Nick's Cardinal Virtue

Nick Caraway is among the most honest people he knows, but at this point in the novel the reader only has his word to go on. Although Nick hasn’t given much indication that he is an unreliable narrator, how can the reader be sure? Throughout the novel, we aren’t even sure if Nick is being honest with us. For example, he frequently expresses his contempt for Daisy, Tom, and Gatsby, yet continues to spend time with them, accept their hospitality, and even help Gatsby have an affair with Daisy. Nick’s actual honesty is a matter of interpretation left for us readers.