The Great
Gatsby
Chapter Two Questions
Describe the Valley of Ashes.
Who lives there?




Located halfway between
West Egg and New York; “a
fantastic farm where ashes
grow like wheat into ridges
and hills and grotesque
gardens.” (23)
Dumping ground for the ash
produced by coal-burning
furnaces
Symbol for industrial society’s
decay and the waste
produced by the rich
George and Myrtle Wilson live
above a car garage in the
valley of ashes.
Describe the billboard located
over the valley of ashes. Be
specific.


“The eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg
are blue and gigantic – their
retinas are one yard high.
They look out of no face, but,
instead, from a pair of
enormous yellow spectacles
which pass over a nonexistent nose.” (23-24)
Old advertisement for an
oculist practice in Queens
How is Mr. Wilson described on
page 25?
 “He
was a blond, spiritless man, anemic,
and faintly handsome. When he saw us a
damp gleam of hope sprang into his light
blue eyes.”
How is Myrtle Wilson described
on page 25?
 “She
was in the middle thirties, and faintly
stout, but she carried her surplus flesh
sensuously as some women can.”
 She had “an immediately perceptible
vitality about her as if the nerves of her
body were continually smoldering.”
Where do Tom, Nick, and
Myrtle go and what do they
do?
 They
head into New York City on the train.
Once in the city, Tom buys Myrtle a dog
to take to her apartment that he keeps
up for her. (26-27)
 There is a party at Myrtle’s apartment
where Nick is drunk for the second time in
his life. He meets Myrtle’s sister, Catherine,
and some of Myrtle’s friends and
neighbors. (29)
Describe some of the party
guests at Myrtle’s apartment.
(30)
 Catherine,
Myrtle’s sister, is a “slender,
worldly girl of about thirty, with a sticky
bob of red hair, and a complexion
powdered milky white.”
 Mr. McKee is a neighbor from the flat
below, and also a photographer. He
came to the party with his wife, Mrs.
McKee
Describe the change in
Myrtle’s personality (page 30)
 “With
the influence of the dress her
personality had also undergone a
change. The intense vitality that had
been so remarkable in the garage was
converted into impressive hauteur. Her
laughter, her gestures, her assertions
became more violently affected moment
by moment…”
What’s a rumor in circulation
about Gatsby? (page 32)
 That
he is the nephew of Kaiser Wilhelm
(the former ruler of Germany) and that
that is how he came to be so wealthy.
What does Catherine believe
is the reason Tom will not leave
Daisy for Myrtle? (page 33)
 She
thinks Daisy is Catholic and does not
believe in divorce. Nick is “shocked at the
elaborateness of the lie.”
Why does Myrtle say she
married George? (pages 3435)
 She
says she married him because she
thought he was a gentleman, but found
out that “he wasn’t fit to lick [my] shoe.”
 She realized she made a mistake when he
borrowed someone’s suit to be married in.
 What does this say about Myrtle’s
character?
Nick narrates, “I was within and
without, simultaneously enchanted
and repelled by the inexhaustible
variety of life.” (35) What does this
say about his character?
 He
waffles between being amusement
and disgust at the antics of the people
around him. We already know that he
reserves judgment in most cases, and it
appears to be the case here. He is
content to observe from the edges of the
scene.
Where did Tom and Myrtle first
meet? What phrase did she
keep thinking over and over
when she met him?
 They
met on the train to New York. He was
pressed up against her and she feigned
offense, saying she would call a
policeman. She then got into a taxi with
him.
 “You can’t live forever; you can’t live
forever.” (36)
What breaks up the party?
 Myrtle
irritates Tom by mentioning Daisy’s
name. He hits her, breaking her nose, and
the apartment to be thrown into
confusion. (37)
 Why do you think Tom doesn’t want
Myrtle to mention Daisy’s name?