Chapter Seven
The amount of drama included within this chapter is outrageous. The awkward trip to New York City was clearly the start to all the drama. Though Tom and Gatsby have been seen together earlier in the novel, it was clear that this chapter was going to strike the fight. What first seemed ironic in the chapter was that Daisy and Gatsby rode together to the city. Why would Tom let this happen? It’s clear that he was proving a point, but wouldn’t he want to show Daisy love, and not acts of ignorance?
Also within the chapter, the theme of dishonesty was reintroduced. Wilson has found out that his wife has been having a romantic relationship with another man. It seems as if this detail was included to introduce the conversation that was later taken place in the chapter. Finally, Daisy is confronted by Tom. While he basically forces her to tell Gatsby she doesn’t love him, she does. “..she hesitated. Her eyes fell on Jordan and me with a sort of appeal, as though she realized at last what she was doing–and as though she had never, all along, intended doing anything at all. But it was done now. It was too late. “I never loved him,” she said, with perceptible reluctance.pg 132. Subsequent to her admitting that she never loved Gatsby, Tom continues to question Daisy, almost as if to assure himself that she is indeed saying she never loved him. Focusing on Gatsby; he has dedicated his life to this woman, now to find that she “never loved him”. Clearly she’s not telling the truth, but the fact remains, she did say it. But, when Gatsby approches Daisy, she’s quick to push him away. Clearly, Daisy is a torn woman.
