Allusions in The Great Gatsby

Chapter 1
o Then wear the gold hat, if that will move her. . . Thomas Parke D’Invilliers : Lines of poetry-
Novel’s epigraph actually written by Fitzgerald. D’Invilliers-character in Fitzgerald’s This Side
of Paradise (1920). Based on writer John Peale Bishop, a Princeton classmate
o Dukes of Buccleuch : members of a Scottish dukedom w/origins 17th C
o Great War : World War I, so called until the Second World War (1939).
o West Egg : West Egg & East Egg considered to be Fitzgerald’s versions of Little Neck & Great
Neck on Long Island’s North Shore. Fitzgerald owned a house in Great Neck, more affluent of
the 2. (Little neck & great neck-types of clams.)
o Midas and Morgan and Maecenas: Midas was a mythical king whose touch turned items to
gold.Morgan refers to a prominent American banking family.Maecenas was a wealthy Roman
patron of literature.

Chapter 2
o borough of Queens: largest of 5 boroughs of NYC; close to Little Neck & Great Neck.
o torpedoes: small fireworks that explode under great pressure.
o Versailles: location of spectacular 17th C palace built outside of Paris by King Louis XIV.
o ectoplasm: ghostly spirit emanating from a medium during trance.
o Kaiser Wilhelm: German emperor (1859-1941) and king of Prussia from 1888 to the end of
World War

Chapter 3
o Castile: region of north central Spain known for beautiful shawls.
o Belasco: David Belasco (1853-1931), American theatrical producer, famous for realistic sets.
didn’t cut the pages: The books in Gatsby’s library are rare first editions, in which sheets are folded into pages,
yet not cut apart
o Tostoff’s Jazz History of the World: Fitzgerald may have been punning on the expression
“tossed off.”

Chapter 4
o reference to "short upper lips" & "the yolks of their eyeballs" signifies a historically specific fear.
Fear provoked Congress in 1921 & then again in 1924 to pass acts establishing quotas for immigrants. Hit
would-be immigrants from southern & eastern Europe particularly hard.
o bootlegger: seller of illegal merchandise--in this case, liquor outlawed by Prohibition. The term
bootleg refers to concealing objects in the leg of a high boot.
o Von Hindenburg: Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg (1847-1934), commander of German
forces during World War I.
o knickerbockers: short, loose-fitting pants gathered at knee; fashionable menswear during 1920s.
o Bois de Boulogne: large park just west of Paris.
o Montenegro: small, fiercely independent kingdom, now part of Yugoslavia.
 o Queensboro Bridge: bridge over East River connecting boroughs of Manhattan & Queens in
NYC.
o Katspaugh: pun on “cat’s paw”; colloquially, a person used by another as a tool (not a major
insult)

o Rosy Rosenthal: Herman “Rosy” Rosenthal-shot outside NYC’s Metropole Hotel on July 16,
1912-murderers later executed.
o fixed the World Series: “Black Sox” scandal 1919 World Series, Cincinnati Reds defeated
Chicago White Sox. 8 Chicago players admitted accepting bribes to lose series; paid $100,000 by a New York
gambling syndicate.
o Plaza Hotel: celebrated luxury hotel overlooking NYC’s Central Park
o non-olfactory money: untainted capital; not assoc. w/crime.
o roadster: small open car w/1 seat for 2-3 people; earlier version of sports car.
o debut: formal introduction of a young woman into society.
o Armistice: Nov. 11, 1918-WWI betw.Germany & Allied forces ended.
o Cannes . . . Deauville: resort cities-French Riviera & English Channel
o victoria: horse-drawn open carriage for 2, named for Queen Victoria

Chapter 5
o like Kant at his church steeple: Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), German philosopher, said he
developed theories regarding reality & morality while gazing at a church steeple outside his window.

o Marie Antoinette music-rooms & Restoration salons: elegantly furnished rooms in period style,
respectively, just before French Revolution (1789) & brief restoration of monarchy (1815).

o Adam study: The Adams were an 18 C. family of British architects. The Adam style is
extremely delicate in form & color.

o Chartreuse: green or yellow liqueur.

o pompadour: style of hairdressing in which the hair is combed back to create the illusion of a puffy
bump in the front.
o The ‘Pompadour curl’ takes its name from Madame de Pompadour, member of the French court, and
the official chief mistress of Louis XV from 1745 to her death in 1764.

Chapter 6
o Platonic conception of himself: reference to Greek philosopher Plato’s notion that physical
items are inferior copies of transcendent ideas. Gatsby’s “Platonic conception of himself” is his fantasy image of
his life, as opposed to his actual background.
o Madame de Maintenon: French marquise (1635-1719) gained commanding influence at courtot
of Louis XIV & later married him.
Chapter 7
o Trimalchio: character of a rich, vulgar upstart, taken from the satires of Petronius, 1st C.
Roman writer. Fitzgerald had
considered using the name Trimalchio in the title of this novel.
o caravansary: Oriental inn, for caravans; hence-a gaudy enterprise
o clog: to knock in rhythmic fashion, from dance in which rhythm is beaten out by shoes
w/wooden soles.
o blessed isles: beautiful islands in classical mythology.
o coupe: closed, two-door automobile.

Chapter 8
o grail: extended guest; from the seeking of the Holy Grail associated w/Christ at the Last
Supper.
o Argonne: French forest, where Allied forces fought at end of World War I.
o pneumatic mattress: air-inflated mattress; raft.

Chapter 9
o pasquinade: a satire, posted publicly.
o ulster: long, heavy overcoat w/cape; often belted.
o James J. Hill: St. Paul railroad magnate (1838-1916)