The second chapter of The Great Gatsby is the description of characters and setting of the book. The chapter starts by describing the Valley of Ashes. George Wilson's car repair shop is located here. There is also a great deal of symbolism shown in these pages. Main characters are introduced, and different color symbolism is shown. Mainly this chapter takes place in New York and discusses the affair between Tom Buchanan and Myrtle Wilson. There is a party that occurs in Tom and Myrtle's apartment. Catherine, the McKees, Tom, and Myrtle attend the party. People come and go, and everyone becomes inebriated. Myrtle and Tom are discussing whether Myrtle has the right to talk about Daisy and Myrtle chants, "Daisy, Daisy, Daisy." This causes anger inside of Tom as he thinks Myrtle does not have the right to speak of Daisy's name. Tom punches Myrtle and her nose with one blow of the hand. Characters including the McKees and Catherine are discussed in detail. The ashes in the Valley of Ashes represents the blindness of America during the 1920s.

     Tom Buchanan's character represents brutality and selfishness. When Tom breaks Myrtle's nose for chanting Daisy's name, it is a sure sign of brutality. Tom has a showy nature and this is seen in his wealth. Tom also openly shows his affair with Myrtle; everyone seems to know about his affair. Tom and Myrtle are both similar in their selfish desires. They both enjoy wealth and like to let society know of their wealth, or at least Tom's wealth.

     Tom Buchanan's mistress, Myrtle Wilson, lives in the Valley of Ashes with her husband, George, who owns a garage. Wilson is described as "a blonde, spiritless man, anemic and faintly handsome" (29). He trusts Myrtle every time she goes to New York and thinks she is going to see her sister, Catherine. While traveling to New York with Tom, Nick gets the opportunity to meet Myrtle Wilson. She is a corpulent woman in her middle thirties and fairly stout. In New York, Myrtle purchases a magazine, a copy of Town Tattle," a bottle of perfume, and a dog. She claims that dogs are good for security purposes. Myrtle spends Tom's money as if it were hers. Myrtle and Tom have an apartment on the top floor rented out to Myrtle in New York. There were several copies of old Town Tattles and a copy of Simon called Peter lying about. Myrtle and Tom enjoy money and through their actions, this is proved. Myrtle calls several people on the telephone including her sister, Catherine. Myrtle regrets ever being married to Wilson. She claims that the only reason she married him is because she thought he was a gentleman. Resentment of Myrtle is seen through this. This is proved false on their wedding day. Wilson had borrowed his friend's best suit to wear in his own wedding.

     The McKees are introduced in this chapter. They live below Myrtle's apartment. Mr. McKee is a feminine-like photographer. Catherine was presenting absorbing information to Tom about Gatsby until Mrs. McKee interrupts. Mrs. McKee is described as "... shrill, languid, handsome and horrible"(34). Her husband has photographed her a hundred and twenty-seven times since they were married. They are minor characters that attend the party and annoy everyone there. Myrtle likes to brag to them about the wealth and everything else that she has.

     Dr. T. J. Eckleburg is a major symbol shown in this chapter. He is described as watching over the Valley of Ashes with his gigantic blue eyes with enormous yellow spectacles covering them. The color yellow in the book symbolizes the wealthy and the corruption of what wealth does. It is the color of corruption. The eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg are covered with yellow, which symbolizes the blindness that Americans have in the 1920s. The billboard of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg is set up by an oculist to advertise and it just stares straightforward all day long. The Valley of Ashes is another great example of symbolism Fitzgerald uses. The valley represents the world that is corrupted by industry. The ashes represent the people and what happens when money takes over a person.

     Wealth and its corruption is a repeating theme of Fitzgerald's. Tom and Myrtle are portrayed as objects of wealth and used as a reminder of corruption and what happens when money controls a person. The color yellow is also repeated in the book several times.

     Most of Chapter Two occurs in New York. A description of the Valley of Ashes is given. It is located half way between West Egg and New York. There is a road that joins the two and about a quarter of a mile away. There is a desolate area of land called the Valley of Ashes. Another place this chapter describes is the car repair shop where George and Myrtle live. The inside is bare; it is a block of yellow brick out in the middle of nowhere. The apartment that Myrtle and Tom rent is located over the Park toward West Hundreds on 158th Street. The apartment has a small living room, a small dining room, and a small bedroom and bath.