Jordan Baker’s quotes give insight into Daisy’s past in The Great Gatsby.
Jordan Baker is a professional golfer and Daisy’s friend. She’s also known for being dishonest and gossipy.
The Great Gatsby Quotes With Page Numbers
Jordan Baker Quotes With Page Numbers
The Great Gatsby quotes from Jordan Baker and about her, with chapters and page numbers in context.
“The only completely stationary object in the room was an enormous couch on which two young women were buoyed up as though upon an anchored balloon. They were both in white, and their dresses were rippling and fluttering as if they had just been blown back in after a short flight around the house.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 1, Page 11
“The younger of the two was a stranger to me. She was extended full length at her end of the divan, completely motionless, and with her chin raised a little, as if she were balancing something on it which was quite likely to fall. If she saw me out of the corner of her eyes she gave no hint of it — indeed, I was almost surprised into murmuring an apology for having disturbed her by coming in.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 1, Page 11
“At any rate, Miss Baker’s lips fluttered, she nodded at me almost imperceptibly, and then quickly tipped her head back again — the object she was balancing had obviously tottered a little and given her something of a fright. Again a sort of apology arose to my lips. Almost any exhibition of complete self-sufficiency draws a stunned tribute from me.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 1, Page 11
“You live in West Egg,” she remarked contemptuously. “I know somebody there.”
“I don’t know a single ——”
“You must know Gatsby.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway, Chapter 1, Page 12
“Tom and Miss Baker, with several feet of twilight between them, strolled back into the library, as if to a vigil beside a perfectly tangible body, while, trying to look pleasantly interested and a little deaf, I followed Daisy around a chain of connecting verandas to the porch in front. In its deep gloom we sat down side by side on a wicker settee.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 1, Page 15
“I thought you might be here,” she responded absently as I came up. “I remembered you lived next door to ——” She held my hand impersonally, as a promise that she’d take care of me in a minute, and gave ear to two girls in twin yellow dresses, who stopped at the foot of the steps.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker to Nick Carraway, Chapter 3, Page 30
Meaning: Jordan’s quote and behavior toward Nick now convey her lack of interest in him and her focus on the other two girls. She only holds Nick’s hand impersonally to show that she will take care of him soon and then continues to ignore him in favor of the two girls.
This highlights Jordan’s aloof and somewhat cold demeanor, which Nick has observed since first meeting her.
“And I like large parties. They’re so intimate. At small parties there isn’t any privacy.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker, Chapter 3, Page 34
Meaning: Jordan Baker’s quote from The Great Gatsby highlights the importance of large gatherings and their anonymity. Through this anonymity, one can take in and observe the world around them without the fear of being judged or criticized.
Quotes About Gatsby’s Parties And Page Numbers
“I wasn’t actually in love, but I felt a sort of tender curiosity.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 3, Page 38
“Dishonesty in a woman is a thing you never blame deeply.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 3, Page 39
“It takes two to make an accident.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker to Nick Carraway, Chapter 3, Page 39
Meaning: This quote from Jordan Baker reflects her attitude toward life. She believes that carelessness is a trait shared by both parties in an accident. It also warns Nick that she is carefree and only likes him because he is careful.
“Her gray, sun-strained eyes stared straight ahead, but she had deliberately shifted our relations, and for a moment I thought I loved her. But I am slow-thinking and full of interior rules that act as brakes on my desires, and I knew that first I had to get myself definitely out of that tangle back home. I’d been writing letters once a week and signing them: “Love, Nick,” and all I could think of was how, when that certain girl played tennis, a faint mustache of perspiration appeared on her upper lip. Nevertheless there was a vague understanding that had to be tactfully broken off before I was free.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 3, Page 39
“The officer looked at Daisy while she was speaking, in a way that every young girl wants to be looked at sometime, and because it seemed romantic to me I have remembered the incident ever since.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker, Chapter 4, Page 48
“It was a strange coincidence,” I said.
“But it wasn’t a coincidence at all.”
“Why not?”
“Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay.”
Then it had not been merely the stars to which he had aspired on that June night. He came alive to me, delivered suddenly from the womb of his purposeless splendor.
“He wants to know,” continued Jordan, “if you’ll invite Daisy to your house some afternoon and then let him come over.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 4, Page 50
“Suddenly I wasn’t thinking of Daisy and Gatsby any more, but of this clean, hard, limited person, who dealt in universal scepticism, and who leaned back jauntily just within the circle of my arm. A phrase began to beat in my ears with a sort of heady excitement: “There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy and the tired.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 4, Page 50
“He’s afraid, he’s waited so long. He thought you might be offended. You see, he’s a regular tough underneath it all.”
Something worried me.
“Why didn’t he ask you to arrange a meeting?”
“He wants her to see his house,” she explained. “And your house is right next door.”
“Oh!”
“I think he half expected her to wander into one of his parties, some night,” went on Jordan, “but she never did. Then he began asking people casually if they knew her, and I was the first one he found. It was that night he sent for me at his dance, and you should have heard the elaborate way he worked up to it. Of course, I immediately suggested a luncheon in New York — and I thought he’d go mad: “‘I don’t want to do anything out of the way!’ he kept saying.
‘I want to see her right next door.’
“When I said you were a particular friend of Tom’s, he started to abandon the whole idea. He doesn’t know very much about Tom, though he says he’s read a Chicago paper for years just on the chance of catching a glimpse of Daisy’s name.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway, Chapter 4, Page 50
Meaning: Jordan’s quote reveals Gatsby’s great love and longing for Daisy. He is too afraid to reach out directly and instead hopes to see her by chance, “right next door” to him. Jordan recognizes this and attempts to lead Gatsby to a reunion with Daisy by suggesting he invite her to a luncheon in New York.
Gatsby’s reluctance to do anything out of the ordinary speaks to his deep longing and shows his desire to be near Daisy, even if it means waiting in the same place for five years.
“And Daisy ought to have something in her life,” murmured Jordan to me.
“Does she want to see Gatsby?”
“She’s not to know about it. Gatsby doesn’t want her to know. You’re just supposed to invite her to tea.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker and Nick Carrway, Chapter 4, Pages 50, 51
Meaning: Jordan Baker’s quote reveals that Daisy’s life may be lacking something exciting and that Gatsby wants to be a part of it without Daisy even knowing. Jordan’s suggestion of inviting Daisy to tea is a way for Gatsby to try and reconnect with Daisy without her realizing it.
“Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker, Chapter 7, Page 74
Meaning: This quote from Jordan Baker in The Great Gatsby conveys that there is always a new beginning each season, and fall is a time of renewal and fresh starts. Furthermore, it suggests that the colder months offer a chance to start over, reassess our goals, and change our lives.
“I love New York on summer afternoons when everyone’s away. There’s something very sensuous about it – overripe, as if all sorts of funny fruits were going to fall into your hands.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker, Chapter 7, Page 78
Meaning: Jordan Baker’s quote conveys the atmosphere of New York City during the summer season. She highlights the city’s languid heat and the feeling of it coming alive with the presence of people. The imagery of ripe fruits ready to be picked gives a sense of abundance and promise.
“Just before noon the phone woke me, and I started up with sweat breaking out on my forehead. It was Jordan Baker; she often called me up at this hour because the uncertainty of her own movements between hotels and clubs and private houses made her hard to find in any other way. Usually her voice came over the wire as something fresh and cool, as if a divot from a green golf-links had come sailing in at the office window, but this morning it seemed harsh and dry.
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker, Chapter 8, Page 95
“I’ve left Daisy’s house,” she said. “I’m at Hempstead, and I’m going down to Southampton this afternoon.”
Probably it had been tactful to leave Daisy’s house, but the act annoyed me, and her next remark made me rigid.
“You weren’t so nice to me last night.”
“How could it have mattered then?”
Silence for a moment. Then:
“However — I want to see you.”
“I want to see you, too.”
“Suppose I don’t go to Southampton, and come into town this afternoon?”
“No — I don’t think this afternoon.”
“Very well.”
“It’s impossible this afternoon. Various ——”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway, Chapter 8, Page 95
Meaning: Jordan Baker’s decision to leave Daisy’s house and travel to Southampton shows her independence and strength of character. By leaving Daisy’s house, she can make her own decisions and take control of her life despite the annoyance it causes Nick.
Her next remark also shows her keen ability to read social situations as she determines if Nick is interested in her and whether he wants to see her again.
“Nevertheless you did throw me over,” said Jordan suddenly.
“You threw me over on the telephone. I don’t give a damn about you now, but it was a new experience for me, and I felt a little dizzy for a while.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway, Chapter 9, Page 108
“You said a bad driver was only safe until she met another bad driver? Well, I met another bad driver, didn’t I? I mean it was careless of me to makes such a wrong guess. I thought you were rather an honest, straightforward person I thought it was your secret pride.”
“I’m thirty,” I said. “I’m five years too old to lie to myself and call it honor.”
She didn’t answer. Angry, and half in love with her, and tremendously sorry, I turned away.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway, Chapter 9, Page 108
Meaning: Jordan Baker’s quote can be interpreted as a subtle jab at Nick’s character. She implies that Nick is hypocritical and not as honest as he claims to be.
Her comment further reinforces this sentiment that she believed his “secret pride” was being an honest and straightforward person.
Quotes About Jordan Baker Being Independent
“Jordan Baker instinctively avoided clever, shrewd men, and now I saw that this was because she felt safer on a plane where any divergence from a code would be thought impossible. She was incurably dishonest. She wasn’t able to be at a disadvantage and, given this unwillingness, I suppose she had begun dealing in subterfuges when she was very young in order to keep that cool, insolent smile turned to the world and yet satisfy the demands of her hard, jaunty body.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, (Character: Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker), Chapter 3, Page 39
The Great Gatsby Quotes About the American Dream
“But there was Jordan beside me, who, unlike Daisy, was too wise ever to carry well-forgotten dreams from age to age. As we passed over the dark bridge her wan face fell lazily against my coat’s shoulder and the formidable stroke of thirty died away with the reassuring pressure of her hand.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, (Character: Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker), Chapter 7, Page 84
What is Jordan Baker’s motto?
Jordan Baker’s motto from The Great Gatsby is: “Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.” This motto reminds us that Jordan Baker believes in possibilities and the cycle of life, no matter how stale and boring life may seem.
How is Jordan Baker described in Chapter 3?
In Chapter 3 of The Great Gatsby, Jordan Baker is described as an attractive golf champion. She is a femme fatale with a slender figure, a white dress, and a “restless” manner.
She is also portrayed as being quite aloof, highlighted when Nick states that she looks “imperious in her white, and full of a wild vitality.”
What is a quote about Jordan Baker being dishonest?
“Dishonesty in a woman is a thing you never blame deeply.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, (Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker), Chapter 3, Page 39
What does Jordan Baker say about Gatsby in Chapter 3?
“He’s just a man named Gatsby.”
“Where is he from, I mean? And what does he do?”
“Now YOU’RE started on the subject,” she answered with a wan smile. “Well, he told me once he was an Oxford man.” A dim background started to take shape behind him, but at her next remark it faded away.
“However, I don’t believe it.”
“Why not?” “I don’t know,” she insisted, “I just don’t think he went there.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, (Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway), Chapter 3, Pages 34-34
Myrtle Wilson Quotes With Page Numbers
What does Jordan tell Nick in Chapter 4?
In Chapter 4, Jordan tells Nick about Daisy and Gatsby’s past and how Gatsby hopes to meet her again through Nick.
She explains that Gatsby had been searching for Daisy for years, asking people if they knew her, and that he wanted to meet her right next door to his house. She also mentions that Gatsby had hoped Daisy would attend one of his parties, but it never happened.
The Great Gatsby Quotes About The Past With Page Numbers
What does Jordan tell Nick at the end?
“You said a bad driver was only safe until she met another bad driver? Well, I met another bad driver, didn’t I? I mean it was careless of me to makes such a wrong guess. I thought you were rather an honest, straightforward person I thought it was your secret pride.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, (Jordan Baker to Nick Carraway), Chapter 9, Page 108
Jordan Baker Character Traits
Jordan Baker is a character with many interesting traits in The Great Gatsby. She is a professional golfer from old money who is spoiled and has a reputation for cheating in matches.
She smokes and drinks, is seen with many men, and works for a living, which goes against the traditional gender roles of the 1920s. She is also known to gossip, and she is quite observant, noticing things that many people would overlook.
Jordan is also a great listener, as seen through her exchanges with Nick and her astute observations, such as her comment that large parties are more intimate than small ones.
Jordan is also independent and determined, not afraid to stand up for herself even in a world where women are expected to remain in the background.
Her physical appearance, confidence, and bravery symbolize how women have changed from the 1920s to today.
Jordan Baker Physical Description
Jordan Baker is a stunningly beautiful woman in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby. She is described as a blonde and athletic woman with a tan complexion, angular features, and a slim figure.
“I enjoyed looking at her. She was a slender, small-breasted girl, with an erect carriage, which she accentuated by throwing her body backward at the shoulders like a young cadet. Her gray sun-strained eyes looked back at me with polite reciprocal curiosity out of a wan, charming, discontented face. It occurred to me now that I had seen her, or a picture of her, somewhere before.”
~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, (Nick Carraway about Jordan Baker), Chapter 1, Page 12
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