the story colour the way he tells it?
- How do Nick's feelings about Gatsby change from the first page to the last?
What do Gatsby's parties reveal about him, and about the people who come to them?
Keep the conversation going
- Why do so few of his guests actually know him?
- What does it say that almost none of them come to his funeral?
What does the green light at the end of Daisy's dock mean to Gatsby, and does its meaning change?
Keep the conversation going
- Is Gatsby in love with Daisy or with an idea of her?
- Can you repeat the past, as Gatsby insists you can?
Is Daisy a careless person, a trapped one, or both?
Keep the conversation going
- Why does she choose Tom in the end?
- What did you make of her wish that her daughter be 'a beautiful little fool'?
How does Tom's affair with Myrtle show the way class works in the novel?
Keep the conversation going
- What do the Wilsons' lives in the valley of ashes show about the world beyond West Egg?
- Who in the novel pays for the choices of the rich?
What does Gatsby's reinvention of himself from James Gatz say about the American dream?
Keep the conversation going
- How does learning where his money comes from change your view of him?
- Is Gatsby admirable, foolish, or both?
What is really lost in the confrontation at the Plaza Hotel, and who wins it?
Keep the conversation going
- Why can't Daisy say she never loved Tom?
- How does the heat of that afternoon shape what follows?
Who do you think is most responsible for Gatsby's death?
Keep the conversation going
- What did you make of Tom and Daisy retreating 'back into their money'?
- How do you read the novel's final image of boats against the current?
There is no single right answer. Bring your own reading.