Digging Into Chapter 3: Passage 1

"In his blue gardens, men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars"

In this passage, Nick talks about the social environment of Gatsby's party. He emphasizes the fact that the party takes place at night by stating the gardens were blue. Considering the party occurs at night, one can make the inference that the sense of mystery is involved in one way or another. Nick calls the guests "men and girls." When analyzing this, one can see how the 1920's effects Nick's views on women. Although women were starting to be viewed more as equals, Nick, in this scenario, shows that males are dominant and should be called men whereas females are still recognized as girls. Throughout the evening, rumors were spread about Gatsby. Nick refers to the guests as "moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars," because moths are not significant creatures and at the party, they were "whispering" secrets. The guests, or the moths, are only at Gatsby's party for the champagne and the opportunity to enjoy a fun night out.