Context Essay for The Great Gatsby (Start of Chapter 3)

In this extract we see that Gatsby has the magic of money. Gatsby’s gardens are “blue” and his turkey is “bewitched gold”, the colour of money. This makes it seem mystical and we believe that Gatsby has transformed his gardens for the party. Gatsby’s wealth makes him seem magical and mysterious. In this extract we see that Gatsby is above the law as there is alcohol at his party. This makes Gatsby seem too extraordinary and sorcerous to need to follow things such as laws that are created for people below him. This reminds us of when Nick described the first time he saw Gatsby and he disappeared as though he were a magician. This also prepares us for the moment when we find out that Gatsby transforms Daisy from a normal girl into something magical.

We feel sympathy for Gatsby as we know that he is trying to attract Daisy with his lavish parties but all he has managed to attract are “moths”. As this is how the girls at the party are described we see them as irritating, because moths are common household pests. Although Gatsby is wealthy and has achieved the American Dream he has no real friends to invite to his many parties so is left with “moths”. Fitzgerald is criticizing the American Dream because this shows that he doesn’t have everything although he has accomplished the American Dream. It also shows how Gatsby is a bright light that the people in this extract are drawn to. This reminds us of when Nick describes the people who hang around Gatsby as “foul dust”.

About halfway through this extract Gatsby’s car is described as “becoming an omnibus” that took people to the parties. This makes the car seem pleasant and ordinary, as it simply shuttles people backwards and forwards. However it is also described as a “brisk yellow bug”. This may be foreshadowing to the fact that later on in the novel the car becomes a “death car” as beetles are seen as disgusting and untrustworthy by most people.

The society that can be seen in this extract seems glamorous and exciting, but also repulsive and ostentatious. The society that is seen in this extract seems very fake. There are “introductions forgotten on the spot” and women greet each other enthusiastically who “never knew each other’s name”. This makes the society sound enticing as it makes us think of glamour and wealth but it also sounds as though within this society there is no real friendship, just strangers who have been thrown together because they are attending the same party. This reminds us of when Nick calls these people “foul dust” as in this extract they can be seen as repulsive because of how fake they are. It also reminds us of Daisy’s artificial manner and when she insincerely calls Nick an “absolute rose”.

The division between the working class and the upper class can clearly be seen in this extract. The juice machine that has to be pressed “two hundred times by a butler’s thumb” jucstaposes the lavish parties. This shows the division between the social classes and that to have the upper classes the working class is always needed. At Gatsby’s party there are trays of “floating” drinks. We can also see from this that the upper class doesn’t appreciate the working class and sees them as almost invisible. This does not prepare us for the end of the book where the classes do not seem to matter. Wilson kills Gatsby even though they are from completely different social classes. It is ironic that Gatsby who is considered successful by the terms of the American dream is shot by Wilson who is considered unsuccessful.