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How and why does James Gatz become Jay Gatsby? Describe the young Gatsby/Gatz.

James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune.


It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune,...

James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune.


It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune, whereas they arose from well-to-do families.


Gatz became Gatsby through determination and discipline. At the end of the novel, the narrator, Nick Carraway, meets Gatsby's father who tells him about what Jay was like as a young man:



"Look here, this is a book he had when he was a boy. It just shows you."


He opened it at the back cover and turned it around for me to see. On the last fly-leaf was printed the word SCHEDULE and the date September 12, 1906.



What follows is a carefully managed and purposeful schedule, which begins at 6:00 AM and ends at 9:00 PM. It includes exercise, the study of "electricity," work, sports practice, the cultivation of manners, and the study of "needed inventions." It is followed by a series of resolutions not to waste time or smoke, but instead to read regularly and save money. The former habit fueled his impetus to attend Oxford after serving in World War One, while the latter allowed him to save enough money to get involved in bootlegging -- the likely source of Gatsby's fortune.


His love for Daisy is important, too. He knew after he met her that, in order to earn her love, he would have to be the kind of man whom she would deem worthy of it. That is, he would need to be wealthy, cultivated, and socially reputable. He becomes Jay Gatsby in order to win Daisy. Though Gatsby attains all of his goals, he is still destined to be spurned. 

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