In Francis Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, there are two characters by the names of Tom Buchanan and George Wilson. Throughout the book, these two particular characters seem to be very different from each other in nearly every way. However, it becomes clear as the story continues that they share some ideas and attitudes in common. Specifically, Tom and George were noteworthy in the way they felt about women, the methods by which they conveyed violence, and how they responded to their wives cheating on them.
In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, characters have very distinct identities that develop throughout the book and many inferences are needed to understand the characters. One example of this is Daisy Buchanan. Daisy Buchanan cares greatly about wealth and is a very careless person. Throughout the novel, many of her decisions are due to her greed and carelessness, even though those decisions may not be the best decisions for her.
“The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, exposes the American Society during the 1920’s. The author displays many heroes and villain throughout the book. The characters in the novel are mostly mixtures of good and evil. Although the book does not clearly delineate the villains or heroes, there is one character who tends to stand out as a villain known as Tom Buchanan.
Tom Buchanan certainly is to an extent hated not only by readers as he is sexist, racist and arrogant, but also by the other characters. Even though Nick Carraway – the narrator – is Daisy’s cousin and Tom used to be his college mate, he always throws hints to the readers portraying the disgust that he feels for his beloved cousin’s husband. Carraway always, from beginning to end of The Great Gatsby, coveys Tom through the use of bleak imagery, such as when he presents him as the owner of “a cruel body.” Through this specific personification, Fitzgerald may be intending to depict how every single part of Buchanan’s body presents evilness and perhaps, may epitomize him as if he were a monster. This sense that this character is even hated by a member of his inner circle, by one of his close friends may be evidential support of this hate that most characters feel towards Buchanan, and this happens to most villains stereotypically.
First, all the people in The Great Gatsby thought that the money they had could bring them the true happiness they wanted. Tom Buchanan was the worst of all though and always thought his money could get them out of any problem. He shows this when he says, "And what's more, I love Daisy too. Once in awhile I go off on a spree and make a fool of myself, but I always come back, and in my heart I love her all the time"(Fitzgerald 140). When he says this, he thinks the cheating he does is fine.
Tom Buchanan is Fitzgerald’s masterpiece of creating a character who portrays the life, and characteristics as an alpha male. Through the vision of character’s surrounding Tom we began to see how his loftier masculinity characterizes him in the story. I begin with a quote from Tom’s wife Daisy that embodies the intimidating masculine characteristics of Tom, “I know you didn’t mean to, but you did do it. That’s what I get for marrying a brute of a man, a great, big, hulking physical specimen of a-----” (Fitzgerald 12). In this quote from Daisy we view a list of characteristics that are associated with Tom’s masculinity.
If his mind is not occupied by his mistress Myrtle, he is drowning in thoughts of Gatsby’s suspected crime-filled life. “Indeed, Tom Buchanan's sources appear most reliable in his characterization of Gatsby's drug store chain as ‘just small change’ compared to his stolen bonds” (Pauly 116). Buchanan is a hypocrite towards Gatsby. He denounces Gatsby’s life actions as being morally evil but Tom’s actions are no different than Gatsby’s in the sense that both men are unfaithful to themselves and their nearest relationships. Tom is competing with Gatsby through deception and treachery, and their dangerous habits wound them
Foremost, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses characters to symbolize the diabolical traits within a person. For instance, Daisy 's husband, Tom represented pride. Tom was a despicable character throughout the book, he was conceited and arrogant to everyone around him. For example, Tom tells Nick that he is more masculine then he is and parades his house around boasting about his accomplishments and wealth (Ch 1. Pg 7).
The Great Gatsby contains a story of two men who acted out in very different ways, all because of anger caused by unfaithfulness and murder. Tom is the kind of man who, when he feels like he’s being picked on unfairly, he attacks back immediately. “Some time toward midnight Tom Buchanan and Mrs. Wilson stood face to face discussing, in impassioned voices, whether Mrs. Wilson had any right to mention Daisy’s name. “Daisy! Daisy!
In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, “The Great Gatsby,” Daisy Buchanan struggles to free herself from the power of both Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby, whom both use their wealth and high standings as a way to dictate power over and impress others. Fitzgerald purposely develops Daisy as selfish and “money hungry” character when she chooses Tom, a rich man, over Gatsby, a poor man (who she was in love with), which establishes her desire for power that she never achieves.
Instead of investing his time in work he invests it in the finer things in life, such as a big house, trips around the world, or playing the sport of gentlemen known as polo. In The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald Tom is one of the main characters. He is married to Daisy Buchanan and is a Yale man. In the novel Tom is has an affair with Myrtle Wilson. She is the wife of George B. Wilson who kills Jay Gatsby for suspecting that he killed and and an affair with his wife.
In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald portrays the themes of love, lust and obsession, through the character of Jay Gatsby, who confuses lust and obsession with love. The character of Jay Gatsby was a wealthy business man, who the author developed as arrogant and tasteless. Gatsby 's love interest, Daisy Buchanan, was a subdued socialite who was married to the dim witted Tom Buchanan. She is the perfect example of how women of her level of society were supposed to act in her day. The circumstances surrounding Gatsby and Daisy 's relationship kept them eternally apart.
In the story The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the majority of the characters are either dishonest, chasing hollow dreams, or plain ignorant. Fitzgerald flaunts the flaws of these characters regularly. Tom Buchanan is a constant example of dishonesty, due to his reoccurring affair with Myrtle Wilson. Although she does not believe it true, Daisy is one of the most ignorant characters.
Fitzgerald in the novel, uses careless individuals who would destroy everything and everyone and yet still manage to retreat back to their money. Daisy Buchanan, the ‘golden girl’ is rather dishonest and deceitful throughout the novel. As she starts having her affair with Gatsby, she creates unrealistic expectations in Gatsby head about their future together. As Gatsby is having drinks at the Buchanan’s, Tom leaves the room and Daisy kisses Gatsby and declares, ‘I don’t care!’ At this point, the audience realizes that Daisy is and always was in love with Gatsby and that she was prepared to leave Tom.
Both tom Buchanan and George Wilson are two vastly different people but are alike in the most unusual ways. They are the only two characters in the book to use violence; both say they “love” Myrtle and both fight for their women only when they are about to lose them. That is where the similarities cease. Tom is the man who cheats on his wife daisy, with George 's wife Myrtle, and then proceeds to slap her when she would not stop speaking Daisy 's name. George, on the other hand, is a passionate and faithful husband to Myrtle and is crushed to learn that she was cheating on him so much so that he assassinates Gatsby whom he thinks was cheating with myrtle and murdered to get rid of the evidence of his adultery.