Gatsby Cultural Lens

The year 1925 landed in the middle of the roaring twenties. In the 1920’s, a lot of things happened such as the prohibition of alcohol, social change where more people lived in the cities, and the overall boom of wealth as the economy grew. This change in the lifestyle of the people sparked a decade of riches. Once accumulating every dollar after dollar, millionaires bought mansions to throw extravagant parties, galas and balls to impress the rich, the richer, and the richest. Not only did money play an important part of this era, but literature also had a significant and vital role. One of the numerous writers was F. Scott Fitzgerald. Wanting to capture the twenties in its midst, Fitzgerald wrote the literary classic, The Great Gatsby. The

The cultural lens also provides answers to why someone has the power. The first example of this lens is when Nick explains the west and east egg of the city. The west egg represents new money. The new money accumulates recently whereas the east egg represents old money which accumulates over generations. The west and east egg are examples of who has the power in the town. The east egg inhabitants represent more respect because of their inheritance since generations before acquired it. Also, Gatsby has power in the novel due to his money. Gatsby simply says to “go away now” (Fitzgerald 148) and nick obeys, because of Gatsby’s power and the influences he has on people. This example ties into cultural because Gatsby has power over most people due to his wealth and social status. Next, Tom punches Myrtle and breaks her nose. He shows his power of gender to overtake Myrtle which represents the cultural lens because of Tom’s power. Finally, Gatsby’s parties prove that his social status gives him power. Everyone goes to his parties because they know it will remain a great party. Going to them shows that just Gatsby’s presence dictates how powerful he remains next to others. The cultural lens provides an understanding of who has the power and why. Gatsby has the power because his riches, and Tom has the power from his dominance. Both men, however, have power one way or another and that is how the cultural lens shows that the era with its power proves