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- F. Scott Fitzgerald famously said that "there are no second acts in American lives." Do the life and death of Jay Gatsby demonstrate this claim or refute it? Does the novel ultimately argue that one can never re-invent himself?
- Point of View is one of the most powerful techniques of The Great Gatsby. Explain how Fitzgerald’s use of a ‘witness’ point of view impacts the reader and allows Fitzgerald to develop his themes. Why does he occasionally transgress this point of view, and with what impact?
- Fitzgerald is known as the preeminent chronicler of the Jazz Age, perhaps better depicting its excesses and virtues better than anyone. How does Nick Carraway demonstrate both attraction to and repulsion from the lives of the incredibly rich inhabitants of Long Island?
- How does Fitzgerald use the juxtaposition of Carraway/Gatsby and Buchanan/Carraway to reveal more about each character?
- What is ultimately the most to blame for the tragic end of the novel: Gatsby’s nostalgic desire for the past, Daisy’s selfishness, or Nick’s silence?
