Name: Phạm Thị Thục Anh

Student ID: 21040090

Class: QH21.E15
Week 8: The Great Gatsby
1. Draw a timeline of the story as seen from two of the following characters: Nick,
Daisy, Tom, Gatsby
Generally, the major events in The Great Gatsby took place in the 1920s - during the
Roaring Twenties. This era is characterized by the illegalization of alcohol and the
flourishment of the economy.
In particular, the timeline of the story can be seen from Gatsby and Nick, whom
Gatsby confided in:
1890: Gatsby was born in an impoverished household
relying on farming business
↓↓
1906: Gatsby left his original family in pursuit of wealth
(he was 16 years old at that time)
↓↓
1907: Gatsby saved Dan Cody, a copper tycoon from having his yacht destroyed by
weather. As a token of gratitude, Cody invited him to join his voyage. This marked the
turning point in Gatsby’s life where he had his first taste of luxury.
↓↓
1912: Cody passed away, leaving part of his inheritance for Gatsby. However, Gatsby
did not receive this money, owing to Cody’s mistress. Therefore, he was determined
to pursue a life of wealth.
↓↓
1917: Gatsby enlisted in the army force during World War I.
During this time, at one training camp in Louisville, he met Daisy as a promising
young officer. They fell in love quickly and passionately. However, Gatsby was
forced to leave his lover to fight in the war. Daisy promised to wait for him to return.
↓↓
1918: Gatsby was awarded and praised for his extraordinary courage in battles, which
helped him climb the military ranking to attain the position of a major.
↓↓
1919: After WWI ended, Gatsby attended the University of Oxford in the UK for a
short time, during which he received Daisy’s letter saying that she had settled down
with Tom Buchanan. His ex-lover’s marriage was the final push for Gatsby to
dedicate himself to amassing material possessions to win Daisy back. Furthermore,
during the same year, he set foot in New York City, where he met his future working
 partner, Wolfsheim, who was reportedly involved in some shady underground
business.
↓↓
1922: This is the year where most of the major events in the story took place:
Gatsby purchased his mansion in West Egg, across the sea from Tom and Daisy’s
house in East Egg. He began throwing ridiculously extravagant parties just to capture
Daisy’s attention.
↓
Gatsby got to reunite with his ex-lover, thanks to the tea party he asked Nick to
arrange. He managed to seduce Daisy with his fancy mansion and luxurious
decorations.
↓
Tom attended one party at Gatsby’s house, where he voiced his doubts over the origin
of The Great Gatsby.
↓
The destined trip to New York City also happened in this year, featuring all 5 main
characters. Tom publicly confronted Gatsby and Daisy about their illicit affair. In
response to Tom’s remarks, Gatsby implored Daisy to tell her husband that she never
loved him, which she denied and announced that she loved them both.
↓
Tom provoked Gatsby into losing his temper in front of everyone, which he
succeeded. Gatsby hastily apologized to others, ashamed of his violent behavior and
running after Daisy to convince her.
↓
They all departed from New York City, during which Daisy ran over Tom’s mistress
who hurried to the highway. Gatsby comforted her, ensured that he would take
responsibility for her crime and expected her to call him.
↓
During his wait for Daisy’s call, Gatsby was murdered by George, who was urged by
Tom to avenge his wife. He passed away in his pool and his blood, at the age of 32.
↓
His funeral took place shortly after, in the presence of none except his father, one of
his partygoers, “Owl Eyes” and his only true friend, Nick. Nick desperately contacted
all of Gatsby’s acquaintances to inform them of his death, but nobody bothered to
show up, even his working partner. Daisy and Tom had already fled the scene by the
time Nick called them.
↓↓
1924: Nick told the audience about the legacy of The Great Gatsby.
2. Which character impresses you the most regarding Totally Incluse Self-love?
For this question, allow me to give a rundown of the main characters in terms of
Totally Inclusive Self-love.
Firstly, let’s take a look at Tom Buchanan. Born into a privileged “Old Money”
family, Tom constantly looked down on most people around him, thus growing
suspicious of the “New Money” and blowing Gatsby’s cover since he believed that the
kind of Gatsby would always be beneath him and his silver-spoon life. He sought
pleasure in loving other women but always found his way back to Daisy because she
was his status symbol - a charming, beautiful woman from another “Old Money”
lineage. He loved himself to the point he was completely incapable of any remorse
that would accompany his destructive actions. After wreaking havoc in New York
City and East Egg, he did not hesitate to pack his bags and flee the scene with his
wife. It can be seen that Tom Buchanan always put himself first, often at the expense
of others. Therefore, he was the definition of self-centeredness, which did not equate
to self-love, but at least, it was an intoxicated version of self-love.
As for Daisy, she was certainly shallow and selfish. Because of her superficial needs,
Daisy chased a life of comfort and security in the arms of Tom, miserably accepting
his many affairs and even applauding his racist tendencies. It is transparent that she
was unhappy with her marriage with Tom, but she still chose it since it was the
version of happiness she had been taught growing up. In the end, she never truly loved
herself, but her decisions to avoid blame for the murder, to leave Gatsby hanging, and
later on, to avoid attending his funeral showed that she was also another self-centered
person, only second to her husband.
Nick also showed flaws in his journey toward self-love. He did not find it in himself to
reject Tom’s pestering to meet his mistress, Gatsby’s request to meet Daisy, and after
that, their multiple efforts to invite him on their trips. As a consequence, he was swept
into the chaos of the battle of “Old Money” versus “New Money” time and time again,
often reluctantly. He was so preoccupied with all these shiny lives around him that he
even forgot his own thirtieth birthday, which only crept up into his mind during the
destined trip to New York City. His 30-year-old era was marked by a haunting sense
of loneliness, but he still could not bring himself out of the mess that was created by
the people supposed to be his close friends. This demonstrated his lack of self-love.
Nevertheless, in my opinion, the most outstanding character in terms of Totally
Inclusive Self-love is Gatsby, because although other characters had some twisted
ideas and execution of self-love, Gatsby was somehow devoid of self-love. In the
beginning, he did not accept his impoverished upbringing and humble background,
only deeming himself desirable once he had attained tremendous wealth and respect
from others. One who constantly rejects his past can only find himself leaning further
away from self-love. He shook hands with shady figures and dabbled in the under-the-
counter alcohol business just so that he could realize his money-driven ambition. He
only allowed himself to fall back in love with Daisy once he had amassed enough
wealth and fame. He threw extravagant, over-the-top parties with crowds of important
figures, just so that he could be deemed worthy of the spot next to Daisy, and by
extension, all those figures in her upscale society. He went the extra mile, to fulfill the
carefully crafted picture of The Great Gatsby. He did all those amazing things, just to
prove to everyone that he was good enough. In short, everything he did was catered to
someone else, but never himself. Gatsby was the opposite of Totally Inclusive Self-
love, and that is one of the reasons why I was so awestruck by him.