Hello and welcome to "Read it and (Don't) Weep," the podcast that will help you breeze through your high school literature classes. Are you tired of struggling to understand the themes and characters in classic works of literature? Well, I’ve got you covered! I am your host, Jackey Taggart, and I taught high school English for almost 20 years. 

Join me each episode as I dive into the world of high school literature and break down the essential elements of each work. From Shakespeare to Steinbeck, I'll cover it all. My goal is to give you valuable insights and analysis on some of the most popular high school literary texts, as well as tips and tricks for acing your tests and essays.  Let’s start reading!

Welcome to Chapter 1 of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. In this episode, we'll delve into the opening paragraphs of the novel and explore some of the literary devices Fitzgerald uses to develop his characters, as well as the major themes and symbols that appear throughout the story. So, let's begin our journey into the world of The Great Gatsby!

The novel opens with the introduction of our narrator, Nick Carraway. Like so many great novels, the first sentence grabs the reader’s attention: "In my younger and more vulnerable years, my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since." This establishes Nick as the first-person narrator and hints at the importance of time in the story, which serves as a major theme in the novel, so pay attention to any references of time or time symbols such as calendars, timetables, sundials, clocks, and so on. If you have your own copy of the book, jot down notes in the margins. If you're using a school-issued book, sticky notes can be handy for recording your thoughts as you read.

Back to our open sentence – “younger and more vulnerable years”.  Youth symbolizes time. Youth reflects a sense of innocence which is necessary to move through the story – from innocence to understanding and maturity, from unknown to known. 

Nick continues to share his father’s advice: "just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had." In other words, think before judging or criticizing others. This advice reminds me of today's world of social media, where people often rush to judge and criticize based on a post, comment, or tweet without considering the person behind the words. However, Nick accepts this advice and strives to be objective. He states that he is "inclined to reserve all judgment," which makes people feel comfortable sharing their innermost secrets with him.  

Why is any of this important?  Well, Fitzgerald is trying to set Nick up as an unbiased narrator.  Someone who will honestly and objectively recount Gatsby's story to readers. Now, there have been many arguments that Nick is not an unbiased narrator – that he does pass judgment on the events in the story.  But can anyone be involved in a situation and be completely unbiased?  I doubt it.  Mostly because we are human, and we can only ever view situations from our own perspectives. So naturally we are unconsciously biased.  

Despite Nick’s ability to reserve judgement on people, even he has his limits.  While he is hopefully that most people are good and decent human beings, he notes that, “A sense of fundamental decencies is parceled out unequally at birth.”  Nick is referring to aspects of human kindness, empathy, common decency, treating others with respect, etc… Not all people can treat others with kindness and compassion, and readers will encounter such characters in the novel.

Fitzgerald continues to humanize Nick by having him explain that there are limits to even his vast patience with people. Nick’s experiences in the East, meaning New York, made him angry and frustrated. Of all the characters Nick meets in the East, only Gatsby remains a good person in his eyes.  Gatsby may represent everything Nick hated or scorned, but the man, the human being, had a good heart full of hope and romantic notions.  “No – Gatsby turned out alright in the end; it’s what preyed on Gatsby” that angered Nick. 

These first few paragraphs introduce two of our main characters - Nick, our unbiased narrator, and Gatsby, our romantic hero.  We don’t even know his first name, just his last name.  Readers should see Gatsby, full of hope and idealistic beliefs, preyed upon by those who have little to no respect for others. 

Now, romantic does not mean love.  Romantic in this context is an idealized view of the world as a just and perfect place – idealistic, fairytale, utopia, idyllic, etc....  Keep this in mind as you read. 

While the novel has a functional, chronological structure, it is a flashback.  Nick is writing about the four months he spent in New York – June through October 1922. Nick retells the story mostly in chronological order based on his experiences with one brief exception.  However, even within this chronological structure, there are flashbacks to points in the past that impact the present.  Fitzgerald uses flashback to help the reader understand the backstory for each of the characters. This is another use of time within the novel – moving from the present to the past – leaving Gatsby frozen in time. But more on that later.

You should notice a tone shift when Nick talks about his family.  His family is a prominent working-class family – maybe upper-middle class.  This reflects Fitzgerald himself who never saw himself as acceptable in upper class society.   

Nick graduated from New Haven – (aka Yale, which is an Ivy League school, so Nick is well-educated) before heading off to war (World War I) After returning from war, he felt restless and came East to be a bond trader on Wall Street. He is living in West Egg Village – a small cottage house between mansions with a maid to cook and clean for him.  Not a bad set up for a first job!  He buys books about making money, but never actually reads them. 

I want to pause here to discuss West Egg and East Egg. If you refer to a map of New York, you can locate the "eggs" Nick mentions. Find New York City and then locate Manhattan. Slightly north, you'll find The Bronx. Across the Long Island Sound, you'll see Great Neck (West Egg) and Port Washington (East Egg). These are the egg-shaped areas Nick refers to. West Egg is the "less fashionable" of the two, a polite way of saying "new money." This distinction between old money and new money is significant in the novel. Both areas are home to wealthy individuals, but "new money" represents those who recently acquired their fortune, often through stock markets—particularly relevant to Nick's role as a bond trader. The stock market boomed in the early 1920s, creating many fortunes. This emphasis on capitalism ties into the novel's themes of the American Dream and rags-to-riches ideals, contrasting with the struggles of agricultural businesses or farming during the 1920s and 1930s.

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Back to the action, Nick’s bungalow is located between two mansions – one of which is a “colossal affair by any standard.”  This is Gatsby’s house.  Fitzgerald describes it in grand details contrasting it to Nick’s “eye sore.” These are both located in West Egg.

Across the bay from Nick and Gatsby is East Egg.  This is where those from “old money” live.  It is more fashionable.  Old money refers to generational wealth –Rockefeller, Carnegie, Vanderbilt, Astor, just to name a few.  Fitzgerald highlights the tension between old money and new money throughout the novel, so it is important to understand the distinctions between the two in addition to the tension between them. 

As the chapter continues, Nick goes to dinner at his cousin’s house in East Egg and readers are introduced to more of the novel’s main characters.  Nick’s cousin is Daisy Buchanan, and she is married to Tom Buchanan.  Nick went to college with Tom, so they are “old friends who I scarcely knew at all.” This is a paradox – meaning Nick knew them but was not necessarily close to them.  Tom played football at New Haven, and his family is extremely wealthy - old money.  Fitzgerald emphasizes this with the string of polo ponies Tom has brought to East Egg, and their house which Fitzgerald as “even more elaborate than I expected, a cheerful red and white Georgian Colonial mansion overlooking the bay.” Tom and Daisy tend to drift aimlessly – living in Chicago, France, and now in East Egg, New York.  As you are reading, pay special attention to Fitzgerald descriptions of Tom and Daisy’s house – both inside and out. Contrast it with the descriptions of Gatsby’s house to understand the key difference between old and new money and what Fitzgerald means by “fashionable.”  

Tom is described as very athletic and strong, but he is arrogant. Nick describes Tom’s body as having “(t)wo shining arrogant eyes (that) had established dominance over his face and gave him the appearance of always leaning forward…It was a body capable of enormous leverage – “capable of enormous leverage – a cruel body.”  This is an important characteristic we will revisit later. 

Next, readers meet Daisy and her friend, Jordan Baker.  Dressed all in white, they are lounging on the sofa together and are so bored they can’t even gather enough strength to get up to welcome Nick. 

Color is also very symbolic in the novel.  Daisy and Jordan are supposed to appear light and airy – with a sense of innocence.  Jordan is a childhood friend of Daisy and is currently their house guest.  She is tall and slender. She doesn’t like people from West Egg because they are not as sophisticated as those from East Egg.  She is also a professional golfer, and Nick remembers some “unpleasant” story about her. We will revisit this later, as well.   Daisy wants to hook her up with Nick for the summer. 

Daisy’s “face was sad and lovely with bright things in it, bright eyes and a bright passionate mouth – there was an excitement in her voice that men who had cared for her found difficult to forget…a promise that she had done gay, exciting things… and there were gay, exciting things hovering in the next hour.”  She comes across as a bit of an airhead, but we will explore her character in more detail later.  It is also important to note that Daisy mentions their daughter ever so briefly.  Another point we will discuss later in the novel.

A quick note on literary devices here.  Fitzgerald uses Jordan Baker as a foil for Daisy Buchanan.  What the heck does that mean? Well, a foil is a character that is used to highlight traits in another character.  In The Great Gatsby, readers should look at Jordan Baker, her actions and attitudes, and contrast her with Daisy Buchannan to get a deeper understanding of Daisy’s characterization.  We will come back to this later when we learn more about both of these young ladies. 

Quick time reference, Daisy says, “In two weeks it’ll be the longest day in the year…Do you always watch for the longest day of the year and then miss it? I always watch for the longest day in the year and then miss it.”  She is referring to the summer solstice, otherwise referred to as the first day of summer, which is June 21, so it is approximately, June 7th.  

At this point, Daisy draws attention to a very small bruise on her finger, blaming it on Tom calling him “hulking.” Hulking means large and heavy, think – the Incredible Hulk. This is the first reference back to Tom having a “cruel body.”  Take note; we will see another reference to this in chapter 2. 

Right before dinner, we get another hint at Gatsby.  Jordan draws attention to Nick living on West Egg and she says, “You must know Gatsby” which peaks Daisy’s attention. “Gatsby? What Gatsby?”   This is the inciting incident that will drive the rest of the plot throughout the novel.   Pause to jot down some ideas – what do you think is the connection between Daisy and Gatsby?

During dinner, we learn more about Tom’s character.  He is a bigot and white supremist as he has strong, unreasonable beliefs against anyone who is not white – as references in is comments about the book “Rise of the Colored Empire,” which Tom incorrectly associates with a man named Goddard and his comments about “the dominant race.”  The correct title of the book is   The Rising Tide of Color Against White World-Supremacy by Lothrop Stoddard published in 1920, but Fitzgerald wants readers to see that Tom is not concerned with specific details and considers himself superior to others based on his race and wealth.

During dinner, Tom receives a phone call. Jordan fills Nick into the fact that Tom is on the phone with his girlfriend. Although it seems to be common knowledge that Tom is cheating on Daisy, everyone keeps up the appearance that this is a secret. Fitzgerald further characteristics Tom negatively so readers do not feel sympathetic towards him.  In fact, readers tend to hate him. This will be important later in the novel. 

After dinner, Nick and Daisy go for a walk, and Nick asks Daisy about her daughter while making polite conversation.  Daisy tells Nick about her daughter’s birth, Tom was “God knows where,” indicating Tom has a history of cheating on Daisy, and when Daisy finds out she has a daughter she says, “I’m glad it’s a girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool – that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.”  This gives us a great deal of insight into Daisy’s character.  She is not as ‘innocent or foolish’ as she tries to come across. Despite having earned the right to vote in 1919, women did not hold much power in society in 1922.  Daisy knows that her husband has affairs behind her back, and it hurts her to know this, but what is she to do?  If she leaves him, where will she go? What will she do?  Divorce was not an option, and even if she did divorce Tom, how would she support herself? She wishes that she didn’t know about her husband’s affairs and could remain “a beautiful little fool” as opposed to a strong, independent woman.  Life would be easier if she were oblivious to the realities of life. 

Nick thinks about everything he learned about his cousin and his old friend as he drives back to West Egg.  Once back at his bungalow, he sees his neighbor, Gatsby, standing out on his dock looking out at the Long Island Sound.  He decides to go introduce himself but stops suddenly when he realizes that Gatsby was reaching, trembling in the moonlight, arms outstretched towards a single green light in the distance before vanishing into the darkness.

As the chapter ends, think about everything you have learned in this chapter and reflect on Gatsby and the green light? What is he reaching for? What does the green light symbolize? Jot your ideas down in your reading journal so you can come back to your initial ideas as you continue reading. 

Thanks for listening to this episode of Read it and (Don’t) Weep. Be sure to subscribe to the show so you will be notified when new episodes are released. If you liked today’s show, please leave a review so others can discover my show.  If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, drop me an email at readitanddontweep@gmail.com, or reach out to me on social media. I would love to hear from you. The links are in the show notes.  

Thank you for listening.  I am Jackey Taggart and remember to Read It and Don’t Weep. 

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