Friday, March 16, 2018

Why does Nick seem to be disgusted by Jordan as he admits, "I couldn't have talked to her across a tea-table that day if I never talked to her again this world"?

Nick is disgusted with Jordan as a result of her apparent lack of concern regarding the death of Myrtle Wilson and the huge confrontation that took place between Tom and Gatsby in New York City. She had wanted Nick to go inside the Buchanans' house the night Daisy killed Myrtle with Gatsby's car, as though they could somehow carry on their romance as though nothing tragic or awful had occurred just hours earlier. He refused her, and now, the next day, she says to him,

You weren't so nice to me last night.

But Nick doesn't really see how any of that matters. A woman died, and all Jordan seems to care about is herself and how she feels, what she wants. She offers to come to Nick's house that afternoon, but he turns her down. Nick is still dealing with the emotional fallout from everything that has happened, but it seems that Jordan is ready to move on, as though she's totally unaffected by it all. Later, he cannot remember who hung up first, but he "know[s] [he] didn't care." He is disgusted by Jordan's apathy and selfishness.

No comments:

Post a Comment

What is the theme of the chapter Lead?

Primo Levi's complex probing of the Holocaust, including his survival of Auschwitz and pre- and post-war life, is organized around indiv...