Immorality In The Great Gatsby

Fitzgerald illustrates how the abundance of material possessions encourages immorality and selfishness. These certain components are exemplified in the environment of East Egg and those associated with such a place -Myrtle Wilson, in this case. Although not initially from East Egg, her position with Tom as being the other “woman from New York” exposes her to a similar lavish way of living (19). Fitzgerald endorses Myrtle in this way to symbolize her as the selfish desire to have an affair, which is prevalent within the rich upperclass. With this, Tom and Myrtle's relationship is solely based off Tom’s greed for power and Myrtle’s craving for high status in society. Fitzgerald imposes such immoral behaviors to exemplify social values being consumed

As already described above, East Egg is prevalent with fanciful lifestyles that encourage immoral actions. In order to effectively implement such an idea, Fitzgerald depicts these immoral values in terms of relationships within the Buchanan family. Already driven with rapacious motives, a disbanded marriage, and desire for more wealth, Fitzgerald illustrates Daisy Buchanan’s own relationship with her daughter Pammy to convey these aspirations. Instead of tending to her own child herself, a maid fulfills that duty instead; Daisy only acknowledges Pammy when guests are over because she wants “to show [her] off” (124). Fitzgerald purposely refers to Daisy showing Pammy off instead of wanting to care of her in order to demonstrate how she is only concerned with the status her daughter brings rather than the love that a mother and child often share in a parental relationship. This represents how the lack of morality Daisy has adapted from her extravagant lifestyle induces her to simply only act like she loves her child by often referring to Pammy as an “absolute little dream” or the “bless-sed pre-cious” in public, but then completely ignores her and sends her back with the housemaid. Furthermore, Fitzgerald also extends this acquisitive foundation for relationships to the Buchanan's marriage. Daisy and Tom -both who are brimmed with greed- are bound together by their own immoral desires. Fitzgerald constructs the Buchanan’s loveless marriage off of “their money or their vast carelessness….that [keeps] them together” (191). Their relationship no longer consists of a marriage -love, support, and reliance- but rather an agreement that is only in tact to meet the needs and status of being a high married couple in society. They are bound together by money, which allows them to take part in their own