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CHAPTER VIII

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The beginning of this chapter starts out in the night of the last chapter. Nick couldn’t sleep from all the bad happenings that had happened that day. When it was right around dawn Nick heard a car pull into Gatsby’s house. Nick got up to go meet Gatsby and find out what happened. Gatsby says that nothing happened. He says that he waited there until about 4 am and Daisy came to her room and just turned out the light.

Nick and Gatsby sit down and start to smoke cigarettes and Nick tries to convince Gatsby to leave town because he knows that the police will eventually trace the car to Gatsby. Despite Nick’s advice to forget Daisy and leave Long Island there was no way Gatsby was going to leave. He tells Nick about the early days of his relationship with Daisy. He still had a shadow of a hope of getting Daisy.

Nick wanted to know more about who Gatsby was but all Gatsby could talk about was Daisy. Gatsby talked about how he first went to her house with a bunch of officers and he was immediately charmed with her and impressed with the huge house she lived in. Gatsby says that he was surprised that he was in love with Daisy because he had never been in love with anybody before. He almost hoped that Daisy would dump him at first because he didn’t believe she could love him like he loved her. But she didn’t because she was in love with him too. One night they slept together, and he felt he had married her. Then he left for World War I. Daisy waited for a while and then drifted away from him and into marriage with Tom Buchanan. Daisy was flattered that someone of such a high class wanted to be with her and based of wealth and practicality she married him. Gatsby got the letter while he was at Oxford. She wrote Gatsby that she was going to marry Tom. When he finally returned, he went to Louisville to find her, but learned that she had, indeed, married Tom and was on her honeymoon. He says he should have tried harder to find her and get her back.

Gatsby and Nick finish breakfast. It was 9 o’clock and one of Gatsby’s butlers came up and told Gatsby that he was going to drain the pool because autumn was coming and the leaves would ruin the pipes. Gatsby told him not to and told Nick that he hadn’t used his pool once all summer. Nick needed to go to work but he didn’t want to leave Gatsby. Nick tried to stay to support his friend but after missing two trains he knew he needed to go to work. As Nick left he told Gatsby he’d call him around noon. Gatsby says that he’s sure Daisy will call too looking to Nick to confirm this. Nick sympathized with Gatsby and so he lied and said that he supposed so. Nick starts to leave to go to work and turns and yells to Gatsby, “They’re a rotten crowd, you’re worth the whole damn bunch of put together!” (Basically saying that he thinks that Gatsby is an amazing person) Nick says this was the only compliment he ever gave to Gatsby and he was glad he did. Nick says that after he said this Gatsby was sort of filled with light and smiles broadly.

Nick goes to work and falls to sleep at his desk. The phone ringing wakes him up. It was Jordan Baker. She would often call him to tell him where she was so they could meet. She told Nick that she just left Daisy’s house and that she was going to Southampton that afternoon. Jordan tells Nick that he was so nice to her and that she wanted to see him. Nick told her that he wanted to see her too. But he didn’t want to talk to her and felt irritated at her because of the whole situation. She kept trying to figure a time where they could meet and Nick kept blowing her off till she angrily hung up on him. Nick finds that he doesn't care.

Nick changes the subject to reflect on what happened with the situation after they left where the car hit Myrtle Wilson. Nick says that they contacted Myrtles sister, Catherine, and told her about what had happened.  Michaelis stayed with George Wilson all night to comfort him. George rocked himself back and forth all night while speechless with his sorrow. At around 3 am George’s mumbling (speechless) became more organized and he announced that he had a way to find out who the yellow car belonged to and said that his wife came home a few months ago with a bruised face.

George was filled with sorrow again and Michaelis asked him how long he and his wife had been married. George gained some calmness and said 12 years. Michaelis continued and asked George if he belonged to a church so a priest could come by and help George. George said that he didn’t and told Michaelis to look in a drawer. In the drawer was the leash (chain) for the dog that Tom had bought for Myrtle.

George says that the man who got that leash for her and hit her had to be the one who killed Myrtle. George says that that man murdered her. He says that he believes that Myrtle rushed out to talk to that same man and he didn’t stop but just hit her instead. He told Michaelis how he had confronted (defied/faced) her and told her she was sinning (immoral) in the eyes of God. It was near dawn at this point, and Wilson was staring into the eyes of T. J. Eckleburg when he mentioned God. Wilson says he has a way of finding out who was driving the car. Morning came and Michaelis went home for a bit from the garage. When he came back George was nowhere to be found.

George was going around investigating about the Yellow car. By 2:30 he knew Gatsby’s name. At two Gatsby was in his pool for the first time all season and told his butlers to bring him the phone if anyone should call. Nick says that he thinks Gatsby didn’t expect any phone call because he thinks that Gatsby must have given up hope. Earlier that day Gatsby had purchased a blow up mattress for his pool and was sitting on it all day.


As the day went on, one of the butlers heard the sound of gunshots and didn’t think much of it. Nick came back from work and rushed to the house to look for Gatsby. Nick, the chauffeur (driver show’fur), the butler, and the gardener all found Gatsby’s body the same time. He was floating in the pool shot dead by George Wilson. The gardener found George’s body a little way away in the yard. George had shot himself.
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