Character Analysis of The Great Gatsby

Introduction

The great American novel, The Great Gatsby, by Scott F. Fitzgerald presents different characters representing various social aspects in the society. The text is featured in the 1920s shortly after the First World War. Fitzgerald provides a detailed synopsis of the protagonists and antagonists traits features in different themes that complement why they find themselves in certain situations or their behavior. Evident themes and settings that differentiate the characters' properties include social class, love, memory, time, American dream, as well as the role of men and women in the society.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Love Relationships and Their Portrayal

The theme of love was used to portray the interrelationship between different characters throughout the text. The relationships of love affairs, marriage, sexism, and desire make the major drive of the narrations (McCullen, 2007). Fitzgerald depicts at least five major love relationships that define the personalities of the characters. Fitzgerald shows the distinct difference between love and marriage in the marriage relationship between Daisy and Tom as well as the marriage of George and Myrtle, in contrast to the affair between Gatsby and Daisy, Tom and Myrtle, and Nick and Jordan. The love triangles portray the personality characteristics of the characters to show their motive behind the relationship. The marriage relationship between Daisy Buchanan and Tom Buchanan was not based on love. From the memory relayed by Jordan, their best friend, she flashbacks on how Daisy loved Gatsby and married Tom out of the circumstance she was in and Jordan describes Daisy's state during the ceremony when she says: "...without so much as a shiver..." (4. 142) to show that Daisy was not happy to get into that marriage. Further, Jordan flashes back on the infidelity of Tom immediately after their honeymoon: "It was touching to see them together-it made you laugh in a hushed, fascinated way. That was in August. A week after I left Santa Barbara Tom ran into a wagon on the Ventura road one night and ripped a front wheel off his car. The girl who was with him got into the papers too because her arm was broken-she was one of the chambermaids in the Santa Barbara Hotel" (1. 143). From marriage relationship, Daisy was uncertain of the fate of her love with Gatsby who had gone for the WWI so she sought security in the wealthy Tom. When Gatsby returns being rich Daisy starts a love affair with him, but when she is confronted by her husband about the relationship she chooses to remain with her husband after the revelation that Gatsby's wealth was from criminal activities.

The marriage between Myrtle and George shows various forms of struggles. George runs an old garage in a dirty town in The Valley of Ashes, a poverty suburb that lies between the new money estate West Egg, the old money community, East Egg and New York. Myrtle is not comfortable with their situation and enters into a relationship with Tom because of his money. Tom mistreat her and uses her for his sexual desires and does not help her realize her ambitions. Myrtle is later killed by Daisy in a hit and run event at the gas station. George investigates his wife's death and reveals that she was hit by Gatsby car prompting him to kill Gatsby and eventually commit suicide.

The love affair between Gatsby and Daisy shows that they were in love with Gatsby when away and Daisy did not stop loving him. When they were reunited at Nick's house through Jordan, they get back together. Gatsby is possessive of the love he had held for Daisy for the last five years and tries to convince her to leave Tom to be with him. When Daisy is not able to leave Tom, Gatsby is frustrated: "...I waited, and sure enough, in a moment she looked at me with an absolute smirk on her lovely face as if she had asserted her membership in a rather distinguished secret society to which she and Tom belonged...." (118-120). The love affair between Jordan and Nick is temporary because Jordan cannot allow herself to be dependent on any man. Although they are romantically involved and seem happy together their relationship is short-lived. According to Hoover (2013), all these relationships show the strengths and weaknesses of the different characters. For instance, we are able to see how the rust for money places Myrtle in bad fate and ends up being used by Tom who is a ruthless womanizer. Daisy also leads unhappy life besides her unfaithful husband because of her drive for money. Jordan is not able to sustain their relationship with Nick because of her complex personality and independence.

The American Dream and Ambitions

In the theme of the American dream, different characters portray their ambitions and desires that land them into unsuitable situations and frustrations in life. The protagonist character, Gatsby, was born from a poor family and due to his dream and aspirations to change his social status he enters into illegal dealings with Meyer Wolfshelm a renowned gangster to get his wealth. He also changes his name from James Gats to Jay Gatsby to have a new identity. Although, he is able to attain his financial independence and owns a big mansion in the new money town West Egg he is frustrated because he cannot get the woman he wants for himself. Gatsby's individuality and self-centered traits re portrayed by the way he pursues his dreams and abandons his family to assume a wealthy life. He is also not ready to get rejected by Daisy over another man because he wants everything he desires without question. His ambitious life is cut short when George alleges that he was his wife's lover and kills him. Fitzgerald portrays Myrtle as a socialite who maintains a ruthless affair with Tom because of his money she fails to achieve her goals when she is hit by Daisy with Gatsby's car under mysterious circumstances. Her ambitions are fruitless and she does not gain from the infidelity she pegged her ambitions on. The narrator says: "Although Myrtle was taken with George at first, she overestimated his money and "breeding" and found herself married to a mechanic and living over a garage in Queens, a situation she's apparently unhappy with (112).

Social Class and Gender Roles

The themes of social classism and gender are employed by Fitzgerald to show how the different personalities of the characters were categorized due to their social status (Batchelor, 2013). The society during the time of the text, the 1920s, shows the distinct definition of the responsibilities and positions held by certain characters based on their gender and social class. The roles presumed by women showed that they were dependable on men and they were not entitled to air their point of views. Men were seen to think on their behalf. For instance, Daisy is fully dependent of a man to take care of her, although she is said to beautify and a perfect golden girl she is not independent on her own life. She lets herself be manipulated by men especially her husband, Tom, and her lover, Gatsby. Myrtle is a gold digger who throws herself at the disposal of men to get what she wants. Her infidelity causes her misery whereas she hopes it's her gateway from poverty. Jordan presents a contrast of the women of this age, she is very independent and does not need men to achieve her dreams. She chooses her own paths in life and does not need a man to succeed thus, she breaks up with Nick to show her strength and distaste on the conducts of Daisy and Myrtle.

The male characters in the text portray dominance over women. Nick the narrator of this story is portrayed to be proud and is comfortable with his mid class status of life. He is very intolerant and does not judge others but prefers to observe from a distance-preserving his opinion to himself. Tom Buchanan is a wealthy and selfish person. He uses his money at the expense of other people, he is very crude, violent, rude and disrespectful. Tom is also very keen and protective of his wife, despite their relationship not being based on the love he does not want her to end up with a criminal. Gatsby portrays the true image of the role of man and the contrast of social classes. During this period there are three classes; high class, mid-class, and the lower class. Gatsby is brought up in the low-class family and wants to transform his fate by leaving his hometown and keeps his past secretive until much later when Nick and Tom try to find out the mystery about him. He is selfish and wants to get everything he desires and this ambition leads him to his grave.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the text The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald presents various life themes that characterize the properties and personality presumed by the characters. Their inspirations and aspirations and interactions with others in the story subject the theme of the work to relay clear perspectives of the characters traits based in the themes of love, dreams, gender roles, social status as well as memory. Therefore, using themes and settings to explain the personalities of the characters brings better synopsis of the plot.

References

Batchelor, Bob (2013). Gatsby: The Cultural History of the Great American Novel. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 978-0810891951.

Fitzgerald, F. Scott (1997). Tredell, Nicolas, ed. F. Scott Fitzgerald: The Great Gatsby. Columbia Critical Guides. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 184. ISBN 9780231115353

Fitzgerald, F. Scott. 1995. The Great Gatsby. New York: Scribner Paperback Fiction.

Hoover, Bob (2013). The Great Gatsby' still challenges the myth of American Dream. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

McCullen, Bonnie Shannon (2007). "This Tremendous Detail: The Oxford Stone in the House of Gatsby". In Assadi, Jamal; Freedman, William. A Distant Drummer: Foreign Perspectives on F. Scott Fitzgerald. New York: Peter Lang. pp. 11-20. ISBN 978-0820488516.