Henry C. Gatz, the father of the man who reinvents himself as Jay Gatsby, is similar to his son in that they are both fairly socially unskilled. When Nick tries to have a conversation with him about Gatsby and the funeral arrangements in chapter nine, Gatz doesn't respond in ways that would be expected or even thank Nick for what he has done.
Hours after his arrival at Gatsby's house, Nick encounters Gatz "walking up and down excitedly in the hall" with obvious pride "in his son's possessions." Like Gatsby, Gatz sees material success as the mark of a person's worth and accomplishment and doesn't question the source of his son's fortune.
It seems that both father and son believed in the viability of the American Dream. Mr. Gatz shows Nick Gatsby's boyhood schedule and "general resolves" and proudly tells Nick that "Jimmy was bound to get ahead" and "he always had some resolves like this."
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