Gatsby 2

 

Then wear the gold hat, if that will move her;
If you can bounce high, bounce for her too,
Till she cry, ‘Lover, gold-hatted, high-bouncing lover,
I must have you!

This epigraph is the first thing you read when you open the great book of The Great Gatsby. But what does this quote mean exactly? How does it pertain to the Great Gatsby himself? Well, that is the very question I have been asked to write about today. So, let us begin.

Let us start with a chapter four analysis. Chapter four focuses a lot on Gatsby and Nick's interaction rather than Daisy, who will be better reintroduced to Gatsby in chapter 5. Starting with his interactions with Nick, we can already see how his character fits with the epigraph. In the very beginning of the chapter we can see that Nick was invited to lunch by Gatsby, but instead of having Nick drive himself, he shows up in his nicest car, "a rich cream color, bright with nickel," and he immediately asks, "It's pretty isn't it, old sport?" Such a question is showing how he wants confirmation that his "Gold hat" is impressive enough. Counting on into the later half of the chapter we learn another very important detail about Gatsby. This detail is revealed to us by none other than Miss. Jordan Baker. According to Jordan, "Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay." Gatsby is not just wearing his "gold hat", but he is "bouncing high" too, trying to get her attention. It seems that Gatsby would be willing to do anything to win Daisy over. Such a fact becomes painfully obvious into chapter six of the book.

In chapter five we get a whole lot more information. Just a few pages in we can already see Gatsby trying to show off and make things, "perfect." As it reads, "Mr. Gatsby had sent him over to cut my grass." But it ix not just the grass he makes perfect. He himself also shows up wearing a "white flannel suit, silver shirt, and gold-colored tie," essentially flaunting his wealth, before Daisy even arrives. When Daisy arrives he flaunts his wealth more rapidly and, as Nick describes it, "demanding" than even before. Flaunting his house, money, parties, boats, and more. He even tries to hide the fact that most of his money was inherited, saying, "I lost most of it in the big panic - the panic of the war." Gatsby made sure to go the extra mile and show Daisy quite literally everything. Even his closet and the clothes he owns. Of course, even his clothes had a back story to them, "I've got a man in England who buys me clothes. He sends them over a selection of things at the beginning of each season, spring and fall." This time flaunting not only his wealth, but his connections as well. Similar connection flaunting is shown when Gatsby introduces Nick to Mr. Wolfshiem, the man who fixed the World Series.

With all of this information compiled together it is easy to see how The Great Gatsby relates to the opening epigraph. He wear his golden hat by flaunting his wealth to those around him and bounces high by doing things that will be noticed, like throwing parties and buying an extravagant house across the bay from Daisy's. But as we know, he doesn't do all of this stuff for anyone, he does it for Daisy. He does everything in his power to impress Daisy and show off everything he has to offer in order to win her over and make her cry, "Lover, gold-hatted, high-bouncing lover, I must have you!"