The Great Gatsby Guided Reading Questions

Chapter 9
1. What is the significance of Nick’s taking charge of G’s funeral
arrangements?
a. There is NO ONE that G is close to
b. His life is “empty” figuratively
c. A vicious irony – he has spent his life trying for something and in
end has nothing but his wealth
d. Nobody cares enough to pay tribute to the dead man
e. Also shows that Nick is G’s only true friend
2. Why do Tom and Daisy leave?
a. “They are careless people . . . and let other people cleanup the
mess they made” (179).
b. Their wealth allows them to run away from the responsibility that
the rest of us have
c. And now that they have destroyed their problems, they can have a
fresh start
d. They are both cynical
3. What is the irony of Mr. Gatz’s admiration of the house?
a. He has a picture of G’s house that is very worn, due to him
looking at it all the time
b. His father is impressed by the wealth his son has obtained
c. Irony
i. The obtained through illegal business practices
ii. His own father thinks this house shows his success – when in
reality it is an empty dream
4. What is the pathos of G’s youthful resolutions?
a. Pathos – feelings of sadness
b. The list shows his naivetee of what he thinks it means to be able to
get to the upper class
c. What he created in West Egg were ideas that started here
d. Money doesn’t buy happiness
5. What is the significance of the owl-eyed man’s attendance at the
funeral?
 a. OE is the only other person at the funeral – remember this is the
guy who saw G for what he really was – looked past illusion G
presented
b. It goes to show that G had nobody – the significance of OE
showing up
6. Why does Nick finally shake hands with Tom?
a. Nick shakes his hands Tom because Nick is understanding human
nature and realizes that Tom will NEVER recognize what he has
done wrong
b. He is accepting his father’s advice – that we are all given different
advantages and disadvantages – moral and material
7. Why does Nick feel that G’s tragedy is a contrast between the East and
West?
EAST WEST
New York Nick is from the Midwest
East Egg
West Egg
Ideals -phoney, greedy, selfish, - Ideals are the opposite of this
careless, immoral - Gatsby is from the Midwest

a. Nick wonders if the tragedy might have been caused by Easterners inability to adapt to the cold,
unfeeling nature of the East.