The Great Gatsby and C. Inquiry

Nicole Osorio
AP English 11
Ms. Dills
The Great Gatsby Summer Assignment
Chapter 1 A. Style 1. Detail - “I enjoyed looking at her. She was a slender, small-breasted girl, with an erect carriage, which she accentuated by throwing her body backward at the shoulders like a young cadet.” (11) 2. Diction – “It made me uneasy, as though the whole evening had been a trick of some sort to exact a contributory emotion from me.” (17) B. Vocabulary 1. Uninflected: adj. Not varying in intonation and pitch.
“…the words, murmurous and uninflected, running together in a soothing tune.” (17) Because of her monotonous, uninflected voice, I fell asleep during the teacher’s lecture. 2. Veranda: n. A roofed platform along the outside of a house, level with the ground floor.
“Did you give Nick a little heart-to-heart talk on the veranda?” (19) My wealthy grandmother’s mansion has veranda that overlooked the serene shore nearby. 3. Peremptory: adj. (esp. of a person's manner or actions) Insisting on immediate attention or obedience, esp. in a brusquely imperious way.
“Something was making him nibble at the edge of stale ideas as if his study physical egotism no longer nourished his peremptory heart.” The boss’ peremptory tone towards his employees made him the easily hated person in the premises. C. Inquiry 1. Why does Daisy seem like a flirty woman with a frail personality? 2. What exactly made Nick Carraway become wholly fascinated with Gatsby?
Chapter 2 A. Style 1. Personification – “Occasionally a line of gray cars crawls along an invisible track, gives out a ghastly creak, and comes to rest…” (23) 2. Simile – “There was an immediately perceptible vitality about her as if the nerves of her body were continually smouldering.” (25) B. Vocabulary 1. Grotesque: adj. Incongruous or inappropriate to a shocking degree.
“This is a valley of ashes---a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens…” (23) The exceedingly wealthy millionaire has a notorious and grotesque lifestyle. 2. Sumptuous: adj. Splendid and expensive looking.
“…and that sumptuous and romantic apartments were concealed overhead, when the proprietor himself appeared in the door of an office…” (25) I dream of a sumptuous life for my family in the future because I believe they deserve it.

3. Haughtily: adv. Arrogantly: overbearing pride evidenced by a superior manner toward inferiors.
“…Mrs. Wilson gathered up her dog and her other purchases, and went haughtily in.” (28) With her shopping bags on both hands, my older sister haughtily strutted about in the mall. C. Inquiry 1. What was Tom’s purpose to bring Nick with him to meet his mistress? What made him think that he would not rat on him particularly since Daisy was his cousin? 2. What is Doctor T.J. Eckleberg’s significance in the story?
Chapter 3 A. Style 1. Syntax – “The moon had risen higher, and floating in the Sound was a triangle of silver scales, trembling a little to the stiff, tinny drip of the banjoes on the lawn.” (46) 2. Detail – “He smiled understandingly---much more than understandingly. It was one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced---or seemed to face---the whole external world for an instant…” (48) B. Vocabulary 1. Ascertain: Verb. To make certain, clear, or definitely known.
“About that. As a matter of fact you needn’t bother to ascertain. I ascertained. They’re real.” (45) I ascertain you that these Jordans shoes are authentic and signed by the Air Highness himself. 2. Provocation: noun. Something that incites, instigates, angers, or irritates.
“…who gave way upon the slightest provocation to uncontrollable laughter.” (47) At even the slightest provocation, teenagers will rebel and express anger against their parents. 3. Obstetrical: adj. Of or pertaining to the care and treatment of women in childbirth and during the period before and after delivery.
“Eluding Jordan’s undergraduate, who was no engaged in an obstetrical conversation with two chorus girls, and who implored me to join him, I went inside.” (51) Since her wife is pregnant, she engages in obstetrical conversations with her personal doctor to ensure the well-being of the baby. C. Inquiry 1. Why does Gatsby host such elegantly lavish parties? 2. As a young man, how did he quickly obtain that abundance of money? Surely, a young man in his thirties should not have that much wealth no matter how rich your family is.
Chapter 4 A. Style 1. Detail – “It was a rich cream color, bright with nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hat-boxes and supper-boxes and toll-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that mirrored a dozen suns.” (64) 2. Diction – “Unlike Gatsby and Tom Buchanan, I had no girl whose disembodied face floated along the cornices and blinding signs…” (80) B. Vocabulary 1. Amour: noun. A secret or illicit love affair or lover.
“Perhaps Daisy never went in for amour at all---and yet there’s something in that voice of hers…” My father was involved in an amour that marked the end of his marriage. 2. Beaux: noun. A boyfriend or male admirer.
“That was nineteen-seventeen. By the next year I had a few beaux myself, and I began to play in tournaments, so I didn’t see Daisy very often.” (75) In my younger years, I had no definite beaux which made me a very lonely little girl. 3. Groped: verb. Move along with difficulty by feeling objects as one goes.
“She groped around in a waste-basket she had with her on the bed and pulled out the string of pearls.” (76) C. Inquiry 1. Why did Gatsby have to waste millions of dollars in hope that Daisy would casually walk in his lavish parties instead of just inviting her or his husband directly like what he did to Nick? 2. Does Fitzgerald’s use of the words “goneggtion” and “Oggsford” for Mr. Wolfsheim hint anti-Semitism or racism in his behalf?
Chapter 5 A. Style 1. Idiom – “At first I thought it was another party, a wild rout that had resolved itself into ‘hide-and-go-seek’ or ‘sardines-in-the-box’ with all the house thrown open to the game.” (81) 2. Imagery – “Under the dripping bare lilac-trees a large open car was coming up the drive. It stopped. Daisy’s face, tipped sideways beneath a three-cornered lavender hat, looked out at me with a bright ecstatic smile.” (85) B. Vocabulary 1. Rout: noun. A disorderly or tumultuous crowd of people.
“At first I thought it was another party, a wild rout that had resolved itself into ‘hide-and-go-seek’ or ‘sardines-in-the-box’ with all the house thrown open to the game.” (81) I’m an introverted person, which means that routs without people I know make me uncomfortable and uneasy. 2. Defunct: adj. No longer existing or functioning.
“His head leaned back so far that it rested against the face of a defunct mantelpiece clock…” (86) I was distraught when my video game device ceased to work and became defunct. 3. Exultation: noun.
A feeling of triumphant elation or jubilation; rejoicing. “He literally glowed; without a word or a gesture of exultation a new well-being radiated from him and filled the little room...” (89) C. Inquiry 1. Why did Gatsby bring Nick with him while he was with Daisy instead of just taking advantage of the solitude between the two of them especially since they haven’t seen each other for five years? 2. What has made Daisy hold a special place in Gatsby’s heart that made him willingly wait for 5 years? Does he not take into sight that Daisy seems like a materialistic woman that has a physical beautiful face who uses her status and wealth as a fortress?
Chapter 6 A. Style 1. Diction – “There were the same people, or at least the same sort of people, the same profusion of champagne, the same many-colored, many-keyed commotion, but I felt an unpleasantness in the air, a pervading harshness that hadn’t been there before.” (104) 2. Hyperbole – “…he could climb to it, if he climbed alone, and once there he could suck on the pap of life, gulp down the incomparable milk of wonder.” (110) B. Vocabulary 1. Laudable: adj. Deserving praise and commendation.
“This was his day off and with laudable initiative he had hurried out “to see.” (97) Steve Jobs’ innovative mind is more than laudable for it has changed our modern technological atmosphere. 2. Meretricious: adj. Apparently attractive but having in reality no value or integrity.
“He must be about His Father’s business, the service of a vast, vulgar, and meretricious beauty. (98) I have involved myself in meretricious relationships and it has given me nothing but emptiness in my soul. 3. Perturbed: adj. Anxious or unsettled; upset.
“Tom was evidently perturbed at Daisy’s running around, for on the following Saturday night he came with her to Gatsby’s party.” (103) I was perturbed when I discovered that I did not get accepted into my dream college. C. Inquiry 1. If Gatsby only inherited $25,000 instead of the millions that went to Ella Kaye, how does he continue to make a living exactly? 2. Gatsby knows that Daisy is already married. Why is he so determined to ruin her current marriage with Tom and make himself that she never really loved him?
Chapter 7 A. Style 1. Alliteration: “On the green Sound, stagnant in the heat, one small sail crawled slowly toward the fresher sea.” (118) 2. Personification: “There is no confusion like the confusion of a simple mind, and as we drove away Tom was feeling the hot whips of panic.” (125) B. Vocabulary 1. Caravansary: noun. A group of people travelling together; a caravan.
“So the whole caravansary had fallen in like a card house at the disapproval in her eyes.” (114) Our caravansary was stranded in the woods when the engine broke down after a mechanical failure. 2. Glistening: verb. (Of something wet and greasy) Shine; glitter
“He set down the receiver and came toward us, glistening slightly to take our stiff straw hats.” (115) After the plunge in the pool, his face glistened against the shining sunlight in the scorching afternoon. 3. Crooned: verb. Say in a low soft voice.
“’Blessed precious’,” she crooned, holding out her arms.” (117)
She sulkily crooned to me, “Come here, please,” and I could not resist. C. Inquiry 1. Why was Daisy’s affection for Gatsby so fickle and unpredictable especially when she was confronted by him when there was a commotion between Tom and Gatsby? 2. Why does Gatbsy fail to understand that he cannot repeat his youthful relationship with Daisy and that she is married now?
Chapter 8 A. Style 1. Syntax: “He took what he could get, ravenously and unscrupulously—eventually he took Daisy one still October night, took her because he had no real right to touch her hand.” (149) 2. Simile: “..and of Daisy, gleaming like silver, safe and proud above the hot struggles of the poor. (150) B. Vocab 1. Redolent: adj. Strongly reminiscent or suggestive of something. “For Daisy was young and her artificial world was redolent of orchids and pleasant, cheerful snobbery and orchestras which set the rhythm of the year…” (151) 2. Benediction: noun. Utterance or bestowing of a blessing. “The track curve and now it was going away from the sun, which, as it sank lower, seemed to spread itself in benediction…” (153) 3. Pneumatic: adj. Containing or operated by gas under pressure. “He stopped at the garage for a pneumatic mattress that had amused his guests during the summer, and the chauffeur helped him pump it up.” (161) C. Inquiry 1. Why does Wilson fixate himself in believing that the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg are the eyes of God when it’s just an ad? 2. When Gatsby was in a lowly position, did he only love Daisy because she had everything that he wish he had?
Chapter 9 A. Style 1. Syntax – “…hour by hour, it grew upon me that I was responsible, because no one else was interested---interested, I mean, with that intense personal interest to which everyone has some vague right at the end.” (164) 2. Personification – “And as the moon rose higher the inessential houses began to melt away until gradually I became aware of the old island here that flowered once for Dutch sailors’ eyes…” (180) B. Vocabulary 1. Pasquinade: noun. A satire or lampoon, originally one delivered publicly in a public place. “When Michaelis’s testimony at the inquest brought to light Wilson’s suspicions of his wife I thought the whole tale would shortly be served up in racy pasquinade.” (163) My friends devised a plan to execute a pasquinade towards the crude bully. 2. Incoherent: adj. Internally inconsistent; illogical. “I went over and looked at that huge incoherent failure of a house once more.” (179) The student’s incoherent writing induced a painful headache to the person attempting to understand it. 3. Brooding: verb. Agonize over. “And as I sat there brooding on the old, unknown world, I thought of Gatsby’s wonder when he first picked out the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock.” (180) I spent my adolescent years brooding on how my life turned around for the grueling worst. C. Inquiry 1. When Nick saw Tom once again in New York especially with abhorrence, why did he not tell the truth that it was Daisy who killed Myrtle instead of the prevailing lie that it was Gatsby? Hearing all the lies from the media and other people, why did he not speak out the truth and expose Daisy for the truly horrible person she is? 2. When Mr. Gatz mentioned that Gatsby could have helped build up the country, was he disillusioned since Gatsby’s primal motivation for living and gaining material wealth was Daisy?