Sunday, February 7, 2016

How does Gatsby act when the visiting trio comes to visit?

When the trio of Tom Buchanan, Mr. Sloane, and Mrs. Sloane drop by Gatsby's house, Gatsby's behavior is a little manic.  At first, he is anxious to offer them something to drink, and he is "uneasy," knowing somehow that they've only come for such a reason.  When Gatsby turns to Tom, he speaks a little "aggressively," asserting that he knows Tom's wife.  Gatsby is welcoming to Mr. and Mrs. Sloane, claiming that he'd love to have them all at his next party, and he eventually gets "control of himself" and urges them to stay for dinner.  When the woman invites him and Nick to supper, Tom can tell that Gatsby does not understand that Mr. Sloane doesn't really want them to come.  Nick sees it, Tom sees it, but Gatsby does not.  He sort of betrays himself as someone who cannot read the social cues of the old money.  Thus, his behavior is varied: at one moment anxious, the next aggressive, and later, self-assured when he shouldn't be. 

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