Keyword Guide · chapter-summary
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s opening chapter of The Great Gatsby sets the stage for the novel’s exploration of wealth, longing, and the American Dream through the eyes of narrator Nick Carraway. This guide breaks down the key events, characters, and themes to help you prepare for class, quizzes, or essay writing. We’ll also include structured study strategies to deepen your understanding.
Freshly moved to New York’s West Egg neighborhood, Nick Carraway— a midwesterner working in bonds— visits his cousin Daisy and her wealthy husband Tom Buchanan in the more exclusive East Egg. There, he meets Jordan Baker, a cynical professional golfer, and learns of Tom’s extramarital affair and Daisy’s quiet unhappiness. The chapter closes with Nick spotting his mysterious neighbor, Jay Gatsby, standing alone and reaching toward a distant green light across the bay.
Focus on three central figures here: Nick, the observant, reserved narrator who frames the story’s moral lens; Tom, the arrogant, old-money heir whose cruelty and infidelity expose the emptiness of inherited wealth; and Daisy, the charming but fragile socialite trapped in a loveless marriage. Gatsby’s brief, enigmatic appearance teases his role as the novel’s tragic heart.
Fitzgerald establishes three core themes in Chapter 1. First, the divide between old money (East Egg) and new money (West Egg) as a symbol of social hierarchy. Second, the hollow decadence of the wealthy elite, seen in Tom’s casual cruelty and Daisy’s suppressed despair. Third, the power of unspoken longing, embodied by Gatsby’s quiet reach toward the green light.
For class discussions: Prepare two talking points— one on Nick’s reliability as a narrator, and one on how the green light foreshadows future events. For quizzes: Memorize the key character dynamics and the East Egg/West Egg distinction. For essays: Use this chapter’s opening imagery to build a thesis on Fitzgerald’s critique of the American Dream’s corruption.
This split establishes the novel’s central commentary on class: East Egg represents inherited, unearned wealth with a long social legacy, while West Egg represents self-made, newly acquired wealth that’s still excluded from elite circles. It sets up Gatsby’s lifelong quest to bridge that gap.
In its first appearance, the green light represents unfulfilled desire— specifically Gatsby’s longing for a person or future that feels just out of his grasp. It also hints at the broader theme of the American Dream as a distant, often unreachable goal.
Nick claims to be “one of the few honest people that I have ever known,” but his close ties to Daisy and his admiration for Gatsby’s “extraordinary gift for hope” suggest he may frame events through a sympathetic, biased lens. This ambiguity is a key point for class analysis.
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