In the novel, The Great Gatsby, by F Scott. Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald creates the relationship between the characters and society during the 1920’s. The Roaring Twenties was known to be the era of wealth and prosperity, the time period of mass culture. Characters within the book, such as Gatsby, Tom and Daisy Buchanan, categorize in the high social class. Before meeting Tom, Daisy was involved in a relationship with young Gatsby who wasn’t surrounded by wealth at the time. Due to wealth problems and Gatsby going off to war, the couple decided to separate. 5 years later, Daisy now married to Tom, Gatsby reunited with Daisy and tries to rekindle their love like before. Unfortunately, Gatsby was not successful in winning Daisy back who …show more content…
in the end, decided to stay with Tom. Although Daisy and Gatsby had a relationship prior to Tom, Daisy chose Tom over Gatsby due to their similarities and his social status in society. Although the marriage between Daisy and Tom was not ideal, they were similar in many ways. The two had a moderately abusive relationship, with Daisy having an injury where her “knuckle was black and blue” to which she blamed that Tom hurt it (16). While Tom didn’t object to this, it is alluded by Daisy that it was his fault. Despite her bruised knuckle, Daisy went on to say that Tom didn’t mean to hurt her and brushed it off. Throughout the novel, their actions show how they both are not satisfied in their relationship despite having everything they need. For example, it is known that Tom has had an affair with Myrtle Wilson, the wife of George Wilson. Tom is a very wealthy man who prospered in sports during high school and got accepted to an Ivy League school. However this life of riches seemed to not be enough to which he soon decides to cheat on Daisy with Myrtle. Mrs. Wilson serves as an escape from his everyday lifestyle and enables him to reassure himself that he is still apart of the high class society since Mrs. Wilson belongs to the lower class and is only attracted to his wealthiness. Likewise, Daisy is similar to Tom since she too came from a privileged life of wealth and is also unsatisfied with their marriage. This could also be seen when Daisy rekindled her love for Gatsby when they finally reunited. Towards the end of the book, Nick establishes how both Daisy and Tom are “careless people…[who] retreated back into their money” and “let other people clean up the mess they had made” (188). Even through all of their troubled incidents, they still both hide behind their wealth and don’t take responsibility of their mistakes. For them to always retreat back to their money represents how they are both only focused on their wealth and status in society. Although Tom and Daisy may have loved each other at some point, they both stay together due to the thought of each other. Based on Tom’s social status, Daisy decides to go with Tom because of his type of wealth that is considered as “old money.” In an argument between Gatsby and Tom, Gatsby argues that the only reason as to why Daisy chose to be with Tom was due to the fact that at the time, Gatsby “was poor” and that “she was waiting for [him]” (137).
Throughout the novel, it is well known that Tom has always belonged in the high social class in society. Likewise, that could be said the same for Daisy and how she has grown up around wealth as well. In order to maintain that high status of wealth, Daisy choose Tom since his “old money” meant that it was gained from inheritance. While Gatsby also has a vast amount of wealth, the money he gained was considered to be “new wealth,” which meant that he obtained his money by himself and had to work for it. Seeing as though Daisy wants to continue living in the same social class as Tom. Along with the fact that Gatsby’s wealth was considered “new money,” it was also dirty money, to which he obtained it through criminal activity. Tom argues that Gatsby is not worthy of winning over Daisy due to Gatsby being a “common swindler [who] has to steal the ring he put on her finger” as well as gaining his wealth through “drug stores [and] alcohol” (140-141). Gatsby was a bootlegger who lied and cheated his way through the social hierarchy. As opposed to Gatsby, Tom’s money was pure and was owned through family wealth. Daisy wouldn’t have chosen Gatsby due to his tainted money which would've brought her down from her social status in the 1920’s society. Even if Daisy loves Gatsby more or less than Tom, her main focus was not based on feelings, but on wealth and image. In addition to love, it seemed as though Gatsby’s main objective in this whole novel was to win back Daisy. However, Gatsby was profusely obsessed in his intentions of getting Daisy to reciprocate his feelings. Gatsby continuously pressures Daisy to tell Tom that she should
“tell the truth-that [she’d] never loved [Tom]” (139). When Daisy reluctantly tells Tom that she never loved him, she soon after cried out that Gatsby “wants too much” (139). Although Gatsby may believe that he is truly in love with Daisy, it seems as though he is only in love with the thought and past of Daisy. She represents everything that he desires in regards to wealth and social class. All throughout Gatsby’s life, he has been striving to become successfully rich. Since Daisy is surrounded by riches, beauty, and money, Gatsby also wanted to be involved in that lifestyle and Daisy would help him achieve that. Due to Gatsby’s assertiveness on making Daisy proclaim her love for him and his desire to repeat their past relationship, Daisy chose Tom instead. Ultimately, Daisy decides to be with Tom instead of Gatsby due to her similarities with Tom as well as his social status during the 1920’s society. Despite their unstable and rough marriage, they balance one another with their shared personalities and actions. Since Gatsby’s money was gained through criminal activity, Daisy would much rather be with Tom since his wealth was naturally inherited. Although both Daisy and Gatsby had an old relationship 5 years prior, Gatsby was too focused on recreating the past than focusing on the future with Daisy.
Nothing is more important, to most people, than friendships and family, thus, by breaking those bonds, it draws an emotional response from the readers. Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan had a relationship before he went off to fight in the war. When he returned home, he finds her with Tom Buchanan, which seems to make him jealous since he still has feelings for Daisy. He wanted Daisy “to go to Tom and say: ‘I never loved you” (Fitzgerald 118) Gatsby eventually tells Tom that his “wife doesn’t love [him]” and that she only loves Gatsby (Fitzgerald 121). But the unpleasant truth is that Daisy never loved anyone, but she loved something: money. Daisy “wanted her life shaped and the decision made by some force of of money, of unquestionable practicality” (Fitzgerald 161). The Roaring Twenties were a time where economic growth swept the nation and Daisy was looking to capitalize on that opportunity. Her greed for material goods put her in a bind between two wealthy men, yet they are still foolish enough to believe that she loved them. Jay Gatsby is a man who has no relationships other than one with Nick Caraway, so he is trying to use his wealth to lure in a greedy individual to have love mend his
Tom is richer than Gatsby, and has a far lesser chance of losing his money; because of the simple fact that he did not need to participate in anything illegal to gain his wealth. In fact Tom did not need to participate in anything to receive his wealth. Gatsby, because he was not born into a wealthy, well-to-do family, is in a lower class, despite being almost as wealthy as Tom is. While Gatsby treats Daisy far better than Tom does, Daisy still favors Tom because it is far easier to live with someone who has a predictable pattern to their actions than someone who is all over the place. All of these coincide with each other to cause Daisy to think that she loves Tom more than she does Gatsby.
As depicted by Scott F. Fitzgerald, the 1920s is an era of a great downfall both socially and morally. As the rich get richer, the poor remain to fend for themselves, with no help of any kind coming their way. Throughout Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, the two “breeds” of wealthier folk consistently butt heads in an ongoing battle of varying lifestyles. The West Eggers, best represented by Jay Gatsby, are the newly rich, with little to no sense of class or taste. Their polar opposites, the East Eggers, are signified by Tom and Daisy Buchanan; these people have inherited their riches from the country’s wealthiest old families and treat their money with dignity and social grace. Money, a mere object in the hands of the newly wealthy, is unconscientiously squandered by Gatsby in an effort to bring his only source of happiness, Daisy, into his life once again. Over the course of his countless wild parties, he dissipates thousands upon thousands of dollars in unsuccessful attempts to attract Daisy’s attention. For Gatsby, the only way he could capture this happiness is to achieve his personal “American Dream” and end up with Daisy in his arms. Gatsby’s obsession with Daisy is somewhat detrimental to himself and the ones around him; his actions destroy relationships and ultimately get two people killed.
The novel is set during the Jazz Age, an era in which money and class status were much more important than anything else. This is clearly portrayed in the novel. Gatsby and Daisy met at the summer of 1917 were Daisy was a beautiful, classy, rich girl and Gatsby was just an officer who was waiting his time to serve in the war. Gatsby’s main goals in life were money, luxury and class, and as he fell more in love with Daisy and got to know her, he understood that those three things were basic for him to keep Daisy by his side. Months later...
Apparently being wealthy is not all Gatsby wants, but also wants love from Daisy. He loves her so much he wants her to break Tom’s heart and come with him. This man is clever and cold hearted like Lord Voldemort and Sauron. Jordan glanced at Nick and told him in a calm tone, “Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay” (Fitzgerald 78). Gatsby’s way of being in love with Daisy is to be a creepy stalker, never giving her space and always spying on her.
Hugh Hefner once said, “I looked back on the roaring Twenties, with its jazz, 'Great Gatsby' and the pre-Code films as a party I had somehow managed to miss.” The parties of the Roaring Twenties were used to symbolize wealth and power in a society that was focused more on materialism and gossip than the important things in life, like family, security, and friends. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, portrays the characters of Tom and Daisy Buchanan as the epitome of the era. The reader sees these characters acting selfishly and trying to meddle with others’ lives. On the other hand, Nick Carraway, the narrator, acts more to help others and act honestly. Initially the reader sees Carraway’s views towards Jay Gatsby as negative as Gatsby’s actions are perceived as being like the Buchanan’s. As the novel moves forward, the reader notices a change in Carraway’s attitude towards Gatsby. Carraway sees Gatsby for whom he truly is, and that is a loving person who only became rich to win Daisy’s heart. But in this the reader also sees how corrupt and hurtful Gatsby’s actions were to the love of his life. Gatsby’s relationship with Daisy reveals that just as Gatsby’s dream of wooing Daisy is corrupted by illegalities and dishonesty, the “American Dream” of friendship and individualism has disintegrated into the simple pursuit of wealth, power, and pleasure.
She becomes scared and no longer wants to be with him. She chooses Tom because, despite his indiscretions and temper, he is able to give Daisy financial security. According to "The Great Gatsby A Misogynistic Tale English Literature Essay," Daisy is ultimately bringing the downfall of Gatsby because of her selfishness and need for security. Gatsby will control her as much as Tom and not be able to give her enough financial security because he does not make his money legally and could lose his money more easily than Tom. Daisy does come from wealth, but she does not have the experience in finances to invest or manage her money, a man has always done that for her.
What is later revealed is that Gatsby’s wealth and luxurious lifestyle is all in the name of getting Daisy, Tom Buchanan’s wife, to fall in love with him. But in the end, even with all his money and power, Gatsby is not able to get the girl. What this brings to light is, was Gatsby’s money truly worth anything? “I love her and that 's the beginning and end of everything” (The Great Gatsby, Chapter ) This quote from Jay Gatsby shows that his entire life is centered around Daisy. That his only motive for the things that he does, for the massive parties that he throughs, for working to become incredibly wealthy, is to have Daisy fall in love with him. Gatsby’s life is one that is incredibly lavish. It is full of expensive amenities many would only dream of having. But Jay Gatsby is not living this fabulous lifestyle for himself. He is living it for Daisy, and only for Daisy. Gatsby’s only desire in life is to have Daisy be in love with him, and he chooses to live the way he does because he believes that is what she wants. Gatsby spends money at wild abandon simply to make an effort to impress Daisy. He throughs incredibly immense parties, with hopes that Daisy and Daisy alone will be impressed. But what is troubling about Gatsby is that, unlike most books, he doesn’t get the girl. Gatsby is, despite his entire life being dedicated to getting the one thing
Daisy’s original impression of Gatsby is evident in her early letters to him, “...he had deliberately given Daisy a sense of security; he let her believe that he was a person from much the same stratum as herself- that he was fully able to take care of her” (149). Daisy loved Gatsby under the false hope that they belonged to the same social class. She grew up surrounded by riches, never working a day in her life, and she could not comprehend the struggles of a man who must work for the food he eats each day. Daisy knew that she must marry when she is beautiful, for being a beautiful rich girl of good social standing was her highest commodity and most valuable chip in marrying well. In order to live a secure life, she had to find someone the had the means to provide for her extravagant lifestyle, and the deep care for her that would allow Daisy to do as she pleased. The only definition of love Daisy knew was one of disillusioned power and commitments under false pretenses in order to keep the wealthy continually rich. Daisy acknowledges the false pretenses of marriage for the wealthy in how she describes her daughter’s future. She tells Nick, “‘And I hope she’ll be a fool- that’s the best thing a girl can be in this
This is something that is evident particularly on page 66 in the novel when Gatsby tells his story to Nick Carraway, the novel's narrator, and Nick describes Gatsby's phrases as so threadbare they lack credibility. No matter how much money Gatsby makes, he is never going to be good enough for either Daisy or the other characters. Nick Carraway, Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan are the three main male characters. These men hang out a lot in the novel, even though they are not from the same social class. Tom Buchanan comes from a socially solid old family and is very wealthy.
Gatsby made his vision even more unrealistic by idealizing it, making it impossible for Daisy to ever live up to his vision of her. Perhaps this is one reason she ends up with Tom—she knows she can't ever live up to who she was for him. This serves as a representation of Fitzgerald’s philosophy that great expectations lead to great disappointments. Gatsby believes that money can recreate the past. The roaring twenties is often considered to be a period of joy, discovery, and wonder at a new age. Through Gatsby’s belief, the novel seems to suggest that the wild hedonism of the Jazz Age was actually a vain attempt to recreate the wonder and majesty of bygone days.
During the whole story, the rich have a sense of carelessness of money and material goods that are usually unobtainable by most. Prime examples of this carelessness are the huge parties that Gatsby throws; everybody who is anybody would attend: the party guests “[arrive] at twilight . . .” (Fitzgerald 111) and stay until daybreak, and “sometimes they [come] and [go] without having met Gatsby at all, [come] for the party with a simplicity of heart that [is] its own ticket of admission” (45). Gatsby puts enormous amounts of money into these parties, even though he does not enjoy them one bit. He, however, continues to have them because he believes happiness can be bought (101), that the glitz and glitter will ultimately bring Daisy to love him (Swilley). To Gatsby, he must continue to throw these parties. Gatsby is new money and he has to show off his money and prove to the world that he is rich (Karen). In addition to his elaborate parties, he wears extravagant pink suits with gold ties and drives an eye-catching yellow car. All this he does in order to gain Daisy’s attention (Gatsbylvr). In contrast, the opposite is true for Tom. Karen says that Tom is old money and, therefore, does not have to show the world that he has money. Tom does not need Gatsby’s flashiness; his house is arranged to his liking and he seems to be more conventional -- Tom rides horses as opposed to driving a flashy car (Karen).
In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby was born into a life of poverty and as he grew up he became more aware of the possibility of a better life. He created fantasies that he was too good for his modest life, and that his parents weren’t his own. When he met Daisy, a pretty upper class girl, his life revolved around her and he became obsessed with her carefree lifestyle. Gatsby’s desire to become good enough for Daisy and her parents is what motivates him to become a wealthy, immoral person who is perceived as being sophisticated. Society won’t let Gatsby and Daisy be together when they fall in love because Daisy comes from a family of old wealth, while Gatsby is the son of a peasant.
The Relationship of Gatsby and Daisy in The Great Gatsby & nbsp; At the heart of F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, The Great Gatsby, there is a theme of desire, an unshakable quest by Jay Gatsby set in motion by the beauty of Daisy Buchanan. Yet, when Jay and Daisy are together, considerable awkwardness is displayed between these two characters, and this awkward atmosphere is primarily the result of the actions of Jay Gatsby. Nick to do so, he said. & nbsp; regularly hosts parties, but as the reader is informed near the beginning of the book, Gatsby is hard to find at his own parties, and does not like mixing with the crowds too much. & nbsp; When Daisy arrives, and Nick leads her into his house, it finally becomes clear that there is some awkwardness in the meeting between Gatsby and Daisy.& & nbsp; "I made an excuse at the first possible moment, and got to my feet." & nbsp;
Gatsby believes in the aforementioned "American Dream." Thus, Gatsby believes that money alone will allow him to enter the upper class. However, the unspoken truth of the "American Dream" is that class mobility requires money and the culture typical of the upper class. Gatsby becomes wealthy, but his lack of this culture prevents him from fulfilling his goal of social mobility. Writer Andrew B. Trigg discusses Gatsby 's inability to climb the social ladder: "culture provides a barrier to entering the top echelons of the leisure class" (Trigg.) Throughout The Great Gatsby, Gatsby 's lack of taste is evident, which leads to the upper class 's rejection of him. Gatsby repeatedly displays his wealth in excessive ways. Gatsby throws extravagant parties, buys flamboyant clothes, and purchases an opulent car and mansion. Throughout the novel, these displays of wealth are met by criticism from those that Gatsby is trying to impress. Tom Buchanan, Daisy 's husband, and a man of inherited wealth, detests Gatsby. In Chapter seven, Tom frequently criticizes Gatsby for his gaudy displays of wealth. First, Tom criticizes Gatsby 's car: " 'Come on, Daisy, ' said