In this scene in The Great Gatsby(Fitzgerald), Nick is experiencing one of Gatsby's parties with Tom in attendance for the first time. The beginning of this section reveals that the entire evening has a "peculiar quality of oppressiveness..." (Fitzgerald 110). He feels "an unpleasantness in the air, a pervading harshness" (110) he hadn't felt before. So he speculates a bit about this, whether he is jaded from these parties, or whether he is somehow...
In this scene in The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald), Nick is experiencing one of Gatsby's parties with Tom in attendance for the first time. The beginning of this section reveals that the entire evening has a "peculiar quality of oppressiveness..." (Fitzgerald 110). He feels "an unpleasantness in the air, a pervading harshness" (110) he hadn't felt before. So he speculates a bit about this, whether he is jaded from these parties, or whether he is somehow seeing them through Daisy's eyes. As the scene goes on, though, it is clear that there is ample reason for Tom, who is an unpleasant character on his good days, to be unhappy and be having some impact on the general mood. Daisy dances with Gatsby. Gatsby insists upon introducing Tom as a polo player, which he does not appreciate, and it seems that Daisy is not having a particularly good time, either, except for when she had been able to be alone briefly with Gatsby. They sit at this drunken table, and the experience turns sour for Nick. He might also be more sober than the people at the table. If you have never experienced being sober in a room full of drunken people, I don't recommend it. Everyone but you is obnoxious and having a wonderful time. It does grate. All in all, there is ample reason for Nick to not be having his usual good time, although in my opinion, it is Tom who is causing most of the oppressive atmosphere, which he does in most scenes in the book.
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