- ...filthy bootleggers. - Not Gatsby.The Great Gatsby · 2013 — Chapter 10 of 18 · 3'32" · B2
Tom and Daisy Join Gatsby's Party, Explained: to your liking
Tom and Daisy arrive at Gatsby's party as guests, and the evening becomes a round of introductions and small talk. Underneath the courtesy, Gatsby keeps steering toward Daisy, while one line — "See, I know your wife" — quietly raises the question of who really knows whom.
What happens
Tom and Daisy Buchanan turn up at Gatsby's mansion, where Nick makes introductions and the guests trade compliments. Gatsby draws Daisy aside and tells her the whole party was built from her, promising to change anything not to her liking. Tom, meanwhile, grows uneasy about how Gatsby and Daisy know each other.
Listen for
Would you mindin caseto your likingswell
00:00 / 03:32Space play · ← → lines · R repeat
Now
Phrase of the scene
to your liking
合你心意；称你的心
盖茨比在派对上对黛西说，只要她不喜欢，他什么都愿意改。
I hope the room is to your liking.
Also in this scene
- Would you mind
你介意……吗（客气的请求）
- in case
以防；万一
- swell
old-fashioned slang for excellent, wonderful
Everything marked in this scene
28 notes across 64 lines
- ...filthy bootleggers. - Not Gatsby.He's a businessman. He owned a lot of drugstores.simple past
He's a businessman. He owned a lot of drugstores.- No, not me. GULICK: Always a pleasure...- Perhaps at the craps table. - I'd rather not be the polo player.Tom. You should be proud of your achievements.May I show you around?liaison
May I show you around?...of many people you've heard of! DAISY: Absolutely.We don't go around very much. I don't think I recognize......a single person. GATSBY: Is that so?These things excite me so.Nice little dance.About a month ago.liaison
About a month ago.Would you mind terribly?polite request
Would you mind terribly?elision
Would you mind terribly?I think I can keep myself amused.In case you need to take down any addresses.In case you need to take down any addresses.in case clause
In case you need to take down any addresses.Another swell party, Jay.Another swell party, Jay.Of course, if anything is not to your liking......irresistible imagination....where the devil he met Daisy.Tom and Daisy Join Gatsby's Party, explained
What's really going on
The party is Gatsby's showroom, and Daisy is the customer he has been waiting for. He tells her the house and the crowd came out of her, and offers to change whatever she dislikes — an almost desperate pitch dressed up as hospitality. The line "See, I know your wife" lands like a test, and Tom's reply is guarded. By the end, Tom is the one asking where the devil Gatsby met Daisy, which is to say the charm offensive has worked and the suspicion has started.
Theme
AmbitionGatsby has staged his whole party as a setting for Daisy, and tells her every idea and decision was hers.
ClassOld-money guests like the Buchanans drift through new money's spectacle, complimenting it while judging who belongs.
What you'll learn
- Use I'd rather not to refuse a label
- Hear businessman as a sneer
- Use show you around for a tour
- Catch all along as from the start
Listen for
- show you around — liaison
- a month ago — liaison
- Would you mind — elision
See, I know your wife.A pointed aside that puts Gatsby's connection to Daisy on the table, half an introduction and half a challenge.
He's a businessman. He owned a lot of drugstores.A defense of Gatsby's money, recasting bootlegging as ordinary retail — the polite version of where the fortune came from.
Tom. You should be proud of your achievements.A toast-like compliment aimed at Tom's polo fame, flattering the old-money guest while everyone watches.
I believe we've met before, Mr. Buchanan.Gatsby claims a prior meeting with Tom, a small lie or half-memory that makes Tom wonder how they are connected.
Questions about this scene
Why does Gatsby pay so much attention to Daisy at the party?
He built the whole party around her. He tells Daisy the house and its details came from her, and offers to change anything she dislikes, which shows she is the real reason for the event.
What does Tom suspect at the party?
Tom grows suspicious of how Gatsby and Daisy know each other. He says he knows Gatsby's wife, and by the end he is wondering aloud where Gatsby met Daisy.
Did Tom and Daisy actually meet Gatsby before?
Gatsby claims they met about a month ago, and Nick backs it up. Tom seems unsure, which leaves the audience questioning how real the connection is.
What does "swell" mean when a guest calls the party swell?
It is old-fashioned slang for "excellent" or "great." Used in the 1920s setting, it means the party was wonderful, and it helps the dialogue sound of its era.
The Great Gatsby · 18 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 11make a point ofDaisy Wants to Run Away
Chapter 1reserve all judgmentsNick Begins His Story
Chapter 2have the decencyNick Dines with the Buchanans
Chapter 3sit on the sidelineTom's Secret Apartment Party
Chapter 4old sportNick Searches for Gatsby
Chapter 5a pack of liesGatsby Tells Nick His Life Story
Chapter 6keeps his mouth shutGatsby's Lunch with a Gambler
Chapter 7pomp and circumstanceJordan Tells Gatsby's Backstory
Chapter 8acting like a little boyGatsby's Awkward Reunion with Daisy
Chapter 9If it wasn't forGatsby Shows Daisy His Mansion
Watching · Chapter 10to your likingTom and Daisy Join Gatsby's Party
Chapter 11make a point ofDaisy Wants to Run Away
Chapter 12repeat the pastGatsby Refuses to Let the Past Go
Chapter 13Have it your own wayGatsby Meets Tom at Lunch
Chapter 14Nobody From NowhereTom Calls Gatsby Nobody From Nowhere
Chapter 15in our bloodTom Exposes Gatsby at the Hotel
Chapter 16pull yourself togetherThe Yellow Car After the Crash
Chapter 17keep your voice downGatsby Waits Outside Daisy's House
Chapter 18made something of myselfGatsby Keeps Vigil Until DawnChapter 10 of 18 · about 33 min to go