Gatsby, First Set of Prompts

Dishonesty and rumor permeate The Great Gatsby. Tom says, "Don't believe everything you hear, Nick"; moments later, Daisy insists the story of Nick's engagement is factual: "We heard it from three people, so it must be true" (19). Rumors about Gatsby's past fuel the conversation at his parties (44). Myrtle and Tom hide their affair from Myrtle's husband (26), and Tom has told Myrtle that Daisy is Catholic and doesn't believe in divorce (33). Jordan is rumored to have cheated at golf (57), and Nick says she's "incurably dishonest" (58). Even the dog seller lies about the sex of the dog he sells Myrtle—or perhaps Tom lies when he contradicts him (28).

With all this evidence of dishonesty, when Nick claims, "I am one of the few honest people that I have ever known" (59), I want to believe him, and almost do. But with the novel's emphasis on lies and rumors, I have to at least suspect that Nick's comments are a bit questionable. And the focus on the dishonesty of the other characters isn’t the only proof that maybe I shouldn't believe that Nick isn't always entirely trustworthy—right before he asserts his honesty, he admits to weekly sending letters signed "Love, Nick" to a woman he doesn't love (58).

If Nick's presentation of events can't be trusted, I have to look at him as more than he appears on the surface: a camera providing commentary about the main characters. Because if he is an unreliable narrator, he becomes the main character, and his interpretation of the events around him tells me more about him than it does about, say, Gatsby or Daisy. What does it tell me? I'm not sure yet. But while I'm trying to find out, I need to keep this in mind: even if Nick is unreliable at times, that doesn't mean everything he says is false.