Women In The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby is set in the roaring 20s, a period of excitement, where music, dance, and millionaires flourished across the U.S. This revolution can be seen in its grandest in New York City, coincidentally where this novel takes place. The individuals in The Great Gatsby seem to take a part in this “thrill seeking” attitude of the 1920s and when doing so, they tend to collect things that appeal to them and are suitable for their self enjoyment. However, women at the time experienced inequality in society, creating a divide in motivation between the male and female characters when they attempt to collect. While the male character’s collections may mirror the female’s, their motivation for collecting is what ultimately distinguishes the two

The most prominent example of this is in Daisy Buchanan. As a debutante, she appeals to many men and throughout her life, strives to maintain a respectable status and does so successfully. This can be seen with Jordan Baker’s account of meeting her when she states, “‘Hello Jordan, Daisy called unexpectedly. ‘Please come here.’ I was flattered that she wanted to speak to me, because of all the older girls I admired her most” (81). It is evident that Daisy has built a sense of status around herself and appears as a very respectable individual in the eyes of many. It can also be seen that she is very mature as Jordan states, “She went with a slightly older crowd—when she went with anyone at all” (81). Daisy’s past reveals that she has always aimed for a sophisticated lifestyle and strived to be a respectable figure in society. However, with the reintroduction of Gatsby into her life, her image is threatened as it would have forced her to disregard the three years of marriage and the child that she had with Tom. Therefore, to preserve her image and her refined lifestyle, she chooses Tom

On the surface, it may appear that he uses his power and wealth to appeal to Daisy, and in doing so, appears powerful rather than actually feeling powerful. But this is not the case as Gatsby’s motivation to gain power was already set in stone long before he knew Daisy. His motivation for his power did not come from Daisy, it came from his love of luxury as Nick explains, ““To the young Gatz, resting on his oars and looking up at the railed deck, the yacht represented all the beauty and glamor in the world… He was left with his singularly appropriate education; the vague contour of Jay Gatsby had filled out to the substantiality of a man” (108). Thus, Gatsby strived for power in wealth largely because he wanted to feel luxurious, not because he wanted Daisy to see that he was luxurious. His upbringing and his previous experiences with wealth motivated him to collect luxury wherever he could find it. Gatsby may have tried to use his wealth to appear powerful and wealthy to Daisy to impress her, but Gatsby collects wealth, luxury, and entertainment, and does so because he wants to feel powerful, not to appeal to