In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald presents his readers with both dynamic and static characters. The plot unfolds over an extended summer, and a few characters undergo profound growth and change in that time.

The narrator, Nick Carraway, is the novel's most dynamic character. In fact, the narrative itself is Nick's attempt to process and move on from the events of the summer. Nick moved to New York to learn the bond business, but his exposure to the carelessness and moral ambiguity of the filthy rich is his lasting lesson. In chapter 1, Nick shares,

When I came back from the East last autumn I felt that I wanted the world to be in uniform and at a sort of moral attention forever; I wanted no more riotous excursions with privileged glimpses into the human heart.

Daisy Buchanan is another example of a dynamic character. While the novel ends with her still married to and living with Tom, her life and her relationship will never be the same. The flaws of her marriage were laid bare during the Manhattan hotel party.

Some of Fitzgerald's characters achieve little to no growth or change throughout the novel. While Jay Gatsby lived a life of dynamism, his course during the narrative is linear. He dies clinging to the fervent belief that he can recreate the past and have Daisy as his own. Tom Buchanan, Jordan Baker, George Wilson, Myrtle Wilson, and other characters remain largely static throughout the novel. This is not to say that they are flat or minor characters, but they do not exhibit enough change, growth, or maturity to be considered dynamic characters.