Plot Summary

When Gatsby’s father attends his son’s funeral, he brings with him a book that Gatsby owned as a child. In it is a schedule Gatsby wrote down for himself:

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, and underneath:
Rise from bed……………. 6.00 a.m
Dumbbell exercise and wall-scaling…… 6.15-6.30 ”
Study electricity, etc………… 7.15-8.15 ”
Work………………… 8.30-4.30 p.m
Baseball and sports…………. 4.30-5.00 ”
Practice elocution, poise and how to attain it 5.00-6.00 ”
Study needed inventions……….. 7.00-9.00 ”

General Resolves No wasting time at Shafters or [a name, indecipherable] No more smokeing or chewing Bath every other day Read one improving book or magazine per week Save $5.00 {crossed out} $3.00 per week Be better to parents

Symbolism

Gatsby’s boyhood schedule symbolizes Gatsby’s aspiration to better himself in whatever way he can. He always wants to succeed in every way possible–“run faster, stretch out [his] arms farther,” as Nick puts it at the close of the novel.

The schedule is also an allusion to Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography. As the godfather of the “hard work = success” component of the American Dream, Franklin published his own personal schedule. This link suggests that Gatsby’s career began with a commitment to the same classic version of the American Dream, but was corrupted by his obsession with Daisy, money, status. Or maybe the Dream itself is inherently corrupt?

Plot Summary

The Owl-Eyed man is first seen drunk at one of Gatsby’s parties, admiring the host’s vast book collection. He is astonished to see that all of the books are real, not just for show–their pages are even cut (in the old days book purchasers would have to slice pages apart with a paper knife).

Owl-Eyes is one of three attendees at Gatsby’s funeral (the other two being Nick and Gatsby’s father.) He comments on the irony that so many people attended his parties, yet so few came to pay their final respects to him.

Symbolism

Owl-Eyes symbolizes wisdom, much like an actual owl. But the wisdom is bitter: all the high-class people who attended Gatsby’s parties only cared about themselves and having a good time. They used Gatsby for his wealth.