'Possibly it had occurred to him that the colossal significance of that light had vanished forever... Now it was again a green light on a dock. His count of enchanted objects had diminished by one.'
Nick believes Gatsby still worships Daisy after meeting her again after five years
Nick thinks that after five years Gatsby now realises there is nothing special about Daisy after all
Nick believes that after meeting Daisy again Gatsby must have felt some of the magic of his dream had gone
'I found myself on Gatsby’s side, and alone.'
At Gatsby's funeral, Nick feels he is the only person who has stayed loyal to Gatsby
At Gatsby's funeral, Nick feels uncomfortable about admitting he is Gatsby’s friend
At Gatsby's funeral, Nick feels he has made a mistake in getting involved with Gatsby
'What'll we do with ourselves this afternoon?... And the day after that, and the next thirty years?'
Daisy enjoys planning out her life carefully and for a long time ahead
Although Daisy is very privileged, she is bored and aware her life lacks purpose
Daisy is bossy and tries to organize her friends’ lives for them
'Nowadays people begin by sneering at family life and family institutions, and next they'll throw everything overboard and have intermarriage between black and white.'
Tom Buchanan is a strong upholder of respectable family values
Tom believes that black people and white people should be free to intermarry if they wish to
Tom is a racist and a womaniser who pays lip service only to upholding family values
'Generally he was one of these worn-out men: when he wasn't working, he sat on a chair in the doorway and stared at the people and the cars that passed along the road.'
George Wilson arouses sympathy because he has had few breaks in life
George Wilson cannot work because he is unwell
George Wilson deserves to fail because he makes no effort to work
'"I see you're looking at my cuff buttons." I hadn't been looking at them, but I did now. They were composed of oddly familiar pieces of ivory. "Finest specimens of human molars," he informed me.'
Meyer Wolfshiem is a dentist with a strange sense of humour
Meyer Wolfshiem is a sinister character and we imagine the teeth may come from a murder victim
Meyer Wolfshiem is a joker who likes to wind people up with tall stories