The Great Gatsby book club questions

The reading plan

Meeting 1: Chapters 1 to 3

1. What does the troubled dinner suggest about what wealth can and cannot offer?
2. How do you interpret Gatsby reaching toward a light across the water?
3. How does Tom Buchanan's violence change the way you judge his affair?
4. What might the journey through the ash heaps add to your reading of the apartment gathering?
5. How should Nick weigh rumors against his own conversation with Gatsby?

Meeting 2: Chapters 4 to 6

6. When does arranging a chance to meet someone become trying to control the meeting?
7. How does learning the purpose of Gatsby's parties change what their lavishness means to you?
8. What different kinds of understanding might Jordan Baker's memories and the city lunch offer about Gatsby's hopes?
9. What might the shift from awkward tea to emotional reunion suggest about Gatsby and Daisy's connection?
10. How might touring a mansion shape an emotional reunion?

Meeting 3: Chapters 7 to 9

11. How fair is it for Gatsby to make demands that Daisy cannot meet?
12. How does Daisy's inability to meet Gatsby's demands change your view of his effort to recover the past?
13. How does Myrtle Wilson's death change the weight of the confrontation that comes before it?
14. What does placing Gatsby's waiting alongside George Wilson's searching make you consider about action and inaction?
15. How should we judge the value of Gatsby's lavish gatherings in light of the difficulty gathering mourners?

Themes to talk about

Tips for the host

1. Open each meeting with one question everyone can answer, then go deeper.
2. Anyone who fell behind can catch up with the 15-minute summary.