Chapter 2 of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby pulls narrator Nick Carraway from Long Island’s polished estates into new, unsettling territories: the grim “valley of ashes” and a chaotic Manhattan apartment party.
Nick’s unwilling participation exposes him to the bleak realities beneath the Jazz Age facade, culminating in witnessing startling violence. Explore how these key developments shape the story in the complete The Great Gatsby summary.
Descent into the Wasteland
As Nick and Tom Buchanan travel toward NYC by train, their journey halts unexpectedly in the valley of ashes, a desolate landscape where “ashes grow like wheat.” Looming over this grey expanse is a massive, decaying billboard featuring the giant, blue eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg wearing yellow spectacles.
Likely fueled by lunchtime drinks and dismissing Nick’s plans, Tom forces Nick off the train. Nick notes his determination as bordering on violence.
Secrets and Ash: Wilson’s Garage
Under Eckleburg’s gaze, Tom leads Nick to Wilson’s Garage. Nick meets George Wilson, a “blond, spiritless man, anaemic,” veiled in the pervasive ash dust. Wilson asks Tom hopefully about the car he needs and has been waiting to buy, but Tom offers only vague promises and curt dismissal.
Myrtle Wilson, George’s wife, then enters, possessing a palpable vitality. Ignoring George completely, she walks through him “as if he were a ghost.” As George fetches chairs at Myrtle’s request, Tom uses the moment to quickly arrange their city rendezvous, telling Myrtle: “Get on the next train… I’ll meet you by the news-stand on the lower level.”
Myrtle nods and moves away from Tom as George returns with the chairs. Down the road, while Nick and Tom wait for Myrtle out of sight, Tom reveals George’s ignorance of the affair, stating Wilson thinks Myrtle visits her sister in New York. He derisively adds, “He’s so dumb he doesn’t know he’s alive.”
City Bound: Purchases and Party Plans
Myrtle travels discreetly on a later train. After meeting Tom and Nick in New York and changing dresses, she insists on buying several items, including gossip magazines and an Airedale-mix puppy. They hail a lavender-colored taxi with grey upholstery uptown. Tom pressures Nick to join them at the Morningside Heights apartment that Tom maintains for his affair.
Chaos in the Apartment
The small, stifling top-floor apartment is overcrowded with large, ornate tapestried furniture depicting Versailles scenes. An odd, enlarged photograph of a stout woman stares down from the wall. Nick notices a dog biscuit decomposing apathetically in a saucer of milk.
Tom serves whiskey. Nick, stating this is only the second time he’s become drunk, finds his memories clouding.
Myrtle changes into a cream chiffon dress, adopting an “impressive hauteur.” Guests arrive: Myrtle’s sister Catherine (red-haired, with noisy bracelets) and the McKees (a pale photographer and his shrill wife).
The alcohol-fueled conversation turns loud and superficial. Gossip includes Catherine sharing rumors that Gatsby is Kaiser Wilhelm’s relative and implying his money might be illicit (“they say … That’s where all his money comes from”). Catherine also repeats Tom’s lie that Daisy is Catholic, supposedly preventing Tom from divorcing her. Myrtle recounts meeting Tom on a train, explaining her impulsiveness with the thought, “You can’t live forever.”
Violence Erupts
As the party progresses toward midnight and the drinking continues, Myrtle provokes Tom by defiantly chanting his wife’s name: “Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!” Tom demands she stop. When she persists, he strikes her face with a “short deft movement” of his open hand, breaking her nose.
The party descends into chaos amid sounds of pain, arguments, and the sight of “bloody towels.”
Nick’s Hazy Departure
Disgusted and disoriented, Nick departs with Mr. McKee. His fractured memory includes surreal images: McKee in his underwear holding a portfolio, and a disconnected list of words like “‘Beauty and the Beast … Loneliness … Old Grocery Horse … Brook’n Bridge ….'”
Nick ends the chapter alone at a cold Penn Station, waiting for the 4 a.m. train back to West Egg.
Chapter 2 Overview
Chapter 2 moves from the desolate Valley of Ashes, overseen by Dr. T.J. Eckleburg’s eyes, to a vulgar New York apartment party. This gathering reveals Tom Buchanan’s affair with Myrtle Wilson and concludes abruptly with Tom’s violent assault on her.
A Note on the Text Edition:
Just as the Eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg brood over the shifting valley of ashes, grounding our summary requires a specific textual foundation. We carefully sourced references for this summary from The Great Gatsby, Scribner 2020 Paperback edition (Publication Date: September 1, 2020), ISBN-13: 978-1982149482. Consulting different editions can reveal subtle textual shifts, much like the changing light over the wasteland depicted in this chapter.
Jeremy Mortis, founder of Ageless Investing, applies a rigorous analytical approach (the AAM framework) to distill timeless wisdom and contextualized quotes from classic literature, saving you time while deepening understanding. Learn more about Jeremy’s unique background and methodology on his author bio page.