Heat
In this heat every extra gesture was an affront to the common store of life. -Nick Carraway
Throughout the Novel...
"The next day was broiling, almost the last, certainly the warmest, of the summer." (114)
"In this heat every extra gesture was an affront to the common store of life." (115)
“'But it’s so hot,' insisted Daisy, on the verge of tears, 'and everything’s so confused. Let’s all go to town!' Her voice struggled on through the heat, beating against it, molding its senselessness into forms." (119)
"Tom pushed the unfamiliar gears tentatively, and we shot off into the oppressive heat, leaving them out of sight behind." (121)
"The relentless beating heat was beginning to confuse me and I had a bad moment there before I realized that so far his suspicions hadn’t alighted on Tom." (124)
"There is no confusion like the confusion of a simple mind, and as we drove away Tom was feeling the hot whips of panic." (125)
"As Tom took up the receiver the compressed heat exploded into sound and we were listening to the portentous chords of Mendelssohn’s Wedding March from the ballroom below." (127)
"In this heat every extra gesture was an affront to the common store of life." (115)
“'But it’s so hot,' insisted Daisy, on the verge of tears, 'and everything’s so confused. Let’s all go to town!' Her voice struggled on through the heat, beating against it, molding its senselessness into forms." (119)
"Tom pushed the unfamiliar gears tentatively, and we shot off into the oppressive heat, leaving them out of sight behind." (121)
"The relentless beating heat was beginning to confuse me and I had a bad moment there before I realized that so far his suspicions hadn’t alighted on Tom." (124)
"There is no confusion like the confusion of a simple mind, and as we drove away Tom was feeling the hot whips of panic." (125)
"As Tom took up the receiver the compressed heat exploded into sound and we were listening to the portentous chords of Mendelssohn’s Wedding March from the ballroom below." (127)
Relevance
Heat is used in the novel as a way of stressing out the characters. When the characters drive into the city, the heat kicks in and surrounds Gatsby and Tom's argument. The temperature is a way of foreshadowing events. It is also symbolic of confusion and pain. Nick frequently mentions this confusion and the stress of the other characters as they complain about the heat. Gatsby becomes pained as Daisy mentions her love for Tom, and Tom feels the same. The heat is used as a device for tension and stress in the events of the novel and between the characters themselves.
Reference (Pre-1925)
"I experienced a sensation not altogether physical, yet almost so, as of burning heat; and as if the letter were not of red cloth, but red-hot iron." (The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne)
Connection: The heat is an inspiration for tension in the novel, translating to Hester's triangle with Chillingworth and Dimmesdale.
Connection: The heat is an inspiration for tension in the novel, translating to Hester's triangle with Chillingworth and Dimmesdale.