Research has shown that the wealthiest eighty-five people in the world have more money than the poorest three point five billion people combined (Jackson par. 3). The life styles and viewpoints of these two classes of people differ by enormous proportions. One class will never have to worry about their finances, while the other may struggle to even buy food. These different ways of life can produce extremely different personalities for better or for worse. The unique personalities of the upper class are observed in the novel The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, where the narrator, Nick Carraway, moves into a village called West Egg just outside New York. Nick finds a particular interest in his neighbor, Mr. Jay Gatsby, who throws extravagant …show more content…
For example, at the end of the book, Nick provides a direct characterization of Tom and Daisy when he depicts them as “careless people” who “smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money [...] and let other people clean up the mess they had made” (Fitzgerald 179). Being selfish is defined as only caring about oneself. Tom and Daisy’s behavior expose their selfishness because they do what is in their best interest, which is to cover up all their mistakes with their money. However, they fail to see the damage this causes for other people because they are only worried about themselves. Tom and Daisy’s wealth give them power to avoid consequences for their actions, which promotes their behavior because they know there is no risk of punishment. The fact that Tom and Daisy don’t think of others and continue their careless behavior, indicates their selfishness. Also, Daisy particularly shows her selfishness by marrying Tom Buchanan for his money instead of waiting for Gatsby. Daisy was already born into a rich family in Louisville, so she never needed more money. However, after Gatsby goes off to war, Daisy marries Tom who gave her “a string of pearls valued at three hundred and fifty thousand dollars” (Fitzgerald 76). The fact that Daisy did not wait for Gatsby because of her enchantment with Tom’s money, while she had plenty of money herself, demonstrates the power money has to create greed and
Fitzgerald shows these characters selfish nature through there actions. Daisy only cares about security and luxury, which she gains through a life with Tom, however she also wants to be the center of everyone’s attention which she gets through being with Gatsby. She couldn’t care less about the men, only about what they give to her. Tom is a very selfish man because of what he wants from life. He wants the riches, the luxury, the beautiful trophy wife, and the mistress on the
Gatsby seems to not care when he flaunts his wealth for his parties and guests, as it only matters that everyone is having the time of their lives. His parties are not exclusive, meaning anyone can come and explore his home. This also means that everyone knows where Gatsby lives, leading his murderer, George Wilson, to easily find gatsby’s estate. These displays do not seem to keep Gatsby’s critic, Tom Buchanan, at rest as he investigates the truth about Jay and the many rumors that circulate him continuously. At Gatsby’s parties, he meets Nick Carraway, couples get into fights, and Gatsby’s and Daisy's affair deepens, but they are all so, “...
Albert Einstein, a renowned physicist, once said, “Money only appeals to selfishness and always tempts its owners irresistibly to abuse it." He conveys that money acts like a drug, drawing in those who selfishly desire it into an endless pit of desire. Once one has delved into that pit, the need to abuse what is offered consumes the person as whole, leaving them to be nothing but a hollow shell of their greed. This idea once again presents itself in Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, through numerous characters. Primarily, there are Daisy and Tom Buchanan, a wealthy couple from East Egg, Long Island who abuse their status and wealth in order to benefit themselves.
No matter how much money someone has or how much they’ve accomplished, they will always desire more. In the book The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author shows that the greediness of characters results in only bad things. Tom, Gatsby, and Daisy in the book were only focused on their own wants and lost appreciation for what they already had. The book shows us this a lot with daisy and Tom's relationship, Daisy betraying Gatsby, and Gatsby using Nick to get Daisy.
Death, destruction, and desolation follow the horrendous actions of wealthy communities. In the novel, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald creates a story with various characters from two very different societies: extreme wealth and extreme poverty. The wealthy inherit their fortunes and do not have to work for it, unlike the downtrodden. With this in mind, Fitzgerald paints two characters, Daisy and Tom Buchanan, as typical, affluent individuals with money, power, and everything imaginable. In the novel, Daisy and Tom come in wreaking havoc and destroying everything in their greed filled path, yet clear the area when any of the mess is being cleaned up because nobody holds them accountable due to their status.
Although Gatsby does not seem to be a selfish man on the surface, his intentions and success may. He builds a ginormous mansion and throws extravagant parties all to get Daisy and her love back. Gatsby does all this for his good since all it consists of is having Daisy all to himself. The corruption and obsession of wealth is displayed through the characters Daisy, Tom and Gatsby as they live their lives in
The Connection of Wealth and Personality in Fitzgerald’s Works In our society, money is seen as the most important factor in decision making and in our overall lives. This is shown throughout all of Fitzgerald’s works and in many of his characters. His stories continually mention the effect that money has on the community. In one of her criticisms, Mary Jo Tate explains that “[Fitzgerald] was not a simple worshiper of wealth or the wealthy, but rather he valued wealth for the freedom and possibilities it provided, and he criticized the rich primarily for wasting those opportunities.
Fabiana Pinto 11/28/15 First introduced in Chapter 2, the valley of ashes between West Egg and New York City consists of a long stretch of desolate land created by the dumping of industrial ashes. It represents the moral and social decay that results from the uninhibited pursuit of wealth, as the rich indulge themselves with regard for nothing but their own pleasure. The valley of ashes also symbolizes the plight of the poor, like George Wilson, who lives among the dirty ashes and lost his vitality as a result. Nick Carraway made the decision to move to the East and learn "the bond business" because "everybody I knew was in the bond business, so I supposed it could support one more single man.
The characters portat different tiers of greed. At the highest tier, so to say the most greedy, is occupied by Tom and Daisy Buchanan. Tom and Daisy are arguably the most greedy people in the whole novel. They did not have to make their way up the ranks as Tom was born into a rich family and daisy also being born into a wealthy family. Daisy is in love with Gatsby, but as war comes Gatsby has to serve his role in it.
What is a man without his wealth? Some will say nothing, others will say something. Some argue that people who inherit their money would be nothing. An example of this is the Kardashians or Tom Buchanan. Tom inherited all his money from his family and hasn't made a dime of it.
Bang! Bang! Those could be the last sounds you could ever hear if you have been too obsessed with money . All of the people in the Great Gatsby love money and it turns out that the money betrays them. In F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby it proves that no matter how much you have money can't buy true happiness.
It was ironic that even Nick, a person who was “inclined to reserve all judgment” (Fitzgerald 1), was able to see how money had made Tom and Daisy careless and lazy. Nick also notices that Daisy and Tom had disappeared right after Gatsby’s death. Daisy and Tom were wealthy enough to move out of Long Island, while they made everyone else solve the problem that they had left behind. It is easy for rich people to become weak and only focus on
In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the reader is immediately struck by Tom Buchannan’s wealth. He believes he is intrinsically superior and can afford to treat others poorly. Tom physically bullies others and discriminates against their wealth and social status. Tom represents “old money” and how his vast wealth strengthened his arrogance to look down on everyone. When Tom first meets Nick Carraway, he says, “‘Now, don’t think my opinion on these matters is final,’ he seemed to say, ‘just because I’m stronger and more of a man than you are’”
In many literary works, the wealthy are generally depicted as pretentious or cruel and authors tend to portray their personalities through various methods. In his work The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses literary techniques to distinctly characterize the wealthy. Doing so helps him communicate the work’s theme on the soulless nature of the affluent. Fitzgerald conveys his message by incorporating juxtaposition, effective diction, and suiting moods with his characters.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby describes the life of Jay Gatsby in the 1920’s. The novel shares his love story and his loneliness. A major question the author raises is how does wealth impact class structure and society? Fitzgerald answers this question through the distinction between “New rich” and “Old rich” and the significance of East and West Egg.