Myrtle Wilson Character Analysis

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Myrtle Wilson is a poor woman from the desolate area known as “The Valley of Ashes” located between New York City and West Egg. Myrtle is the opposite of Tom Buchanan, the man she is having an affair with. One day when Tom and Daisy have a get together with Daisy’s cousin, Nick Carraway, and her best friend, Jordan Baker, Tom goes into the other room to take a phone call. The person on the other end of the call in none other than his mistress, Myrtle Wilson. Jordan explains to Nick that Tom has a mistress, which confuses him. When he leaves Tom and Daisy’s house, he thinks to himself, “It seemed to me that the thing for Daisy to do was to rush out of the house, child [Pammy] in arms- but apparently there were no such intentions in her head” …show more content…

She stays with a man who is cheating on her to her complete knowledge because he is an extremely rich man. Daisy has been wealthy her entire life, and she does not want to experience life as any lesser than rich. John T. Gillespie and Corinne J. Naden support Nick’s feeling by writing, “She [Daisy] has no inner resources to direct her life and is thus tossed about by outside influences” (Gillespie and Naden). The point of what Gillespie and Naden are saying is that Daisy is incapable of making decisions for herself that may benefit her wellbeing, therefore she remains in a situation (or a relationship in this case) that is horrible for her. By not leaving Tom, the affair between Myrtle and Tom continues, which has a negative impact on Myrtle. Myrtle’s husband, George Wilson, finds out about the affair and becomes engulfed in anger. He locks Myrtle inside and decides that he and Myrtle are going to move away and get out of New York. After getting into a heated argument at a hotel with Gatsby, Tom, Nick, and Jordan, Daisy and Gatsby are driving past George Wilson’s house, in Tom’s car, where Myrtle is being …show more content…

It all happened in a minute but it seemed to me that she [Myrtle] wanted speak to us, thought we were somebody she knew. Well, first Daisy turned away from the woman toward the other car, and then she lost her nerve and turned back. The second my hand reached the wheel I felt the shock- it must have killed her instantly. (Fitzgerald

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