In the turn of the twentieth century the US was imbued with new progressive thoughts. Modernism, a new writing form, also emerged alongside of these new technologies and ideas. This focused on the issues during that period like the the recent war or new found liberties given to people. These writers were often referred to as “the lost generation” mainly because what they wrote was far off from the usual traditions commonly associated with during that time. Like the use of an antihero, disillusionment, or the harmful depiction of woman. The Great Gatsby a prime example of a modernist piece, was written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This novel tells the story of Jay Gatsby who is focused on winning back his first and only love only to have him be …show more content…
killed because of her. While the main story takes place however we learn what it was like to live during the progressive era and how careless the wealthy really were. Another perfect example of a modernist piece is Ernest hemingway’s “Soldier's Home”. This piece follows the life of a World War I veteran who no longer connects with the civilization around him. While these two stories are seemingly different, one common theme is underlined; both F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway use their literary pieces The Great Gatsby and “Soldier's Home” to highlight the negative connotation associated with women’s new role in society. During this era of extreme change and reform a great change in society involved new rights and changes in social norms of women.
Before the turn of the century, women were subordinate to men often oppressed not allowing them to explore new ventures or be independent. According to Julie Peakman, during the early nineteenth century, “All (woman) relay the difficulties in pursuing an independent role of life”. They were required to stay home and take care of children or keep the house in order. However, in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, woman began experiencing new found civil liberties and freedom. Susanne Weil comments, “In the nineteenth century as the nation became increasingly industrialized… women's roles as well as the nature of work itself were being radically transformed.” Woman now were no longer required to take care of children but could pursue careers themselves and no longer be dependant on a man. This change was a sudden shock to many men during this time. Not only were they once the only source of income, but now women had much more a voice in the household thus leading many men to oppose these changes. According to the Gale Encyclopedia of the progressive era, even the president opposed these changes, “... former president Grover Cleveland wrote that allowing women to vote would upset the “natural equilibrium” between men and women and cause chaos.” This clearly show how change in women’s statutes not only affected the common men, but also the president of the United States. Many of these men’s objections were transformed and broadcasted into their pieces of literature thus illustrating how many of the men at their time felt as
well. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby women play a crucial role in both telling the story itself and the meaning behind it. However, throughout the entire novel there is a similar trend that occurs-women are depicted harshly and subordinate casting a false light on women rather than highlighting their new change in status. For example, when Daisy, Tom, Nick, and Jordan all venture to the city and the inevitable climax of the novel begins, Daisy tries to avoid this conflict.“”I won’t stand this!” cried Daisy, “Oh, Please let’s get out” “Who are you anyhow?” Broke out Tom”(Gatsby 283). Tom does not even hear what Daisy is saying to him or Gatsby showing how little they truly care about her opinion nor her feelings. This also shows how easily she was frighted by yelling, making her seem, again, weak or subordinate. This suspicion was later reaffirmed when Gatsby tries to justify his yelling, “But with every word she was drawing further and further into herself”. She can no longer speak for herself showing again how weak Daisy truly is. Veronica Makowsky notes a similar finding about Jordan Baker, “I was so intrigued by this characterization of Jordan and the sheer number of scenes in which she is present if often silent”(Makowsky). This shows not only was Daisy subordinate, but also Jordan, who was far more independent. Thus considering the combination of in text citation and outside source one could see how Fitzgerald used this piece as an outlet for his negative views of women’s new found voices. In Ernest Hemingway’s “Soldier's Home” readers also see woman depicted harshly. One can also note that a majority of the characters are infact female thus allowing Hemingway a wider lens to caste a false and harmful image among these women. For instance even Krebs’ mother showed no interest in her son often getting bored of him “She often came in when he was in bed and asked him to tell her about the war, but her attention always wondered.”. This shows the lack of empathy a mother now has for her child showing these new change in traditions are not alway the best. Later in the text, Krebs touches upon why he no longer has any will to be in a relationship with a woman and said this, “Nothing was changed in the town except that the young girls had grown up. But they lived in such a complicated world of already defined alliances and shifting feuds that Krebs did not feel the energy or the courage to break into it.”. Here Kreb not only shows that women are not worth the time but also they are childlike forming friendships and causing fights unlike men who stick to there own. Tateo Imamura, a writer for the Hemingway review, writes “the story is also about "a conflicted mother-son relationship" (29). Krebs' small-town mother cannot comprehend her son's struggles and sufferings caused by the war. She devotes herself to her religion and never questions her own values; she manipulates her son.”. Again Mrs.Imamura restates what was previously mentioned that Krebs mother cannot fathom her sons hardships along with adding a new element by claiming she now tries to control her son. This connection can also be made when referencing the prior quote about the girls. When Krebs describes the shifting feuds and new alliances it also sounds like they two miniplate each other further advancing the abrasive characteristic in the short story. Although one might view the literary pieces The Great Gatsby and “Soldier's Home” as completely different one common element occurs among both of them the authors, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, used this as an outlet to voice their opposing viewpoint on women’s new found freedom in society. One might believe that after almost one hundred years after the writing of these pieces the constant oppression of women would be a thing of the past. However, It is still an issue at large to this day and CNN’s Sara Ashley O'Brien reports “women earn 70 cents to the dollar”. This further shows the injustice among women and how little things have changed since then to give women more rights. Using this information one might also wonder what other injustices humans have overlooked. This also might make some people question how far society has truly advanced. Civilization has a whole has built monumental structures and created technology one can only dream of. While we have all of that at our disposal we still are missing one fundamental right. Equality. Lacking that right even though people have fought to hard for it does not show civilization advancing but is standing still and until there is full equality we will continue to stand still till the end of time.
The 1920s era is known for different names such as the Roaring Twenties, the Jazz Age, the Age of Intolerance, and the Age of Wonderful Nonsense. Moreover, the era claimed the beginning of Modernism in America, which led authors to stray away from traditional writing styles. A commonality seen in Modernists’ works is the desire for characters to fit into societies that they believe to be more substantial or well off than their own. In the novels The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and Passing by Nella Larsen, the characters Jay Gatsby and Clare Kendry use social environments and interactions with others in attempt to reject their pasts and gain acceptance. Jay Gatsby longs to forget his past and focus on the present and future in hopes
Set in the Roaring ‘20s, The Great Gatsby focuses mainly on the lives of men as Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby. However, it also clearly outlines the lives of several women : Daisy Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson, and Jordan Baker. On the surface, the lives of these women couldn’t be more different. Daisy, a rich debutante, is torn between her husband, Tom, or her first love, Jay Gatsby. Lower on the social ladder is Myrtle, who is having an affair with Tom, hoping to rise above her station in life. Jordan, on the other hand, is unmarried and a successful golfer, who travels the country participating in tournaments. While these women may have seemed independent, they’re still subject to the will of society which sees them as inferior and objects to be controlled by men.
Women of the Great Gatsby “Being a woman is a terribly difficult task, since it consists principally of dealing with men” (Joseph Conrad). In the novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the wife of George Wilson, Myrtle, cheats with the married man Tom Buchanan. From time to time they escape to an apartment Tom owns, behind each of their spouses backs. As time goes on, Daisy, Tom’s wife, obtains the knowledge from Jordan that her previous lover is just across the bay and waiting to see her again. Daisy begins going behind Tom’s back with Jay Gatsby, tangling the characters in a mess of relationships.
The exploring Fitzgerald's use of gender roles in the novel requires a certain amount of scholarly research. Including text searches throughout the book, reading scholarly criticisms about the novel and reading articles that present new ideas about Fitzgerald's work. Gender definition and patriarchal values is the main topic of Bethany Klassen's article entitled, "Under Control: Patriarchal Gender construction in the Great Gatsby." The quotes and ideas in this article are profound and bring on a whole new meaning to events, conversations and actions that take place in the book. For example she notes, " To place Daisy and Myrtle in the passive position necessary to Tom's ego, Fitzgerald employs imagery that denies them their humanity and transforms them into objects defined by their purpose to display Tom's wealth and power"( Klassen ). This passage in the article refers to the way in which Tom puts value on women not by personality or his love but as a material trapping. Not showing emotion towards his wife adds to Tom's persona. The article also includes opinions about the female roles in the novel. Daisy and Myrtle personify the typical female who is basically living to fulfill her husband's needs instead of getting a degree and making a living. The article continues to explain how during that time period, there was even a consequence for not fitting into gender roles. Referring to the tragic car accident, Klassen writes, " Because Daisy's affair with Gatsby places her in the car with him that night and because Myrtle's rebellion against her husband leads her to run into the road, both incidences of female empowerment structurally precipitates the disaster" ( Klassen ). This quote is extremely interesting because it claims that when women try to overcome being trapped by feminine stereo-types, it ends in disaster. This article is obviously beneficial to any person who is exploring gender roles in the novel.
With the increasing popularity of female-oriented post-secondary education, the growing number of women working outside the home in professional occupations and the newly granted right to suffrage, women directly challenged the traditional notions of American Womanhood in the 1920’s. In just seventy one years since the Seneca Falls Convention, feminists in America accomplished sweeping changes for women politically, economically, and socially. Attempting to reconcile the changing concept of womanhood with more traditional female roles, male writers often included depictions of this “New Woman” in their novels. Frequently, the male writers of the Progressive Era saw the New Woman as challenging the very fabric of society and, subsequently, included
Tom Buchanan and George Wilson have plenty in common with their attitude pertaining towards women in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald throughout the entire novel gives the audience an insight on his thoughts about the nature of man. Fitzgerald portrays men often treating women harshly throughout his novel. For example, there are many violent acts towards women, a constant presence of dominance, and also ironically Tom and Georges over reactions to being cheated on.
Certain authors, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, wanted to reflect the horrors that the world had experienced not a decade ago. In 1914, one of the most destructive and pointless wars in history plagued the world: World War I. This war destroyed a whole generation of young men, something one would refer to as the “Lost Generation”. Modernism was a time that allowed the barbarity of the war to simmer down and eventually, disappear altogether. One such author that thrived in this period was F. Scott Fitzgerald, a young poet and author who considered himself the best of his time. One could say that this self-absorption was what fueled his drive to be the most famous modernist the world had seen. As The New Yorker staff writer Susan Orlean mentions in her literary summary of Fitzgerald’s works, “I didn’t know till fifteen that there was anyone in the world except me, and it cost me plenty” (Orlean xi). One of the key factors that influenced and shaped Fitzgerald’s writing was World War I, with one of his most famous novels, This Side Of Paradise, being published directly after the war in 1920. Yet his most famous writing was the book, The Great Gatsby, a novel about striving to achieve the American dream, except finding out when succeeding that this dream was not a desire at all. Fitzgerald himself lived a life full of partying and traveling the world. According to the Norton Anthology of American Literature, “In the 1920’s and 1930’s F. Scott Fitzgerald was equally equally famous as a writer and as a celebrity author whose lifestyle seemed to symbolize the two decades; in the 1920’s he stood for all-night partying, drinking, and the pursuit of pleasure while in the 1930’s he stood for the gloomy aftermath of excess” (Baym 2124). A fur...
By the end of World War I, many American authors were ready to change their ways and views on writing. Authors are tired of tradition and limitations. One of these writers was F. Scott Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald was a participant in the wild parties with bootleg liquor, but he was also a critic of this time. His book, The Great Gatsby is an excellent example of modernist literature, through its use of implied themes and fragmented storyline.
During the 1920’s, the role women had under men was making a drastic change, and it is shown in The Great Gatsby by two of the main female characters: Daisy and Jordan. One was domesticated and immobile while the other was not. Both of them portray different and important characteristics of the normal woman growing up in the 1920’s. The image of the woman was changing along with morals. Females began to challenge the government and the society. Things like this upset people, especially the men. The men were upset because this showed that they were losing their long-term dominance over the female society.
Before the 1920s men and women were thought to have two separate roles in life. People believed women should be concerned with their children, home, and religion, while men took care of business and politics. In 1920 there were significant changes for women in politics, the home, and the workplace. When the 19th amendment passed it gave women the right to vote. “Though slowly to use their newly won voting rights, by the end of the decade women were represented local, state, and national political committees and were influencing the political agenda of the federal government.” Now a days it’s normal for women to be involved in politics and it’s normal for women to vote. Another drastic change
Gender Roles: In some respects, Fitzgerald writes about gender roles in a quite conservative manner. In his novel, men work to earn money for the maintenance of the women. Men are dominant over women, especially in the case of Tom, who asserts his physical strength to subdue them. The only hint of a role reversal is in the pair of Nick and Jordan. Jordan's androgynous name and cool, collected style masculinize her more than any other female character. However, in the end, Nick does exert his dominance over her by ending the relationship. The women in the novel are an interesting group, because they do not divide into the traditional groups of Mary Magdalene and Madonna figures, instead, none of them are pure. Myrtle is the most obviously sensual, but the fact that Jordan and Daisy wear white dresses only highlights their corruption.
From the start of the book we can see that women in the book are
'The Great Gatsby,' produced from a well profound author, F. Scott Fitzgerald during the Jazz Era in the 20th century, was written after the First World War about the pleasure seeking spirits American's endured, their materialistic thoughts and values caused the nation's rapid growth in wealth and power- where America was becoming an urban society of sheer greatness resulting mostly ...
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald shows many examples of modernism. Fitzgerald shows many modernism techniques like loss of control, alienation, corruption of the American Dream, breaking society’s rules and feeling restless. Fitzgerald also shows modernism through the fragmented writing.
Society has always given more power to men than to women. Before the 19th amendment was ratified on August 18, 1920, only men had the right to vote. Before this, women were seen as the property of either her husband or her father and not her own person. They had to follow laws they couldn’t vote for, pay taxes on property they had no rights to, and could not get a college education. They were very limited on occupations, and what jobs they could work paid very little. Because of their limited opportunities and the gender roles of that time, many ended up as housewives. They were expected to do all the housework, cooking, and care for the children. If she did something that displeased her husband, he could beat or imprison her without any legal consequences (the National Women’s History Project, 1998).