"Gold-Hatted Gatsby"
Preceding the publication of The Great Gatsby , F. Scott Fitzgerald debated a number of different titles for his novel. One of these was the tentative title “Gold-Hatted Gatsby.” This alludes to the epigraph from Thomas Park D’Invilliers which is printed on the title page of the book, which begins with “then wear the golden hat, if that will move her” (Fitzgerald 1). Though the title of the novel did not end up being “Gold-Hatted Gatsby,” it is still clear through the diction and the actions of the characters in The Great Gatsby that the epigraph plays a large role in describing the beliefs and motives of Jay Gatsby in relation to Daisy Buchanan. Gatsby wears a “golden hat” by building up ridiculous wealth, he “bounces high” for Daisy by going beyond the expectations of society with the intent to impress her, and he devotes his life to making Daisy desire to “have” him as much as he desires to “have” her. As his father says of Gatsby on the d...