Nick Carraway, the novel’s narrator, is a young man from Minnesota. He was educated at Yale University, fought in WWI, and has since moved to New York City to learn the bond business. The first pages of chapter one establish certain contradictions within Nick Carraway’s character. He describes himself as both tolerant and non-judgmental, but also as morally privileged and “having a better sense of decencies” than most other people. Nick opens the chapter up with a short anecdote describing some of his experiences as a child. He goes on to discuss how a person’s upbringing directly affects them later in life. After discussing his childhood, Nick Carraway moves on to his journeys in New York. We are introduced to a character by the name of Tom Buccanan who is described as a man with strength and pride, but is actually filled with emptiness, for all he has ever known is money and success. Nick goes into much detail describing Tom’s wife Daisy. He portrays her as a woman who is full of life and genuinely happy, unlike her husband. Nick continues by discussing Tom and Daisy’s daughter. In recounting the night that her daughter was born, Daisy reveals that contradictory to the original observation of her character, she is truly upset. She says that she only hopes one thing for her daughter and that is that she is a fool. Daisy believes that in a world full of dominating men, the best thing a woman can be is a “beautiful fool”.
When he moves to New York, Nick Carraway lives in a fictional neighborhood called West Egg. This is the neighborhood for those who have just recently become rich, and have not yet developed the connections and lifestyle consistent of the East Egg residents. Nick is a bit out of place in West Egg; however, as he graduated from a prestigious school and does in fact have many useful connections. One of his neighbors is a very mysterious man by the name of Jay Gatsby. We do not hear much of Mr. Gatsby in the first chapter because Nick does not actually see him until the last paragraph. Gatsby lives in a large, expensive mansion, right next to Nick’s small cottage. Although they have not met each other or had any contact at all, it seems to the audience that there is some sort of connection between Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby.
Nick Carraway uses chapter one of the novel to set the plot and begin the development of relationships. He briefly explains his life before his relocation and then in further detail explains his life after moving to New York. Nick introduces multiple characters within this chapter, including Tom Buchanan and his wife Daisy, Ms. Baker, and Mr. Gatsby. All of these characters will eventually come to play a large role in Nick Carraway’s life.
When he moves to New York, Nick Carraway lives in a fictional neighborhood called West Egg. This is the neighborhood for those who have just recently become rich, and have not yet developed the connections and lifestyle consistent of the East Egg residents. Nick is a bit out of place in West Egg; however, as he graduated from a prestigious school and does in fact have many useful connections. One of his neighbors is a very mysterious man by the name of Jay Gatsby. We do not hear much of Mr. Gatsby in the first chapter because Nick does not actually see him until the last paragraph. Gatsby lives in a large, expensive mansion, right next to Nick’s small cottage. Although they have not met each other or had any contact at all, it seems to the audience that there is some sort of connection between Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby.
Nick Carraway uses chapter one of the novel to set the plot and begin the development of relationships. He briefly explains his life before his relocation and then in further detail explains his life after moving to New York. Nick introduces multiple characters within this chapter, including Tom Buchanan and his wife Daisy, Ms. Baker, and Mr. Gatsby. All of these characters will eventually come to play a large role in Nick Carraway’s life.