The Great Gatsby, Chapter 2 summary

What happens

1. Tom forces the narrator off the train near the ash heaps and introduces him to Myrtle at George B. Wilson’s garage.
2. Myrtle travels separately into New York, buys a puppy with Tom’s money, and brings the narrator to the apartment.
3. Catherine and the McKees join the gathering, where drinking, gossip, and Myrtle’s grand behavior fill the small rooms.
4. Catherine repeats rumors about Gatsby and gives a false religious explanation for why Tom cannot divorce Daisy.
5. Myrtle describes her unhappy marriage and attraction to Tom; around midnight, Tom breaks her nose during an argument about Daisy.
6. The narrator leaves with Mr. McKee, recalls a fragment in his bedroom, and waits at Pennsylvania Station for a train.

In this chapter

What to notice

The narrator joins the drinking but also watches the gathering critically. This divided position helps explain his simultaneous fascination and wish to leave.

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