The Great Gatsby - Chapter 1

Setting and Characters:

The setting is primarly at the West Egg. It is an island off of New York. I interpreted it as Long Island, maybe. The characters are Nick, Tom, Daisy, Miss Baker and talks of Mr. Gatsby. Nick seems to be a strangler, he floats from place to place. He ended up at West Egg because him and a friend were going to buy a house and then rent it out and his friend ended up backing out, so he decided to move in by himself. From the description his house is very nice, almost mansion like. He went to visit Tom and Daisy. Tom seems very stuck up and almost snobs Nick when he arrived. Tom also seems very secretive because he has a lady elsewhere that is not Dasiy. Daisy seems more relaxed but still seems to be very stuckup because she has to be because of her husband Tom. She also seems to know that Tom is having an affair but did not appreciate that Tom accepted a phone from her in the middle of dinner. Miss Baker is a friend of Tom and Daisy. Miss Baker seems sweet and easily excited. I have a feeling that Nick and Miss Baker will start a relationship. Mr. Gatsby seems like a powerful man. Just from the way Tom, Daisy, and Nick speak of him, he doesn't seem like a person you would want to gross.

My Reaction:

I enjoyed this chapter, but it started off to slow. At parts, it seemed to drag. I want to learn more about Mr. Gatsby. I have the feeling he is being protrayed as such a powerful man and then he is going to end up being a lonely man with no friends. I do not care for Tom, he seems like he has his own agenda in his life. He doesn't seem to care about Daisy or her needs. I feel bad for Daisy because she seems to have a good heart and she wants to be happy but probably feels down on herself when Tom accepts phone calls from his mistress in the middle of dinner AND infront of her cousin (Nick). I do not really know what to think about Nick yet. It seems like an individual with a good story behind them.