"But Catherine, who might have said anything, didn't say a word. She showed a surprising amount of character about it too--looked at the coroner with determined eyes under that corrected brow of hers and swore that her sister had never seen Gatsby, that her sister was completely happy with her husband, that her sister had been into no mischief whatever. She convinced herself of it and cried into her handkerchief as if the very suggestion was more than she could endure." (p. 131)
Interpretations:
Personally, this scene can reach two different conclusions, depending on what details stood out to you prior. Upon my initial reading of this passage, I was under the immediate assumption that Catherine was paid by Tom to tell a lie. As it turns out, I did not reach this conclusion because I was a cynic, but rather a subtly inserted phrase in chapter 2: "scolding and consoling". In context, Myrtle's face just had a brief and painful encounter with Tom's palm and Catherine and her husband were "scolding and consoling" either Tom or Myrtle; who they were doing such actions to it up to the reader to interpret. However, I chose to see this scene as a possible case of victimization; an example of the power that rich people have on the poor. And because of this, Catherine has always appeared extremely superficial. And then, of course, her blatant lie in court would only be done because Tom paid her to keep his affair tight lipped.
When rereading the scene, I also realized that another person could draw a different conclusion: Catherine truly did care for Myrtle and those aren't crocodile tears. This person would argue their case by citing the distraught Catherine felt in chapter 8 upon receiving news of her sister's death. Then her reason for covering her sister's scandals would be to protect the honor she has at death; Catherine wants to help her sister die with as "clean" a reputation as possible. In this way, Fitzgerald is a truly magnificent story crafter.
Personally, this scene can reach two different conclusions, depending on what details stood out to you prior. Upon my initial reading of this passage, I was under the immediate assumption that Catherine was paid by Tom to tell a lie. As it turns out, I did not reach this conclusion because I was a cynic, but rather a subtly inserted phrase in chapter 2: "scolding and consoling". In context, Myrtle's face just had a brief and painful encounter with Tom's palm and Catherine and her husband were "scolding and consoling" either Tom or Myrtle; who they were doing such actions to it up to the reader to interpret. However, I chose to see this scene as a possible case of victimization; an example of the power that rich people have on the poor. And because of this, Catherine has always appeared extremely superficial. And then, of course, her blatant lie in court would only be done because Tom paid her to keep his affair tight lipped.
When rereading the scene, I also realized that another person could draw a different conclusion: Catherine truly did care for Myrtle and those aren't crocodile tears. This person would argue their case by citing the distraught Catherine felt in chapter 8 upon receiving news of her sister's death. Then her reason for covering her sister's scandals would be to protect the honor she has at death; Catherine wants to help her sister die with as "clean" a reputation as possible. In this way, Fitzgerald is a truly magnificent story crafter.