Jay Gatsby
The novel's central figure. A self-made man of mysterious wealth who has built his entire life around winning Daisy back. Gatsby is charming, delusional, and ultimately tragic — he mistakes his dream for reality.
Study Guidenovel
See who matters in The Great Gatsby, then write from it.
Use this page when you know the book but need the right person, force, or relationship to carry the argument.
Role over trivia
Focus on who carries the conflict, pressure, or idea instead of memorizing every detail.
Next links per character
Each entry points you toward the page that helps you prove something next.
Built for paper planning
Use this when you need a person or relationship to anchor the argument.
Characters
Characters
Come here when you need to sort out who matters, what they want, and where they actually help your argument in The Great Gatsby.
Contents
Characters
Character map
Who matters and what they help you prove.
Nick Carraway
The narrator. A Midwesterner who moves to West Egg and becomes Gatsby's neighbor and confidant. Nick is the moral compass of the novel — he's drawn to Gatsby but clear-eyed about the corruption around him.
Daisy Buchanan
Nick's cousin and Gatsby's obsession. Daisy is beautiful, careless, and ultimately unwilling to sacrifice her comfortable life for Gatsby. Her voice, Fitzgerald tells us, is full of money — and that says everything.
Tom Buchanan
Daisy's husband. Old money, physically imposing, and openly racist and unfaithful. Tom represents the brutality that hides behind the manners of the upper class. He destroys Gatsby without losing a night's sleep.
Jordan Baker
A professional golfer and Nick's love interest. Jordan is dishonest and self-serving, but she gives Nick key information about Gatsby's past. She represents the moral looseness of the wealthy social set.
Myrtle Wilson
Tom's mistress, married to George Wilson. Myrtle tries to escape the Valley of Ashes by attaching herself to Tom's world. She pays for that ambition with her life, killed by Daisy's careless driving.
George Wilson
Myrtle's husband, a garage owner in the Valley of Ashes. George is passive and worn down until Myrtle's death breaks him. Manipulated by Tom, he kills Gatsby and then himself — the final casualty of the wealthy's carelessness.
Ask a question about The Great Gatsby
Missing one piece? Ask directly instead of digging through another long page.
Read, then write
Turn The Great Gatsby into a paper faster.
Go from reading to claim, outline, or paragraph without rebuilding the book context every time.
Writing studio
Build the claim
Figure out what you are actually arguing before you write a word.
Open it →Writing studioMap the paper
Lay out the intro, body points, and ending around one claim that holds.
Open it →Writing studioDraft the analysis
Turn one point into analysis with evidence and explanation, not filler.
Open it →How this guide is built
This guide is built from the original text to help you get oriented fast. It is designed for recall, paper planning, and getting unstuck, but it is still a paraphrased guide, not a substitute for the reading itself. Double-check anything important before you turn in formal work.