The disloyalty exhibited by Tom Buchanan shows that Fitzgerald’s attitude toward him proves just how selfish and heartless he truly is when it comes to his relationships.
The reader is encouraged to find disgust in the way Tom Buchanan handles his affair with Myrtle Wilson. When it comes down to it, he is not having an affair with her for any particular reason other than to please himself. He is so wrapped up in the way he feels about everything going on in his life, that he does not think twice about anyone else’s feelings. He does not ever say how happy Myrtle makes him, or that he is truly in love with her. As a matter of fact, he never gives any solid reason as to why he continues to see her. He has no worry about his social status with her, and she does not ever expect to receive any kind of gift from him, since she is of a lower class.
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Tom speaks of Myrtle’s husband by saying, “He thinks she goes to see her sister in New York. He’s so dumb he doesn’t know he’s alive.” If he speaks about her husband this way, we would assume that he would feel the same about Myrtle, but he continues to see her without ever trash talking her. Not only is the reader likely to see Tom as selfish, but also heartless.
In any given case, it is not good for a man to cheat on his wife, but it only makes it ten times worse when the wife is completely aware about it while it is going on. Daisy, Tom’s wife, and Jordan Baker, their friend, make it very clear at dinner that they know Tom is having an affair with some woman in New York. Daisy got up from the table after Tom received a phone call, and Jordan told Nick, “You mean to say you don’t know? I thought everybody knew. Tom’s got some woman in New York.” This proves that not only Daisy, but all of their friends could easily see that Tom is having an affair, and if they can tell, Tom obviously knows that they have an idea of what is going on. Not only was there the fact that Daisy knew it was happening, but they had a child. An event like this in their child’s life could have scarred her for forever. What kind of a man would betray his marriage and continue to see the woman, knowing his wife is aware of the fact that he is cheating? This just goes to show that Tom Buchanan is a heartless jerk who only cares about
himself. Fitzgerald shows the qualities of a disloyal man. Does a disloyal man choose to continue to cheat on his wife even though she knows he is cheating, or does he do the right thing by stepping up to the plate and apologizing profusely for it? Even though cheating is an awful thing to do, any man who decides to tell their wife face to face and apologize for what he has done is taking a step in the right direction. They may not be forgiven because of what they have done, but being honest and having the courage to face your wife is the right thing to do. There is no one circumstance where it is okay for a man to deceive his wife no matter what the situation is. My uncle was faced with this, but it was the other way around. His wife had been cheating on him, and he knew it, but he did not say anything to her about it. She finally realized that he knew and was open with him about it. Although their tough time ended in divorce, it was the best option for her. It would have only continued to damage the relationship between her and my uncle more and more everyday if she did not tell him the truth.
Myrtle Wilson came from a working class family with a low social standing. Due to her family’s lack of money, Myrtle’s options were limited to marrying men of equal or lower economic status than herself. As a result, Myrtle married George Wilson, a poor car mechanic. In her relationship with George, Myrtle lacked control due to her status as a woman and was thus forced to listen to her husband. However, because of her lower status, Myrtle did learn to use her physical attributes to her own advantage. In other words, Myrtle knew how to exaggerate her physical beauty in order to attract men such as Tom Buchanan; who would pay her with money and expensive gifts in return. Thus, “there is a clear connection between the material disadvantages” Myrtle faced and her lack of morals; given “the paucity of her allotment of the fundamental decencies” (Voegeli). In other words, because of her lack of economic backing, Myrtle Wilson grew up as a woman of lower class with less options in life; which limited her social power and drove her to act unlike any high class lady. Thus, Myrtle’s only option for increasing her status was through material services such as her relationship with Tom Buchanan. All in all, Myrtle Wilson’s economic status limited her to the life of a low class woman and her power others in her
The relationship of Tom and Daisy was very unhealthy right from the beginning. Even on the wedding day, Daisy was having thoughts of calling it off and Tom started cheating right after their honeymoon. In one quote the stories shows the reader “The girl who was with him got into the papers too because her arm was broken-she was one of the chambermaids in the Santa Barbara Hotel”- (Fitzgerald 82). This quote shows that even a week after their honeymoon, Tom was
Gatsby and Greed In this day and age, money is a very important asset to have. One needs to have at least enough to live on, though great amounts are preferable. In The Great Gatsby, by Thomas F. Fitzgerald, having a large amount of money is not enough. It is also the way you acquire the money that matters.
Tom Buchanan is arguably the character who possesses the most corrupt set of morals. His actions can be described as “some of the most immoral and senseless actions in the entire novel” (“Ranking…). He cheats on Daisy “simply because he can” (“Ranking…”). This shows that he has no care or regard for anyone but himself. He is going to do what he wants no matter how it affects other people. It is this mindset that causes the deaths of Myrtle, Gatsby, and Mr. Wilson. He knows this, but “he runs away from the entire situation… as if he was never part of it in the first place” (“Ranking…”). He and Daisy mess things up and leave. They go back to their normal, careless life of wealth and leave someone else to fix their mess (Fitzgerald 187-188). Together Tom and Daisy are absolutely incorrigible people with no regard for others.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s book The Great Gatsby was a remarkable book. Fitzgerald Made the characters of the book as real and as personal as possible. Three characteristics stood out in the novel to me. Tom’s Jealousy of Gatsby relationship with his wife, Gatsby’s lies about who he is and his life, and Daisy’s ways to tempt Gatsby to fall in love with her. The novel was inspired by the way he fell in love with his wife Zelda.
Bad choices are made every day by everybody. Those bad choices could lead to consequences that are going to bother a person for a long time. Even more, that person may try various ways to correct that error. The intention is good, but things can go even worse if the effort is based on unrealistic fantasies. This effort is presented as a part of modernist ideas. Modernist writers dramatize this effort through the tragic outcomes of the characters. Three modernist pieces, A Street Car Named Desire, Death of a Salesman, The Great Gatsby, all of them sent out a message to the audience, the loss of past and how it cannot be recovered. Each piece features a character who lost hope, strived to recover the hope, and ended with a tragic outcome. A Street Car Named Desire featured Blanche; Blanche spent her whole life trying to get some attentions. Death of a Salesman featured Willy; Willy spent his whole life trying to apply the idea “Be Well Liked.” The Great Gatsby featured Jay Gatsby; Gatsby spent his whole life trying to win back Daisy. All of those characters ended with tragic outcome. Blanche was sent to asylum by her own sister. Willy committed suicide after felt humiliated by his sons. Gatsby was murdered with a gunshot planned by Tom Buchanan. Blanche, Willy, and Gatsby’s tragic fates are caused by their false beliefs about life, which are proven wrong by the contradictions between the reality and the illusion.
When Myrtle and Tom get into an argument, Tom unleashes his violent side by slapping his mistress in the face, causing her to break her nose. (Fitzgerald 39) This does not negatively influence their relationship and the two continue to openly see each other. Tom happens to also be the one who investigates Gatsby’s past once he begins the relationship with Daisy: his education and the source of his money. The reason for Tom’s inspection is to expose Gatsby’s past and illegal life, and inform Daisy of his negative thoughts on Gatsby. Additionally, Tom makes his dominance noticeable through his wealth and social status, with the use of racism: "I suppose the latest thing is to sit back and let Mr. Nobody from Nowhere make love to your wife. Well, if that's the idea you can count me out […] Nowadays people begin by sneering at family life and family institutions, and next they'll throw everything overboard and have intermarriage between black and white." (229), believing that he is better than everybody else, coming from a rich aristocratic background; he believes superiority is in his blood. This fuels his main source of power that he exudes within society. Tom is very honest about his affair with Myrtle to his own wife. But, he doesn’t grasp the concept of morality; he is hypocritical, accusing his wife for her affair with Gatsby, but still proceeding with his
Scott Fitzgerald was a writer who desired his readers to be able to hear, feel, and see his work. He made it his goal to be able to make readers think and keep asking questions using imagery and symbolism. The Great Gatsby was not just about the changes that occurred during the Jazz Age, but it was also about America’s corrupted society which was full of betrayal and money-hungry citizens. It was the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg that overlooked all the corruption that occurred throughout the Valley of Ashes. It was the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg that serves as a symbol of higher power who witnesses everything from betrayal to chaos in Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.
Daisy also exhibits her shallowness when she is too restless to wait for her 'love', Gatsby, to return from he war, and she marries Tom. Her most drastic immoral action is committed when she runs over Myrtle and does not even bother to stop and help a person that is 'below' her. Daisy's husband, Tom shows his ridiculous morality in different ways. One way is his search for power, which is shown most through his affair with Myrtle and his possessiveness. He evidently feels further domination and masculinity when he has her, a woman of lower class, as his mistress. Secondly, Tom Buchanan is shallow enough to think that everything and everyone he has in his life are part of his property. This increases his 'power' and makes him feel as if he is truly successful. This couple, Tom and Daisy certainly contain serious corruptness due to their shallowness and self-indulgence.
Tom Buchanan is described as having a strong and repugnant presence. He was a star athlete at Yale and is restless after his glory days of playing there, “…had been one of the most powerful ends that ever played football at New Haven-a national figure in a way, one of those men who reach such an acute limited excellence at twenty-one that everything afterwards savours of anti-climax” (page 10). He is arrogant and seems to believe that he can have anything that he wants. Even though he has a wife and child, he has no problem with having a mistress on the side and does not care that others, including his wife, know about it. In addition, Tom is very self-absorbed and cares only about himself and his own desires. Tom was what Daisy’s family considered to be suitable for their daughter. That, along with his money, is mainly why she married him.
In The Great Gatsby by Francis Scott Fitzgerald written during the 1920’s, Fitzgerald presents a classic tale of infinite love and betrayal. The story is told by one of the main characters Nick Carraway. Back in the war days a young Jay Gatsby meets Daisy, he left for the war and vowed to never stop loving her. Years later of out coincidence Nick (Daisy’s cousin) ,moves right next door to Mr. Gatsby. Gatsby soon realizes the kinship between Nick and Daisy and becomes very close friends to Nick. Gatsby himself is a very mysterious man,with so many rumors about him going around nobody really knows how Gatsby became rich or where exactly he even came from. One thing is for certain though, the extravagant house and the expensive cars he drives
The Great Gatsby: Unfaithfulness and Greed. The love described in the novel, The Great Gatsby, contains "violence and egoism not tenderness and affection." The author, F. Scott Fitzgerald, writes on wealth, love, and corruption. Two coupes, Tom and Daisy Buchanan and George and Myrtle Wilson, match perfectly with these categories. Both couples are different in the way they choose to live together, but are similar in a few ways. Unfaithfulness and greed are the only similarities the couples shared.
The act of betrayal is first seen when Tom Buchanan cheats on his wife, Daisy Buchanan with Myrtle, who also happens to be George Wilson’s wife. Tom’s actions are inexcusable as betrayal in a marriage is an extremely depraved course of action. Due to this betrayal, Daisy loses hope in their society. After realizing that the world is a very dangerous and bad place, she hopes that her daughter won’t see the world like her mother does. She desires her daughter to be naive and foolish so she can’t see the cruelty that lies within this society.
Buchanan is constantly behaving contrary to his thoughts in this novel. Tom is very insecure and scrambles for control as he hides his self-confidence. He shows his distress with himself when Daisy comments on his new habit of reading “profound books” about white supremacy. Even though he was born into incredible money and privilege, he has a fear it could be taken away by social climbers. That insecurity only translates into even more obvious corruption of his power - flaunting his relationship with Myrtle, revealing Gatsby as a bootlegger, and manipulating George to kill Gatsby. Tom will face some consequences for his actions but in the end of the novel he is still able to sweep Daisy away with him. He will first be met with a brief moment of anguish when he finds out of Daisy and Jay's long rooted relationship and on top of that, he learned of his mistress moving out West. Tom will react to his uncomfortability by pleading and yelling and will eventually get his way, but probably not for much
Nick is astonished at this information. He finds it hard to believe that Tom, with a beautiful wife and child, would be having an affair with some woman in the city. Miss Baker thinks “everybody knew” about the affair, yet Daisy is still with Tom. Being too ignorant to make herself believe it’s true, Daisy is willing to stay in the marriage, even when she is presented with an opportunity from Gatsby to escape. Daisy is willing to stay with Tom just because he has “old money,” and that shows how important it is to her. Everyone else’s morals are just as bad as Tom’s because they know about what’s going on and know that it’s wrong, but they don’t say anything about it. Later in the story, when Wilson is looking for the driver of the yellow car that killed Myrtle, he also suspects that person of having an affair with...