The Great Gatsby Exam Questions
and Answers (Graded A)
What advice did the narrator's father give him? - ANSWER - don't criticize someone
because all people haven't had the privileges you've had
What have been the results of the narrator's habit of reserving judgement? -
ANSWER - opened his curiosity and people tell him their secrets
what is the narrator especially careful not to forget? - ANSWER - a sense of the
fundamental decencies (born either good or bad) is parceled out unequally at birth
what use of foreshadowing is used by Fitzgerald? - ANSWER - getting the reader
interested in Gatsby before we meet him
explain what West Egg and East Egg are - ANSWER - city a pair of enormous eggs,
identical in contour and separated by a courtesy bay
Who lives next to the narrator - ANSWER - Gatsby- huge, marble swimming pool, 40
acres, towers, etc.
who are the Tom Buchanans and where do they live - ANSWER - across the bay in
East Egg
Tom's physical description is important later in the novel. How does the narrator
describe him? - ANSWER - gruff husky tenor, "cruel body", enormous power,
muscular
Describe Daisy. - ANSWER - sad and lovely face- bright eyes and mouth
Describe Jordan Baker - ANSWER - slender, small-brested girl, with an erect carriage,
gray sun-strained eyes, girlhood friend of Daisy's
, How do we get the distinct impression that Tom is a racist? What is his explanation
for "civilization going to pieces"? - ANSWER - whites are the "dominant race" and
they need to watch out for the other races who are proven to rise against them
Explain the significance of the puppy episode - ANSWER - shows how Tom throws
around money and Myrtle thinks this is a sign of them being a family but Tom won't
stay with her forever
What gossip about Gatsby does Nick learn at the party? - ANSWER - he is a nephew
or a cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm's and that's where he got his money from
what attitude do Daisy and Jordan have? - ANSWER - uninterested, minding their
own business
according to Jordan, who phone Tom during dinner? - ANSWER - his woman in New
York
How is Jordan shown as "immoral" and Daisy as innocent? - ANSWER -
What is the significance of the green light at the end of chapter 1? - ANSWER -
Gatsby's been watching it from across the bay for all these years
Describe the valley of ashes - ANSWER - a fantastic farm where ashes grow like
wheat into ridges and hills and take the form of houses and chimneys and rising
smoke and men who move dimly and crumbling (symbolizes the crumbling of
society into ashes)
Does Tom try to keep his affair with Myrtle a secret? - ANSWER - no
Nick goes with Tom to visit Myrtle. Describe her and her husband. What happens
during the course of the evening? - ANSWER - Myrtle isn't pretty but has vitality
about her; her husband is fairly handsome, blond, spiritless man. Myrtle goes on a
train to New York to meet with Tom
and Answers (Graded A)
What advice did the narrator's father give him? - ANSWER - don't criticize someone
because all people haven't had the privileges you've had
What have been the results of the narrator's habit of reserving judgement? -
ANSWER - opened his curiosity and people tell him their secrets
what is the narrator especially careful not to forget? - ANSWER - a sense of the
fundamental decencies (born either good or bad) is parceled out unequally at birth
what use of foreshadowing is used by Fitzgerald? - ANSWER - getting the reader
interested in Gatsby before we meet him
explain what West Egg and East Egg are - ANSWER - city a pair of enormous eggs,
identical in contour and separated by a courtesy bay
Who lives next to the narrator - ANSWER - Gatsby- huge, marble swimming pool, 40
acres, towers, etc.
who are the Tom Buchanans and where do they live - ANSWER - across the bay in
East Egg
Tom's physical description is important later in the novel. How does the narrator
describe him? - ANSWER - gruff husky tenor, "cruel body", enormous power,
muscular
Describe Daisy. - ANSWER - sad and lovely face- bright eyes and mouth
Describe Jordan Baker - ANSWER - slender, small-brested girl, with an erect carriage,
gray sun-strained eyes, girlhood friend of Daisy's
, How do we get the distinct impression that Tom is a racist? What is his explanation
for "civilization going to pieces"? - ANSWER - whites are the "dominant race" and
they need to watch out for the other races who are proven to rise against them
Explain the significance of the puppy episode - ANSWER - shows how Tom throws
around money and Myrtle thinks this is a sign of them being a family but Tom won't
stay with her forever
What gossip about Gatsby does Nick learn at the party? - ANSWER - he is a nephew
or a cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm's and that's where he got his money from
what attitude do Daisy and Jordan have? - ANSWER - uninterested, minding their
own business
according to Jordan, who phone Tom during dinner? - ANSWER - his woman in New
York
How is Jordan shown as "immoral" and Daisy as innocent? - ANSWER -
What is the significance of the green light at the end of chapter 1? - ANSWER -
Gatsby's been watching it from across the bay for all these years
Describe the valley of ashes - ANSWER - a fantastic farm where ashes grow like
wheat into ridges and hills and take the form of houses and chimneys and rising
smoke and men who move dimly and crumbling (symbolizes the crumbling of
society into ashes)
Does Tom try to keep his affair with Myrtle a secret? - ANSWER - no
Nick goes with Tom to visit Myrtle. Describe her and her husband. What happens
during the course of the evening? - ANSWER - Myrtle isn't pretty but has vitality
about her; her husband is fairly handsome, blond, spiritless man. Myrtle goes on a
train to New York to meet with Tom
