"A Rare Smile" Chapter 3, Passage 5

Passage 5
"He smiled understandingly—much more than understandingly. It was one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced—or seemed to face—the whole external world for an instant, and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just so far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself, and assured you that it had precisely the impression of you that, at your best, you hoped to convey. Precisely at that point it vanished—and I was looking at an elegant young rough-neck, a year or two over thirty, whose elaborate formality of speech just missed being absurd. Some time before he introduced himself I’d got a strong impression that he was picking his words with care."


      Chapter 3 includes an in depth description of one of Gatsby's notorious parties.  This is also the first time the reader is formally introduced to the great Jay Gatsby, the man the novel is named after. Until this point Gatsby is shrouded by mystery. When Nick first meets Gatsby he begins talking to him without even knowing who he is.  Once Gatsby introduces himself, Nick becomes enthralled with his smile.  Nick describes Gatsby's smile as having a "quality of reassurance," to show that Gatsby was able to captivate those around him with the simple flash of his pearly whites. However, Nick also describes the words spoken by Gatsby as having a formality of speech that is almost inappropriate when used in a certain context.  Nick says that he gets the impression that Gatsby is "picking his words with care." This provides an example of a euphemism, or a way of wording an unpleasant observation in a more appealing way.  From what Nick tells us, we can conclude that he feels as though Gatsby is trying to impress others by using elaborate language and his charming smile. Basically, he thinks Gatsby's persona is a facade. The way in which he presents this inference allows us to draw this conclusion, without it taking on a negative connotation.