Question

passage 3: the great gatsby (adapted, ch. 3)
at least once a fortnight a corps of caterers came down with several hundred feet of canvas and enough colored lights to make a christmas tree of gatsbys enormous garden. on buffet tables, garnished with glistening hors-doeuvre, spiced baked hams crowded against salads of harlequin designs, and pastry pigs and turkeys were bewitched to a dark gold. by seven oclock the orchestra had arrived-no thin five-piece affair but a whole pit full of oboes and trombones and saxophones and viols and cornets and...
the bar was in full swing, and floating rounds of cocktails permeated the garden outside. laughter spilled from the house, high and low, until it seemed to belong more to the night itself than to the guests. the lights burned brighter as the earth lurches away from the sun, and now the orchestra is playing yellow cocktail music, the voices grow louder, and the laughter is easier.
and yet, for all the spectacle, many of the guests did not even know gatsby. they came for the celebration, not the man.

1. which theme is most clearly suggested in this passage? *

mark only one oval.
a excess and materialism often mask emptiness beneath the surface.
b true friendship is born from extravagant celebrations.
c wealth ensures meaningful connections between people.
d simplicity is the ultimate form of beauty.

Explanation:

The passage describes a lavish party with excess (e.g., "several hundred feet of canvas", "a whole pit full of... instruments", etc.). But it also shows that "many of the guests did not even know Gatsby. They came for the celebration, not the man", indicating a lack of real connection (emptiness beneath the surface of the material excess). Option B is wrong as there's no mention of true friendship being born from celebrations. Option C is incorrect as wealth doesn't ensure meaningful connections (guests don't know Gatsby). Option D is off - topic as the passage is about excess, not simplicity.

Answer:

A. Excess and materialism often mask emptiness beneath the surface.