The Great Gatsby And Daisy's Relationship

In order for human relationships to thrive, both people involved must be responsible and selfless towards their partner. In the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Daisy Buchanan is the antithesis of someone who is responsible for her duties in a relationship. Her inability to make a decision regarding partners, to accept consequences, and to show up to Gatsby’s funeral, shows how Daisy was responsible for not only the failed relationship between her and Gatsby, but the failed relationship between her and Nick as well.

One of the major themes of this book ¬– love – serves as one of the main conflicts as well (pattern 7a). One example would be the battle between Gatsby and Tom for Daisy’s love. As Tom’s wife, it is Daisy’s duty

to love and be with him; however, she does not fulfill this duty once Gatsby returns (pattern 1a). In chapter 5, Gatsby takes Daisy on a tour of his house. As he goes through, he shows her his closet that includes an enormous array of shirts. This causes Daisy to exclaim, “They're such beautiful shirts, ... It makes me sad because I've never seen such – such beautiful shirts before.” This quote shows how much she loved Gatsby¬– she cried over his shirts (pattern 10a). She sees the life she could have had with Gatsby and that he became rich to win her over.
The love affair between Gatsby and Daisy becomes problematic towards chapter 7 when Gatsby and Nick, join Daisy and Tom at a hotel. Tom begins to inquire about Gatsby’s history and finally he asks, “What kind of row are you trying to cause in my house anyway?” It is clear by this statement that Tom is aware of Daisy’s infidelity. Daisy could not decide between the two men for most of the book and this played a major role in the failure of both relationships.
Another responsibility Daisy failed at was accepting consequences for her actions. On their way back to Long Island, Gatsby let Daisy drive. She ran over Myrtle, Tom’s mistress, ultimately killing her. After the accident, Gatsby tried to get her to turn the car around but she fell into his lap and said she could not drive. He takes the blame for the incident and Daisy lets him without any hesitation. She avoids all responsibility for this action and eventually Gatsby will have to pay for it. Her inability to accept her consequences is what killed Gatsby, ruining their relationship for good.
Finally, upon Gatsby’s death, Daisy does not go to his funeral. This solidifies how their relationship was a failure. If she really loved Gatsby, she would have at least paid respect to him by visiting his grave. She failed to do so, however, and her inaction also affected her relationship with Nick. He states in chapter 9, “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy--they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back to their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made....” He realizes that she never loved Gatsby and he sees what kind of person she really is.
The Great Gatsby is a good example about how human relationships fail when one person fails to be responsible for their duties in a relationship. Daisy failed to choose between Tom and Gatsby, to take the consequences of her actions, and to show up for Gatsby’s funeral. In the process, she managed to ruin her relationship with Nick and Gatsby and severely damage her marriage with Tom. If only Daisy would have been responsible with her duties, she may have had successful relationships.