The Great Gatsby Chapter 5

1
The Great GatsbyChapter 5
By Gallia, Laura Allana
2
Characterisation

• Gatsby
• Gatsby has low confidence and lack of control
• This is a terrible mistake, he said, shaking
  his head from side to side, a terrible,
  terrible mistake.
• This shows that Gatsby has been building Daisy up
  in his head and he cant face her in reality
  because he is afraid of losing his chance.

3

• Daisy
• Daisy regrets choosing Tom
• Theyre such beautiful shirts. She sobbed, her
  voice muffled in the thick folds. It makes me
  sad because Ive never seen such such beautiful
  shirts before.
• She desires a life full of luxuries and now she
  sees that she has made the wrong decision because
  Gatsbys got everything.

4

• Nick
• Nick feels awkward
• my own face had now assumed a deep tropical
  burn. I couldnt muster up a single commonplace
  out of the thousand in my head
• He doesnt know what to say because he feels out
  of place and the conversation is awkward and
  uncomfortable.

5
Themes

• Desire
• Daisy desires Gatsbys riches and big house and
  luxurious lifestyle.
• That huge place there? she cried pointing.
• She is awe-struck by the impressive structure and
  it affects her decision to go back to him.

6

• Class divide
• Gatsby is used to higher quality than what Nick
  has.
• Together we scrutinised the twelve lemon cakes
  from the delicatessen shop.
• Will they do? I asked
• Of course, of course! Theyre fine! And he added
  hollowly.old sport.
• Nick is trying to impress Gatsby but their class
  divide is prominent.

7

• American Dream
• He had been full of the idea for so long,
  dreamed it right through to the end, waited with
  his teeth set, so to speak, at an inconceivable
  pitch of intensity.
• Gatsby was dreaming about this and working hard
  to achieve it and it came true which shows that
  perseverance can accomplish anything, which is
  like the American dream.

8

• after the house, we were to see the grounds and
  the swimming-pool, and the hydroplane and the
  midsummer flowers but outside Gatsbys window
  it began to rain again, so we stood in a row
  looking at corrugated surface of Sound.
• This shows that although Gatsby has accomplished
  the American dream, the irony is that it rains,
  which shows that the American dream may not be as
  great as was once thought.

9
Symbolism

• Weather
• The weather symbolises the mood and foreshadows
  what is to come.
• Outside the wind was loud and there was a faint
  flow of thunder along the Sound.
• The thunder acts like a warning, that bad things
  might happen to Gatsby or Daisy. It is faint
  because the danger is not clear yet.

10

• Colours
• The colours show the atmosphere and highlight
  daisys feminine qualities.
• Under the dripping bare lilac-trees a large
  open car was coming up the drive. It stopped.
  Daisys face, tipped sideways beneath a
  three-cornered lavender hat, looked at me with a
  bright ecstatic smile.
• The lavender makes Daisy seem more innocent

11

• Colours
• The colour of Gatsbys clothes symbolises the
  American dream.
• And Gatsby in a white flannel suit, silver
  shirt, and gold coloured tie hurried in.
• Gatsby is wearing expensive looking colours to
  show how rich he is. Gold symbolises money and
  the colour shows his wealth.

12

• Light
• Light is used to emphasise Gatsbys greatness.
• An ecstatic patron of recurrent light.
• This makes him seem like a magical hero who can
  bring light and happiness. It also shows that
  Nick thinks highly of him because he says this.

13

• Nick has found out that Gatsby and Daisy have met
  before. Gatsby asks Nick to organise a meeting
  between them. He is very nervous about it and is
  worried it might go wrong. Nick invites Daisy
  over for tea, and she sees Gatsby. At first it is
  quite awkward because Gatsby doesnt know how to
  act, until Nick leaves them alone and by the time
  he gets back they have broken the ice. Gatsby
  takes them both over to his house and Daisy is
  overwhelmed by the luxuriousness of his home. She
  regrets leaving Gatsby for Tom because Gatsby has
  everything she ever wanted.

Summary
14
Quiz

1. Name a theme which appears in this chapter and
   back it up with a quote
2. In this chapter why does Daisy regret choosing
   Tom?
3. What does the use of light show about Gatsby?
4. What does the weather in chapter 5 symbolise?
5. How is the American dream relevant to the Great
   Gatsby?