Chapter 8 (p.147-162)

Summary:
This chapter begins with Nick being unable to sleep because he felt that he needed to tell Gatsby something important. He and Gatsby search for cigarettes in Gatsby's "huge" house and he tells Nick more about how he fell in love with Daisy. Nick then goes to work, yet all day he is worried about Gatsby and Gatsby is at home all day waiting for Daisy to call him. Nick talks to Jordan and they mutually end their relationship. When Nick comes home, he goes straight to Gatsby's house where he discovers that George Wilson shot both Gatsby and himself.

Character:
Jay Gatsby:
-"It was the only compliment I ever gave him, because I disapproved of him from beginning to end. First he nodded politely, and then his face broke into that radiant and understanding smile, as if we'd been in ecstatics cahoots on that facet all the time. His gorgeous pink rag of a suit made a bright spot of color against the white steps, and I thought of the night when I first came to his ancestral home, three months before. The lawn and drive had been crowded with the faces of those who guessed at his corruption- and he had stood on those steps, concealing his incorruptible dream, as he waved them good-by." (FITZGERALD 154)
- Gatsby is described as being hospitable.
- He's in love with Daisy and she is his ultimate goal in life. He has focused his entire life to try and win her back.

In this chapter, Gatsby is shot by George Wilson. In order for Fitzgerald to fully get across his message, Gatsby needed to die. He needed to maintain his innocence in thinking that he still had a chance with Daisy, that she still loved him and was going to run away with him. In the bible, Moses reaches the promised land, but right as he sees it, he dies. Similarly, Gatsby finally sees Daisy and begins to have an affair with her and even though she tells him that she did love Tom at one point and when it becomes evident that she never planned to run away with him, he still believes that their love has a chance, but then he dies. In his final moments, he was probably thinking of Daisy and of how much he loved her and wanted to be with her and also thinking that maybe she didn't live up to the standards he created for her. Yet, before he has a chance to really think about that last part, George Wilson shoots him, and Gatsby is left only with what could have happened.

Meaningful Quote:
- " 'They're a rotten crowd,' I shouted across the lawn. 'You're worth the whole damn bunch put together.' "
- I chose this quote because it shows Nick judging other people, something he told the readers he never did in the first chapter. By saying this to Gatsby, we can see how much Nick has changed throughout the book. He started off trying to be a good person and not judging people no matter how hard it was. Yet, by the end of the book, the people he has been hanging out with, Tom, Daisy, Jordan, etc., have completely worn him out and he just has to get out what he truly thinks of them. Also, saying this to Gatsby is meant to be a compliment and it is the only compliment that Nick gives him throughout the entire book.