Quote # 1: "The minister glanced several times at his watch, so I took him aside and asked him to wait for half an hour. But it wasn't any use. Nobody came." (pg 165)
Speaker of quote: Nick
Context: This quote is being said while nick is involuntarily looking out of the window for other people to show up for the funeral, but realized there was no point waiting since nobody was going to come.
Quote Significance: Theme
· The theme of greediness and abuse of relationships is prevalent here, all tying into the concept of the American Dream where everyone is trying to make it big by using people and getting what they want. This shows that they don’t take the time to look back and appreciate anything people have done for them because they are so focused on using people in order to attain their ideal of the American Dream.
Quote Significance: Establishes a mood/atmosphere
· When this quote is being said there is almost a somber resignation that nobody truly cared about Gatsby as a person, that when he is stripped of all his material possessions in death, nobody but his true friends come to pay their respects. This establishes a depressing atmosphere however even the minister is glancing at his watch to get the ceremony underway, disregarding the severity of the occasion.
Speaker of quote: Nick
Context: This quote is being said while nick is involuntarily looking out of the window for other people to show up for the funeral, but realized there was no point waiting since nobody was going to come.
Quote Significance: Theme
· The theme of greediness and abuse of relationships is prevalent here, all tying into the concept of the American Dream where everyone is trying to make it big by using people and getting what they want. This shows that they don’t take the time to look back and appreciate anything people have done for them because they are so focused on using people in order to attain their ideal of the American Dream.
Quote Significance: Establishes a mood/atmosphere
· When this quote is being said there is almost a somber resignation that nobody truly cared about Gatsby as a person, that when he is stripped of all his material possessions in death, nobody but his true friends come to pay their respects. This establishes a depressing atmosphere however even the minister is glancing at his watch to get the ceremony underway, disregarding the severity of the occasion.
Quote # 2: Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter—tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther. . . . And then one fine morning--
So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past. (pg 172)
Speaker: Nick
Context: The concluding sentences of the book when Nick is reminiscing about Gatsby and what Gatsby believed in.
Quote significance: It may suggest a Theme
· Throughout the novel, Gatsby is constantly thinking about the theme that a lot of the characters in the book chase as well which is pursuing the visions of the future, which are determined by the past, which is evident in how Gatsby plans his encounters with Daisy.
Quote Significance: Character Revelation
· Gives insight on Gatsby’s internal struggle throughout the book as well as the struggle of the attaining of the American dream itself, as they “running faster, and stretching further” to attain something that moves further away. Furthermore, Nick says that "we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past" suggesting that as we struggle to attain something in the future we are getting nowhere as the something is constantly dragging us behind.
So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past. (pg 172)
Speaker: Nick
Context: The concluding sentences of the book when Nick is reminiscing about Gatsby and what Gatsby believed in.
Quote significance: It may suggest a Theme
· Throughout the novel, Gatsby is constantly thinking about the theme that a lot of the characters in the book chase as well which is pursuing the visions of the future, which are determined by the past, which is evident in how Gatsby plans his encounters with Daisy.
Quote Significance: Character Revelation
· Gives insight on Gatsby’s internal struggle throughout the book as well as the struggle of the attaining of the American dream itself, as they “running faster, and stretching further” to attain something that moves further away. Furthermore, Nick says that "we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past" suggesting that as we struggle to attain something in the future we are getting nowhere as the something is constantly dragging us behind.
Quote # 3: "They were careless people, Tom and Daisy — they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money of their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made."(pg 170)
Speaker: Nick
Context: Nick is saying this quote when he is talking to Tom Buchanan when they are talking about the incident.
Quote Significance: Character Revelation
· This quote shows how Tom and Daisy are so corrupted by their wealth and perception of things that they become careless. Also, their abandonment of Gatsby and everything they were committed to shows the emptiness of the age and how little moral value the corrupted ones in society have
Quote Significance: Theme
· Similarly to Tom and Daisy, almost all wealthy figures in the novel are shown as corrupt and selfish, so there is a theme that the wealthy figures share. In the novel, wealth buys you the privilege of living in a world without consequences where you can expect to get away with anything, as shown by how Tom and Daisy “smash up things and retreat back to their money of vast carelessness”.
Speaker: Nick
Context: Nick is saying this quote when he is talking to Tom Buchanan when they are talking about the incident.
Quote Significance: Character Revelation
· This quote shows how Tom and Daisy are so corrupted by their wealth and perception of things that they become careless. Also, their abandonment of Gatsby and everything they were committed to shows the emptiness of the age and how little moral value the corrupted ones in society have
Quote Significance: Theme
· Similarly to Tom and Daisy, almost all wealthy figures in the novel are shown as corrupt and selfish, so there is a theme that the wealthy figures share. In the novel, wealth buys you the privilege of living in a world without consequences where you can expect to get away with anything, as shown by how Tom and Daisy “smash up things and retreat back to their money of vast carelessness”.