In the passage from The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses Nick’s detailed description of Gatsby to illustrate the mysterious and complicated character of Jay Gatsby. In chapter 3, when Nick attends one of Gatsby's lavish parties for the first time, he encounters Gatsby also for the first time. Nick focuses on Gatsby’s smile, because it is one of those “rare smiles” “full of eternal reassurance” that “understood you the way you want to be understood.” This sets Jay Gatsby apart as someone who is very alluring and special. Nick illustrates how Gatsby’s smile is something that no one else in the world possesses and once Gatsby smiles at you it seems as if he has chosen you out of “the whole external world.” Therefore, the descriptive detail
