Jay Gatsby in The Chosen and the Beautiful: Character Analysis

Overview

Jay Gatsby is the enigmatic, fabulously wealthy host of West Egg whose lavish parties and mysterious origins anchor Nghi Vo's reimagining of The Great Gatsby. In Vo's version, Gatsby is not merely a self-made man but a man who has literally sold his soul to Hell. Jordan Baker, the novel's narrator, initially fails to connect the wealthy Gatsby with Lieutenant Jay Gatsby from Camp Taylor—the eager young officer whose commission was purchased with the last of his money from Dan Cody and who owned only one pair of decent shoes. By 1922, the lieutenant's soul is gone, and in its place stands a man whose mansion serves as a way station for infernal activity.

Gatsby's defining trait is his singular, consuming focus on Daisy Buchanan. Everything he has built—the mansion, the parties, the fortune—exists to win her back. As Jordan observes, he never asked Hell for Daisy directly; instead, he built and baited for her a gorgeous gold and velvet trap. His tragedy is that the trap he built for Daisy is also the trap that destroys him.

Plot Role

Gatsby functions as the novel's central catalyst. His parties draw the social world of New York to West Egg, and his mansion becomes a meeting ground for the living, the damned, and the infernal. He enlists Jordan to arrange a reunion with Daisy through Nick Carraway, setting in motion the novel's central romantic plot. His confrontation with Tom Buchanan at the Plaza hotel exposes his infernal bargain, and his decision to send Daisy home in his cream Rolls-Royce—the car that kills Myrtle Wilson—leads directly to his death. George Wilson, directed by Tom to Gatsby, shoots him twice in the head at his East Egg mansion before killing himself. For more on how the novel concludes, see the ending explained page.

Motivations and Traits

Gatsby's motivations are remarkably single-minded. Everything he does—the parties, the wealth, the infernal bargain itself—serves his desire to become a man worthy of Daisy Fay. Jordan notes that he never asked Hell for Daisy herself, suggesting that even his pact with the infernal was indirect: he asked for the power to win her, not for her directly.

His traits emerge through action:

Charm and warmth: Gatsby's smile is a rare thing, one Jordan has seen only four or five times in her life. He tells Nick with his eyes and his smile that he understands him, and Nick responds with a desperate longing to be known.
Isolation: Despite hosting hundreds of guests, Gatsby sits alone at his own party. Jordan observes that no one comes close to him, and she senses that something is wrong.
Possessiveness: When Daisy breaks down at the Plaza, Gatsby's grip leaves a red, blistered handprint on her arm. Jordan sees the cold, sick, furious look on his face before he apologizes.
Social anxiety: Gatsby is acutely aware of his origins. He tells Jordan that Nick cannot forgive people for their origins, nor forgive them for trying to overcome those origins. When Nick fails to recognize him at the party, Gatsby deflates, momentarily at a loss.
Coercion: When Jordan hesitates to help him, Gatsby threatens her. He is not above using fear to get what he wants.

Chronological Arc

Gatsby's arc spans roughly fifteen years:

1907: Sails with Dan Cody, whose photograph hangs in Gatsby's mansion.
1917: As Lieutenant Jay Gatsby at Camp Taylor, he meets Daisy Fay and begins a secret romance. Daisy gives him a note before he ships out.
1918: Gatsby serves in the Sixteenth Division until June, then ships out to Europe.
1919: Daisy marries Tom Buchanan. A letter from Jay at Camp Taylor arrives the day before the wedding, leaving Daisy distraught.
By 1922: Gatsby has sold his soul, become fabulously wealthy, and built his West Egg mansion. He throws legendary parties.
Summer 1922: Gatsby enlists Jordan to arrange a reunion with Daisy through Nick. The reunion happens at Nick's house, and Gatsby and Daisy rekindle their romance.
August 1922: At the Plaza, Tom reveals Gatsby's infernal bargain. Daisy breaks down and cannot deny loving Tom. Tom sends Daisy home with Gatsby in Gatsby's car.
The accident: Daisy, driving Gatsby's car, strikes and kills Myrtle Wilson. Gatsby casts a spell to conceal them.
Gatsby's death: George Wilson, directed by Tom to Gatsby, shoots Gatsby twice in the head. Gatsby's funeral is poorly attended.

Relationships

Daisy Buchanan: The center of Gatsby's world. He believes their love is fated, insisting that he and Daisy met and fell in love with a passion Tom could never understand, and that fate split them apart. He insists she never loved Tom, but at the Plaza she breaks down, crying that she cannot deny loving Tom and asking why she cannot love more than one person at once. Gatsby's response—that he only loves her—reveals his inability to understand her complexity.

Nick Carraway: Gatsby uses Nick as a means to reach Daisy, but their connection runs deeper. Nick falls in love with Gatsby, and after Gatsby's death, Nick confesses he still loves him. Gatsby tells Jordan that Nick thinks he is a social climber, but the two share a genuine bond.

Jordan Baker: Gatsby's intermediary. He asks her to tell Nick who he truly is, and later to persuade Nick to bring Daisy to West Egg. When she hesitates, he threatens her. Jordan sees through him—she senses something wrong at his party—but she also recognizes his power.

Tom Buchanan: Gatsby's rival. Tom exposes Gatsby's bargain at the Plaza and later directs Wilson to Gatsby, effectively orchestrating his murder.

Dan Cody: Gatsby's early patron, with whom he sailed in 1907. The photograph in Gatsby's mansion is a reminder of his origins.

Key Decisions and Consequences

Selling his soul to Hell: Gatsby's decision to let Meyer Wolfsheim broker an infernal deal transforms him from a poor lieutenant into a fabulously wealthy man. The consequence: he becomes the linchpin holding Hell to Earth, a way station for infernal activity. His house bridges the gap between Hell and the human world.
Building the mansion and throwing parties: Gatsby constructs a palace to attract Daisy. The parties draw the social world, but they also draw Hell's attention. The house becomes a place where people can disappear and come back strange and hollow.
Confronting Tom at the Plaza: Gatsby forces the confrontation, demanding Daisy tell Tom she never loved him. The consequence is catastrophic: Daisy breaks, Tom reveals the bargain, and Gatsby loses Daisy.
Sending Daisy home in his car: After the Plaza, Tom sends Daisy home with Gatsby in Gatsby's cream Rolls. Daisy, driving, kills Myrtle Wilson. Gatsby casts a spell to conceal them, but the car is identified as the death car.
Protecting Daisy after the accident: Gatsby's protection cannot save him. Tom directs Wilson to Gatsby, and Wilson shoots him.

Theme and Symbol Connections

Gatsby is the novel's central figure for exploring identity as a constructed and fragile performance. He is literally a constructed self—the lieutenant who sold his soul to become someone else. Jordan notes that the young lieutenant and the wealthy Gatsby would never be thought of as the same man. His identity is so fragile that one moment of honesty—forgetting to lie when Daisy touches his face—exposes the dirt farmer's son beneath the palace.

His story embodies the corrosive power of wealth and class privilege. Gatsby's wealth is purchased with his soul, and it cannot buy him entry into Daisy's world. Tom's dismissive question—