How Are Daisy And Jay Gatsby Alike

The characters that are brought to life in Fitzgerald’s 1920’s love story The Great Gatsby each have many traits making them their own person, yet some of these traits can be found in more than one character. Each character is described in such a way that as you read the novel each one becomes a real person in your mind. As you begin reading the story there are some characters that you want to see succeed, while there are others that you want to see get what’s coming to them. Although you may feel one way about a charter at the begin of the novel, throughout the story, the charters change and may lead to a change in opinions of them. What do these characters have in common and how are they different?

The characters, Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby,

are highly respect and wealthy men. The two men appear to be completely different, yet they have many things in common. Both of these men are wealthy, have extraordinary mansions, and many of the finer things of in life. These men are both described as well dressed, handsome, and physically fit men. While these men do have these things in common, they are more different than alike. Differences that can be seen between Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby is the way they acquired their wealth, where they live and the desires of their heart. Tom comes from a wealthy family and has never know what it is like to not be rich. Tom can be described as having old money or money that was inherited and not earned. Tom is seen as an educated man but never one who has never had to work hard a day in his life to have the fancy lifestyle he lives. Being educated and from money gives Tom the ability to always be able to finically give Daisy the lifestyle that she wants. While Tom is of old money and well educated, Gatsby is not. While Gatsby grew up in a poor family and did not come from money he is described as a wealthy man. Unlike Tom, Gatsby had to set goals as a young man and has worked hard for what he wants. Gatsby then goes off to war and then comes back as the self-made man that is seen in this story. Another difference that can be seen between these two men is in their hearts. Tom is a cheating playboy type and does not allow his heart to completely belong to Daisy only. On the other hand, Gatsby's heart belongs completely to Daisy and he gives everything to try to win her back from Tom, in the end, everything would include his life. These two men are in the spotlight the novel and can be seen as what should be done and what can be done when a person is wealthy. Another person that Tom can be compared to is George Wilson, who is his exact opposite.
While Tom and George seem to be friends at first they are anything but. These two men may seem to have nothing in common, but in reality, have their lust for Myrtle common. Tom Buchanan is described as an educated hulking of a man, and George Wilson is depicted as a small man that appears to be weak and simple-minded. Another difference between Wilson and Tom is there work ethic. George Wilson is a working-class man that is making just enough to get by. While Wilson is struggling to make enough to live, Tom is on the other end of the spectrum does not work hard and is extremely wealthy. The one thing that these men do share in common is that both find out that their wives are cheating on them. However, the way that they react to this information is very different. Tom responds to this by trying to take Gatsby down. He tries to do everything in his power to make Daisy hate Gatsby and portray him as an evil man that cares for no one but himself. During this time Tom stays strong, never showing signs of being weak. Whereas when George Wilson gets this information he is a complete wreck. He is devastated and falls apart, showing how weak he really is. We also see that both men are in love with the same women, Myrtle Wilson. While Tom is cheating with Myrtle, George is faithful to her and is left clueless until her death. These two are very different and have very little in common. Another character we can compare Tom too is his wife, Daisy.
Daisy Buchanan is a beautiful woman married to Tom.

Daisy and Tom together have a daughter, Pammy. Both are from families with money. Daisy comes from a wealthy family and her biggest desire in life is money. Tom and Daisy have this in common, both share the goal of having more money than anyone else. Daisy has always been obsessed with money just like Tom. This is seen in the novel when Daisy refused to marry Gatsby as a young man because “Rich girls marry rich men” and when Tom spends money like it will never end to impress the women in his life. Another similarity between these two are both are cheaters. Daisy has been faithful to her cheating husband until Jay Gatsby comes back into her life Tom is cheating on Daisy with Myrtle and Daisy with Gatsby. Both pretend that the other is not doing anything and continue to go about there lives. These two are perfect for each other, they each share the same faults and want the same thing in life, to have all the money in the world and do whatever it is that makes them happy. Both, Daisy and Tom, are selfish people that are all about making things right for themselves no matter the cost to anyone else. They both are liars, cheaters, and murders. Daisy murdered Myrtle was a possible accidental vehicular homicide. Tom would have George Wilson pull the trigger on Gatsby and

himself.
Myrtle Wilson is a less than beautiful women married to George. She is from a lower-class family without money and her biggest desire in life is to live an upper-class life. While this is her greatest desire, Daisy is living her dream. The personalities of these two women could not be more different. Daisy is a carefree woman that believes that ignorance is bliss. She has a bubbly personality with a voice that has the sound of money. Whereas Myrtle is a stressed woman trying to get out of her social class. She is not happy living in the social class she is currently in. The one thing that these two women have in common is that they are not bright women.
Two other characters in this novel that can be compared are Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby. Nick Carraway is a man from a family with money but has gone out on his own to make his own way in an effort to prove himself. On the other hand, Jay Gatsby is a man from a poor family, went to war and them can back to become a wealthy businessman. Nick and Jay are neighbors, however, live in very different types of homes. Nick lives in a small house that he is renting and Jay lives in a home that would be considered a mansion by anyone. Gatsby is in love with Daisy while Nick is not to the point of being in love but he does have a crush on Jordan. The two men become friends, real friends that can count on each other. The only true friendship between characters in this story.
Another character that Nick Carraway is similar to is Jordan Baker.

There is a love interest between the two of them, but they are not married and neither seem to be interested in getting married. Both Nick and Jordan are from upper-class families and are doing well for themselves. Although Jordan is self-centered and has a lack of morals Nick cares for her deeply even though he is the very opposite.Unlike Jordan, Nick is a caring man with high morals and relies on only himself to get by and does not expect anything from anyone. Jordan relies on her family for money where Nick is financially independent. Another difference between them is they very themselves. Jordan thinks very highly of herself, while on the other hand Nick is critical of himself and feels he can do nothing right. Even though Nick was critical of himself he stayed true to himself where Jordan would betray who she is to get what she

wants.
Myrtle and George Wilson are another couple in this novel that has many similarities to each other. They both come for families that live in the Vally of Ashes, which is known to be where the poorest of the poor live. A major difference between them is their morals. Myrtle is very self-centered and does what makes her happy. We can see this when she is having an affair with Tom. She wants to live the life of someone in The East Egg. She is so desperate to get out of the ghetto she overlooks how abusive Tom is to her. While Mrytle is out doing what makes her happy, George is faithful to his wife and is desperate to try and save his marriage. In his efforts to keep her, George drove himself crazy. In Myrtles efforts to live a better life she drove herself crazy
Jordan Baker and Daisy Buchanan are both beautiful women that live a lush lifestyle. They both come from families with money. Daisy is married and Jordan is still looking for mister right. These women both have high standards when it comes to having money. However, Daisy’s lowers her standards of love to have money. Jordan wants both love and money, she is also willing to lower her standards to get her desires.