Corruption In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

The ending of the novel also underlines the critical difference between the new order, represented by Gatsby, and the old order, the European aristocracy represented by the Buchanans. Gatsby’s death and Nicks’ ultimate return to Midwest symbolize the evisceration of the American dream through corruption of the new world by the old world, represented by the careless and greedy Buchanans. Throughout the novel, Fitzgerald strives to build a theory that best describes the orders of the new and the old worlds. In the quote “[s]ome time toward midnight Tom Buchanan and Mrs. Wilson stood face to face, discussing in impassioned voices whether Mrs. Wilson had any right to mention Daisy‘s name” (37), Fitzgerald further seeks to analyze the deepening

rifts between the new order, represented by Gatsby, and the old order, represented by Tom and Daisy Buchanan. In one of his sessions with Nick, Gatsby outrightly confides to him that he has known Daisy for a very long time, he asserts that Daisy was indeed his first love.

However, economic disparities had removed their union, leaving Gatsby to the mercy of the rich Tom Buchanan who married Daisy out of his wealth and influence. This is clear in the novel when Gatsby challenges Daisy to confess her love for him and that she does not love Tom (132). Knowing Daisy and her love for money and power, Tom claims that he knows Daisy will not turn on him because of his long history of wealth and power as opposed to Gatsby’s newly acquired wealth. Tom’s aristocracy and powerful background are much more valued and regarded than Gatsby’s hard earned money, although the two may possess the same amount of wealth. This is one of the clearest clashes of the new and old worlds’ orders where Tom’s old order seeks to not only corrupt Gatsby’s new order but also demeans those who threaten the status

quo.
At the time of Gatsby’s death, Tom and Daisy has already arranged a mysterious holiday trip, while Gatsby’s business partners fail to publicly mourn him for fear of being sidelined by his circle of friends. Gatsby’s death is symbolic of shattered dreams that live at a time when competition for limited resources was threatening to split the society down the middle, putting the elite against strivers. The suspicion with which the Buchanan treated overachievers is underlined in the quote: “He looked at me sideways – and I knew why Jordan Baker had believed he was lying” (65). Based on this quote and the rest of the plot of the novel, it is clear that Gatsby dies to justify Fitzgerald’s critique of the greed and self-centeredness that the capitalist boom of 1920 embody. To Fitzgerald, America is a corrupted society where the powerful elite, especially the wealthy whom he refers to as the old timers, are particularly scornful of the emerging middle class, who present a new economic order. The novel lays much emphasis on the American society, the capitalistic boom of the 1920s reveals the carelessness and cruel nature of the powerful and the wealthy, like by Tom, Daisy, Meyer Wolfshiem, as well as other affluent individuals who frequented Gatsby’s parties. This is evident as Nick notes that none of these people attend Gatsby’s funeral (174). Through Gatsby’s death, Fitzgerald sought to attack America’s social order where self-made men like Gatsby were shunned by the elite. His death gave credence to Fitzgerald’s allusion that America was still deeply divided into social classes. Therefore Gatsby dies to underline the deeply stratified nature of the American society that the negative impacts of entrenched stereotypes associated with the elites during the economic boom of the 1920s.
To Tom, Gatsby is a nonentity whose newly acquired wealth cannot be equated to the respect his family commands in the society. Tom believes that he exerts the authority and influence that are incomparable to Gatsby’s wealth. Gatsby’s death was, therefore, symbolic representation of the ever-deepening divide between the traditionally wealthy members of the society and the new aspiring individuals who find financial freedom as a result of the economic boom. Therefore, Gatsby has to die to emphasize the clash between the new and the old rich. This is seen when Tom points out that “[Gatsby’s got] something on now that Walter’s afraid to tell [him] about” (134), and that Gatsby’s lack of social position and status further divides their classes and highlights their inherent differences. As well, Nicks’ ultimate return to Midwest has been used to present the contrasting ideology of the new and old order, where the old order sees itself as a closely knit society that wields power and views the new as outsiders. This is demonstrated by Nick’s own narration as he explains his departure: “I see now that this has been a story of the West, after all—Tom and Gatsby, Daisy and Jordan and I, were all Westerners, and perhaps we possessed some deficiency in common which made us subtly unadaptable to Eastern life” (176). The novel has to end with Nick going back to where he knew he would belong, unlike the East and West Eggs where the aristocrats exert so much power and influence. Therefore Gatsby death and Nick’s return to Midwest at the end of the novel were symbolic developments that emphasize the deferring socioeconomic ideologies that imply superiority of powerful aristocrats over the newly rich individuals.
The need to paint the society as one that was corrupted by greed, selfishness, and elitism further explain why the novel had to end the way it ended.

Nicks ultimate return to Midwest was a symbolic assertion that the society had been corrupted by elitism where specific people were destined to live in defined social clusters. His ultimate departure was a clear indication that without his friend Gatsby, he would no longer feel welcome in West Egg and on Long Island, further underlining the negative impact of elitism and its corrupting effects on the society. For this reason, “after Gatsby’s death the East was haunted for [Nick] like that, beyond [his] eyes’ power of correction” (176). Gatsby’s death was also an indictment of the society corrupted by greed and selfishness, the events leading to Gatsby’s death are a clear indication of the level of such aspects of the society. His death was a product of suspicions, hate, and elitism as portrayed by Tom, and on a broader scale, the upper class in America in the 1920s. The novel had to end with Gatsby’s death as a symbolic reminder of the deeply entrenched culture of corruption and greed that has been a common trait among the elite while new aspiring individuals continue to suffer an under these vices. Gatsby’s death is, therefore, a vindication of the Fitzgerald’s perspective of the American society during the economic boom of the

1920s.
Indeed, the ending of The Great Gatsby delineates Fitzgerald’s harsh indictment of the American dream where the wealthy individuals who are entitled to privilege, represented by Jordan and the Buchanans, survive at the expense of strivers like Gatsby. Their dignity, pride, and sense of self are sustained by their arrogance and contempt towards individuals who weren’t born with such privilege. The ending brings to the fore an abstract manifestation of the American dream and society that offers an insightful analysis and reflection of the nature of humanity during the decade of the 1920s. The ending also underlines the critical difference between old and new ideologies and values. Fitzgerald’s portrayal of the American society as one that was corrupted by materialism, self-interest, and elitism is reflected most notably by the symbolic meanings of Gatsby’s death and Nick’s return to the Midwest.