Nick Carraway is Reliable:

F. Scott Fitzgerald purposely makes Nick so the readers can easily trust him since he is,
in fact, the narrator. Although the book is written in the first-person point of view, one can argue
that Nick is considered a genuine character because the story only reveals his viewpoints and
opinions. That is not always the case because Fitzgerald starts the story with Nick being hopeful
and naive. He comes from “a Middle Western city” (3) and wishes to pursue a career in the bond
business. What benefits Nick from being a reliable character, nonetheless, is the idea that he is
not completely blinded by the fortune that defines other people. He clearly states in the
beginning of the story that he “wanted no more riotous excursions with privileged glimpses” (2).
Fitzgerald defines Nick as a less mercenary individual than the rest of the characters, hence
why his judgements can be meaningful and reliable.
Additional comment

Nick Carraway is Unreliable:

F. Scott Fitzgerald reveals many aspects of Nick’s unreliability because he is the

respected narrator and it is told in the first-person point of view. Often time, Nick does not tell
the readers everything he knows about certain characters. For example, he waits for a while to
reveal more about Gatsby’s past life, even though he mentions him repeatedly. Instead of being
impartial amongst other characters, Nick chooses to acknowledge Gatsby and mentions how
“he talked a lot about the past...and had been confused and disordered since then”(110). His
fondness for Gatsby exposes Nick’s biasness and why he should not be relied on. Being a
flawed narrator causes dishonesty, especially when a person needs to defend their own
integrity. Nick characterizes himself as “one of the few honest people” (59) and this statement
clarifies why he sounds phony. Fitzgerald achieves to emphasize Nick’s flawed narration from
the start since he compares him to a normal human being.