Throughout The Great Gatsby, there are allusions to many great people and works of literature. These include Hopalong Cassidy, James J. HIll, Kant, and Madame de Maintenon.
Hopalong Cassidy was a cowboy character created in 1907 by Clarence E. Mulford, but was not published until 1910. On page 181, after Gatsby has been killed and Mr. Gatz is in town for the funeral, he shows Nick a schedule he found in the back of one of Jay's childhood books. In the back of an anachronistically dated Hopalong Cassidy, Jay has a schedule of how he is going to improve his life and learn everything he could.
James J. Hill was a railroad tycoon, born in 1838. He lived in Fitzgerald's hometown, St. Paul Minnesota. On page 176, Mr. Gatz claims his son had all the promise, brilliance, and business savvy of a young James J. Hill.
Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher, born in 1724, and was said to have been in the habit of looking at a steeple when in deep thought. On page 93, Nick says he was looking at his house for half an hour like Kant at his steeple, meaning he was thinking deeply about what was going on inside.
Madame de Maintenon is compared with Ella Kaye, the young wife of millionaire Dan Cody, on page 105. Ella Kaye is suspected of marrying Dan Cody for his money, much in the way many French people believe that Madame de Maintenon married King Louis the XIV for his money in the mid-17th century. Also, because Madame de Maintenon was King Louis's second wife, any children they had could never be crowned in France. However, Ella Kaye did get most of the money Dan Cody had made from his mining days.