We are told that Gatsby came up from essentially nothing, and that the first time he met Daisy Buchanan, he was “a penniless young man.” His fortune, we are told, was the result of a bootlegging business – he “bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago” and sold illegal alcohol over the counter.
In the course of the novel, and no doubt the new film version, we find out what Gatsby is hiding: not only his criminal bootlegging, but also his family name, Gatz, and his poor, ethnic-American roots, which in the end exclude him from the upper-class Anglo-American social circles he hoped to enter.
The character is an enigmatic nouveau riche millionaire who lives in a luxurious mansion on Long Island where he often hosts extravagant parties and who allegedly gained his fortune by illicit bootlegging during prohibition in the United States.
What is revealed about Gatsby in Chapter 4? Jordan tells Nick that Gatsby and Daisy had been in love before she married Tom Buchanan. Gatsby wants Nick to get Daisy to come to Nick's house, presumably to continue their interrupted love affair.
Because he is evasive and even untruthful about his life and wealth, everyone around Gatsby makes up their own stories about him. Gatsby's background is so unfathomable, it is speculated that he acquired his money by playing a part in illegal activities including fixing the 1919 World Series and Prohibition.
Back at Tom's house, Nick waits outside and finds Gatsby hiding in the bushes. Gatsby says that he has been waiting there in order to make sure that Tom did not hurt Daisy. He tells Nick that Daisy was driving when the car struck Myrtle, but that he himself will take the blame.
Gatsby made his fortune through bootlegging. He sold alcohol through a drugstore that was front for illegal activities. His connection to organized crime gave him continued access to alcohol.
What other evidence is there that Gatsby is lying?
He lies about the origin of his wealth, he lies about his love life, he even lies about reading the great books in his library. Gatsby lies so much, and so frequently, that he could no more find the truth than discover humility.
Gatsby then lists a long and preposterously detailed set of accomplishments: he claims to have been educated at Oxford, to have collected jewels in the capitals of Europe, to have hunted big game, and to have been awarded medals in World War I by multiple European countries.
Gatsby's past is mysterious. In the car ride with Nick, he appears to mix fact with fiction. His war medal proves the authenticity of his stories about his military service in World War I. But his inaccurate statement about San Francisco being in the Midwest suggests that he is lying about where he grew up.
Tom is magnitudes of order wealthier than Gatsby. Note, in the initial party scene we discover that Gatsby's library is full of “blank” books: nice spines no substance (metaphor anyone). Gatsby does have…. shirts—so many shirts.
Why did Daisy marry Tom? Even though she was still in love with Gatsby, Daisy most likely married Tom because she knew he could provide her with more material comforts.
Jay Gatsby is shot to death in the swimming pool of his mansion by George Wilson, a gas-station owner who believes Gatsby to be the hit-and-run driver who killed his wife, Myrtle.
Through his efforts to gain love he ultimately loses himself and forgets to live his own life. Creating a facade of the lifestyle he craves for, Gatsby's dream becomes less and less obtainable. Closing out the book he never loses hope for Daisy, however it leads to his demise as he gets a bullet in his back.
Gatsby created this false identity because Daisy would find appeal to the idea of Gatsby coming from a wealthy family. This is the identity Gatsby creates after his war service. He shows that he is willing to lie before God to reinvigorate Daisy's appeal to him.
The scene where Gatsby is throwing shirts at Daisy is very important. The shirts symbolize Gatsby's wealth and luxury. The reason daisy cries is because Daisy already has wealth and all the money she wants. She does not want money and this is not what she is looking for.
We learn from Nick about Gatsby's true origins. His real name is James Gatz. He comes from North Dakota. At the age of 17 he changed his name to Jay Gatsby after meeting a rich mining prospector called Dan Cody.
Why was Daisy panicking before her wedding in this way?
Answer and Explanation: Daisy's wedding is described in the novel, and it isn't difficult to see that she is rather upset just before the wedding takes place. She gets a letter from Jay Gatsby that disturbs her, as she is reminded that she rejected the man she really loved in favor of a wealthy man.
He is randomly holding parties that are attended by different people, most of whom do not know each other, and never even know who Gatsby is exactly. Nick, on the other hand, questions Gatsby‟s covert identity when he states that “only Gatsby the man who gives his name to this book” (Fitzgerald, 2017 p-8).
The main topic of conversation is rumors about Gatsby. Nick hears from various people that Gatsby is a German spy, an Oxford graduate, and someone even claims Gatsby once killed a man. People used Gatsby for his extravagant parties: most of his "new money" guests didn't even know him.
Though Gatsby has always wanted to be rich, his main motivation in acquiring his fortune was his love for Daisy Buchanan, whom he met as a young military officer in Louisville before leaving to fight in World War I in 1917.
While many rumors have gone around regarding Gatsby's source of income, it is revealed that he made his money bootlegging alcohol during prohibition, buying up several pharmacies, and selling illegal alcohol over the counter.
Answer. Gatsby's honesty/honest intentions begin to fade as Nick grows to know him more. Although Nick faithfully believes Gatsby's stories of glory and wealth, time and again the truth of Gatsby's past surfaces.
A close reading shows that Jay Gatsby was a bootlegger and then kingpin of a scam to sell worthless bonds in small towns and to gullible victims at his lavish parties.
