The Great Gatsby and the Struggle for Wealth, Purity,

and the Pursuit of Identity

By

Shani Jeanpierre

A Thesis Submitted to the Department of English

California State University Bakersfield

In partial Fulfillment for the Degree of

Masters of English

Winter 2013

Copyright

By

Shani Jeanpierre

2013

The Great Gatsby and the Struggle for Wealth, Purity, and the Pursuit of Identity

By: Shani Jeanpierre

This thesis has been accepted on behalf of the Department of English by their supervisory committee:

Signature of Reader #1

Signature of Reader #2

Shani Jeanpierre 1

The Great Gatsby and the Struggle for Wealth, Purity, and the Pursuit of Identity

Introduction:

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is a novel with a timeless story that is read

by many for both scholastic benefits and for pleasure. It contains a story of romance, lies,

betrayal, and murder. There is, however, more to the story than what many see on the

surface. Many of the characters in the story obsess over identity or struggle against the

identity their society gives them. It is a subject that many of the novel’s readers can relate

to. Fitzgerald may have written the novel the way he did because of his own struggle with

his own less than desirable identity given to him by the society he lived in.

Many students, instructors, and critics have analyzed the subjects of wealth,

materialism, greed, and even racism within F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, but

few have considered what role these subjects play in one’s identity. It seems most of the

characters in the novel are struggling to either gain their own desired identity or fight

against the identity society has given them. Because Gatsby is from a poor background,

he is not seen as someone good enough for Daisy to marry. To not have wealth is to not

be worthy of marriage or commitment. Having wealth means being respected and having

the feeling of being pure or powerful, but simply being rich does not give one acceptance

within the pure community. One must come from a wealthy background as well. Gatsby

fights his impure identity by lying about his background and obtaining wealth by

whatever means necessary.. Tom struggles with an identity obtained from his college

years that follows him through his adulthood, so he tries to obtain and maintain an

identity of Nordic purity. Tom believes that the Nordic label will help him fight against

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his polo player identity and project an image of superiority over anyone who may

threaten his marriage or masculinity. He is also strongly influenced by a book entitled

The Rise of the Colored Empires that suggests the people of the Nordic race are

responsible for the advancement of civilization. Both Gatsby and he create the identity of

a pure and flawless woman for Daisy that she cannot live up to, so she must both struggle

with this identity and use it to her advantage to get what she needs from both men for as

long as she can. Many critics have also pointed out what it means to be a feminine

woman and a masculine man in the society of which The Great Gatsby takes place as

well as which characters seem to fit in with their given gender roles and which characters

seem to struggle with fitting the standards of these roles. Few, however, have discussed

what acting outside of one’s gender role means to the identities of the characters in the

novel or how it could possibly affect their lives or place in society.

Critics have been known to connect Fitzgerald’s personal life with the characters

and events in Gatsby. Once a reader does research on Fitzgerald’s life, obvious

connections can be made such as the attitudes and names that some of his characters

share with people who made an impact in his life, but few have considered what

Fitzgerald’s motivations behind these parallels were and what purpose they serve. People

often see similarities between Fitzgerald and the characters of Gatsby, Nick, and

sometimes even Tom, but they do not often consider why he would create these parallels

or what their significance is. The same can be said for the similarities between significant

figures in his life, such as the women he loved, and different characters in the novel.

After closely examining both his life and the connections that are often found in Gatsby

and paying close attention to how the people and events are represented in his novel, it

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seems that Fitzgerald’s purpose in creating such connections was to criticize the

materialistic society and attitudes of Americans of the 1920’s.

Part 1: The Importance of Appearance and Strong Performance in The Great

Gatsby

Gatsby goes to great lengths to make those in Daisy’s social circle comfortable

and accepting of him . He even goes as far as replacing the evening gown of one of his

houseguests when she tears it on one of his chairs. It seems, however, that no matter what

he does, he is never fully accepted by Daisy’s peers. The woman whose gown is replaced

explains that she feels that there is “something funny about a fellow that’ll do a thing like

that” and that such a gesture means that he “doesn’t want any trouble with anybody”

(Fitzgerald 43). This is a rather odd reaction to such a deed that illustrates respect and

kindness. This leads readers to wonder what about Gatsby prevents his wealthy peers

from accepting him as one of their own. They have no problem indulging in his wealth by

enjoying his parties, but they all seem to feel that there is something about him that sets

him apart from the rest of them. Because there is so much mystery surrounding his true

identity, many cannot identify what about him makes him so different. Many critics have

speculated that his peers’ unwillingness to accept him within their social circle is due to

underlying racism.

Nick, the narrator, focuses a great deal of his attention on Gatsby’s appearance.

Although Gatsby is white, Nick often describes him as “tan,” “dark,” or “brown.” This is

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a great contrast to his white surroundings. Daisy is described as white and so are Jordan,

Nick, and Tom. Nick also focuses a lot of his attention on their white clothing and the

whiteness of the houses in East Egg. The purpose of this is to emphasize that although

Gatsby is able to fool most of the wealthy whites into believing he is a wealthy

businessman, he will never fully fit in with his white surroundings. While many critics

agree that Gatsby’s purpose in creating the façade of a wealthy and respectable

businessman is to win Daisy’s affection, Peter L. Hays , author of "Oxymoron in The

Great Gatsby", suggests that the situation is reversed and that by having Daisy as a wife

he will gain the respect he desires and he just needs the wealth to attract her (Hays 319).

In the novel, Daisy is described to be a “grail” (Fitzgerald 149). This sparks thoughts of

the Holy Grail and its representation of divinity and purity. Daisy is viewed as so perfect

that people such as Gatsby and Tom begin to see her less as a human being as the story

progresses. Hays believes that Gatsby’s goal to convince Daisy to leave Tom for him has

to do with his desire to be respected by all those around him. If someone as pure as Daisy

loves Gatsby, then everyone else will too. Hays also believes that his desire to be seen as

pure to those around him is a result of underlying racism. If Gatsby is not wealthy, he is

no better than ethnic minorities (Hays 323).

Walter Benn Michaels, an American literary theorist, explains in his book Our

America: Nativism, Modernism and Pluralism that it is not only a wealthy lifestyle

Gatsby must obtain in order to win Daisy, but also a change of his past and background.

Michaels suggests that in order to be respected one must have good “breeding” (Michaels

26). This can be linked with Hays’s opinion that the desire to be wealthy is due to

underlying racism. Michaels, however, goes on to suggest that being wealthy alone does

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not change a person’s background. A “brown, black, red, [or] yellow,” person can never

gain any respect with money alone. Because Gatsby is brown, he attempts to change his

background to one he feels fits the profile of the kind of person people like Tom would

view as a true Nordic. Michaels suggests that Gatsby feels he needs to convince those

around him he attended Oxford University and that he has always been a man whom

Daisy could fall in love with. If he can fool people into believing that this is his true

background, he will gain a place among the Nordics, thus giving himself a secure place in

society.

When Tom explains to Nick, Jordan, and Daisy the importance of preserving the

Nordic culture and influence in America, Gatsby has not yet been introduced to the

reader. Michaels’s argument seems to be based off the assumption that Gatsby has read

The Rise of the Colored Empires just as Tom has. Gatsby’s desire to appear respectable

like the wealthy whites is more likely to do with the white influence surrounding him.

A.E. Elmore, author of “Color and Cosmos in The Great Gatsby,” points out that the

color white “makes more appearances in the novel than any other single color, and

something like three of every four are applied to East Egg or characters from East Egg,

especially to Daisy” (Elmore 428). East Egg is where the people with the wealthiest and

most luxurious lifestyles live while West Egg is where those who are “less fashionable”

live (Fitzgerald 4). Daisy, Tom, and Jordan live in East Egg while Gatsby and Nick live

in West Egg.

Elmore also points out the clothing worn by all the characters. Daisy, Tom,

Jordan, and Nick are all known to wear white, while Gatsby is mostly known to wear

suits of different colors with the exception of his reunion with Daisy when he wears a

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white suit. Elmore explains that the reason Nick is able to get away with wearing white

like the Buchanans is because he is related to Daisy. He has a stronger connection with

Daisy despite living in West Egg, because they are family. Gatsby wears white only as an

attempt to create a similar bond with Daisy. This may also be the reason Gatsby chooses

to have his house built in West Egg. He knows that he will never be able to fully be

accepted with the fashionable white residents of East Egg. Another explanation of his

choice to live in West Egg is his knowledge that he will stand out from the rest of its

residents. If he were to have his large and luxurious house built in East Egg, it would

have most likely blended in with the rest of the residents making it harder to stand out to

Daisy.

The four main characters, as Jordan points out during the climactic confrontation

between Tom and Gatsby, are all white (Fitzgerald 130). This statement occurs after Tom

suggests that Gatsby’s affair with Daisy is no different than “intermarriage between black

and white” (129). This raises the question as to why Gatsby seems to always be distanced

from the rest of the whites. In his article "Notes on F. Scott Fitzgerald and the Passing of

the Great Race." critic M. Gildley states that Bates English professor Lewis A. Turlish

believes The Rise of the Colored Empires and its author, Goddard, are based on a real

book entitled The Rising Tide of Color written by Theodore Lothrop Stoddard. According

to Michaels, Stoddard explains in his book “non-Nordic whites have their own role to

play in the rise of the colored empires” (Michaels 25). Gatsby’s problem is not that he is

not white, but that he is not white enough to Tom and Goddard/Stoddard’s standards. To

Tom, a very wealthy and influential man in his community, one must be Nordic in order

to be pure.

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Tom does not base his conclusions about Gatsby’s ethnic background on any

evidence. He rather seems to base them on Gatsby’s criminal background. Near the

beginning of the novel, Tom gives Jordan, Daisy, and Nick a brief summary of

Goddard’s views. He follows this summary by telling them that they are all Nordics, but

he does not even attempt to justify why all of them are Nordics. It is just a title that he

likes for all of them, because of the way Goddard promotes it. Anything having to do

with the Nordic culture is deemed pure. For Tom, Gatsby cannot be Nordic not only

because he is not wealthy, but because he has also been involved in criminal activity.

These characteristics are not associated with purity, so Tom refuses to allow any

association between Gatsby and the Nordic race.

Tom carries himself in a way that suggests that he is confident in himself, but he

too struggles with the identity others give him. He was given the title of the athlete during

his college years, and this label follows him all through adulthood. This label, however, is

not one he carries proudly. When he attends one of Gatsby’s parties Nick explains how

everyone knows him by the title “the polo player.” Tom denies this title, but Nick states

that he “[remains] the polo player for the rest of the evening” (Fitzgerald 105). Nick also

notes that Gatsby gets some sort of satisfaction from this label. Tom’s racist views are a

result of his struggle against the title he has been given. He does not want to be known as

the athlete or the polo player anymore, so he decides to give himself the new title of

Nordic. When Tom explains to Nick and the others the importance of preserving the

Nordic influence in American culture, Nick states that there is “something pathetic in his

concentration, as if his complacency, more acute than of old, was not enough to him

anymore” (13). This statement of Nick’s suggests that Tom is bored with where he is in

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life. He wants some excitement and believes that becoming a follower of Goddard’s ideas

will give him the excitement he craves. Even Daisy makes a joke out of Tom’s comments

on race stating that he is “getting very profound,” and going on to explain that “he reads

deep books with long words in them” (13). Tom does not like Gatsby not only because

he threatens his marriage, but also because he threatens his new title. He does not want

Gatsby to be seen as Nordic, because Gatsby is a threat to the pure image of the Nordic

race.

Tom’s reasoning for wanting to keep Daisy as a wife is debatable. Some may

argue that Tom does truly love Daisy and that his affair with Myrtle is fueled by lust, but

certain things in the text suggest otherwise. During Nick’s first visit to the Buchanans’s

home, Daisy explains to him that Tom was “God knows where” when she gave birth to

their child and that when she had awakened an hour after the birth she had an “utterly

abandoned feeling” (Fitzgerald 16). Although Tom is physically abusive towards Myrtle,

readers may notice she has a much gentler and much more affectionate view of him.

When readers are first introduced to Tom, he presents himself as very aggressive as he

talks about his belief in the superiority of the Nordic race with much passion. Readers

also see a hint of aggression with Daisy when she shows Nick her injured finger and

explains that Tom did it. She goes on to call him “hulking” and a “brute” (12). This is yet

another title that Tom rejects stating that he hates the word “hulking.” Myrtle has a much

more romantic image of Tom which is illustrated when she describes her first encounter

with him on a train. She explains that the two of them would catch themselves staring at

one another as they sat across from each other, and goes on to explain that when he made

the first move and led her into a taxi she told herself that “[she] can’t live forever” (35).

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Shortly after she tells this story, Tom and she have a dispute. Tom becomes upset by

Myrtle mentioning Daisy’s name and strikes her across the face and breaks her nose.

While it is never explained to the readers why Tom injured Daisy’s finger, they can

clearly see that Daisy’s name coming from Myrtle’s lips sparks outrage within him. This

is most likely because he does not like being reminded that he would rather be with a

woman who is not Nordic due to her financial standing. From this incident it becomes

evident that Tom feels insecure about his hypocrisy.

Tom views Daisy as more of a prize than a romantic partner. Hays argues that

Gatsby wishes to win Daisy’s affection in order to appear just as pure as she is, but it

really seems to be Tom who wants to keep her for the purpose of purifying his image.

When readers look at the situation this way, it becomes obvious that Tom cares more

about saving his marriage than he does about the relationship itself. The reason he does

not simply leave Daisy for Myrtle is similar to the reason Daisy won’t leave Tom for

Gatsby. Myrtle is the poor wife of a car salesman and is not of “good breeding.” She is

not Tom’s definition of Nordic, but she is the woman whom he would obviously rather be

with. This is why he is angered when Myrtle tauntingly chants Daisy’s name. It serves as

a reminder of the woman he does not love but must stay with in order to preserve his pure

identity. Tom is good at controlling the women in his life, but he cannot control life itself

or the economic standing of the people in his life.

Many who read the novel view Daisy as a deceitful and manipulative character,

because she leads Gatsby to believe that she will leave Tom before she assists Tom in

framing him for the murder of Myrtle. These readers, however, do not take into

consideration that Daisy is a victim of her own identity crisis. Critics such as Leland S.

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Person Jr., author of "'Herstory' and Daisy Buchanan," have argued that Daisy is simply

struggling with how others view her. Person suggests that Daisy is practically trapped

between the cheating and abusive Tom and the more romantic Gatsby who creates his

own identity for her that is a beautiful and flawless woman who she cannot live up to

(Person 250-251). This is a good observation, but it seems that both Tom and Gatsby

create this image for her. This identity that she has not chosen for herself is the only thing

she has, and she does not have the luxury of choosing her own identity like they do. The

image given to Daisy is almost inhuman. Both men fail to consider that she is not perfect

like they believe her to be. As stated before, this image is the only characteristic keeping

Tom from leaving her, but it is also the image that Gatsby is in love with. Because of this,

one can almost say that Daisy is not permitted by the expectations of her two lovers (and

the society they live in) to be anything less than what she is portrayed by others to be.

Daisy is a very outgoing and popular woman, but she lives in a society and time

period that allows her to have very little self-worth. She has very little power over what

goes on in her life, and she most certainly has no control over her husband’s behavior.

Daisy can only continue to appear charming to whoever will give her what she needs.

When Daisy recounts the birth of her daughter to Nick, she recalls telling the doctor that

the best thing a girl can be is “a beautiful little fool” (Fitzgerald 16). Tony McAdams,

professor of Management at the University of Northern Iowa and researcher of ethics,

suggests in his article “The Great Gatsby as Business Ethics Inquiry” that this

demonstrates the role of many women during the 1920’s. He goes on to suggest that this

particular statement of Daisy’s is directly based off of Fitzgerald’s wife, Zelda.

McAdams then states that Fitzgerald “regularly rebuked Zelda for what he took to be her

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empty values and underachievement” (McAdams 656). Fitzgerald underestimated his

wife in regards to her intelligence and most likely viewed her simply as an attractive

woman who was unable to develop her own thoughts and ideas. With this in mind, it is

clear that not only is Daisy meant to parallel Fitzgerald’s real life wife or that Daisy is a

victim of an identity crisis, but it is also very clear that she is a victim of her time period

and the general ideas of feminine behavior of the period. As a woman, she has very little

power to make her own decisions about her own life or to be taken seriously.

Daisy can only use her given identities to her advantage. Both Gatsby and Tom

have something to offer her. Gatsby offers her romantic affection that Tom does not

while Tom offers her financial security that Gatsby cannot provide for her. The best

Daisy can do is play the role of perfection that both of them have given her in order to get

what she needs from both of them for as long as she can. Daisy chooses to stay with Tom

in the end for reasons that are similar to why Tom never leaves Daisy for Myrtle. Daisy’s

reason, however, is slightly less shallow than Tom’s. While Tom’s reason is because he

wishes to uphold his image of purity, Daisy’s reason for not leaving Tom for Gatsby is to

remain secure in a stable financial position. Leaving Tom would mean leaving a life in

which there is no economic worry.

Daisy’s biggest threat is Tom’s fondness of Goddard’s ideas of Nordic purity.

When Tom gives her the Nordic label in the beginning, Nick notes that he almost seems a

little hesitant. There are different ways to interpret this particular part of the story.

Clayton’s film adaptation illustrates his pause with a servant interrupting Tom’s dialogue

to inform him of a phone call. This, however, seems to take away from the importance of

his hesitance. His reluctance to label Daisy Nordic seems to be a result of him

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questioning whether or not she really is Nordic. This means that Daisy needs to work

extra hard to uphold the image of purity in order to motivate Tom to stay. Daisy seems

well aware of Tom’s affair and is miserable in her marriage, but if Tom leaves her she

loses all of her financial security and possibly even her daughter. After Tom exposes

Gatsby as a fraud, Daisy chooses to stay with him because he is the safer choice.

Choosing Gatsby with the new knowledge of his life would mean choosing a life of the

unknown. She decides that a more pleasurable life of romance is not worth losing her

security and daughter.

Critics such as John F. Callahan describe Daisy’s decision to be one motivated by

selfishness and materialism. Although he acknowledges that during the confrontation

between Tom and Gatsby that both of them start to view Daisy as even less of a person

and more as a piece of property that they both want ownership of, he suggests that her

desire for a secure life clouds her judgement and leads her back into a miserable and

abusive marriage (Callahan 382). Readers may agree that her decision to stay wealthy

rather than choose a life that possibly contains more happiness is foolish, but this foolish

decision is the only one that has clear consequences. The consequences Daisy will face

by staying with Tom are a marriage with little romance, a life that involves her daughter’s

presence, and economic stability. The consequences of staying with Gatsby are uncertain.

She knows that Gatsby will most likely give her the romantic attention she does not get

from Tom, but she can’t be sure where she will stand economically or socially with him

or if she will be able to see her daughter again. Daisy most likely understands that she is

choosing a life without romance but feels that romance is not enough to get by in a

materialistic world.

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Daisy is often depicted by both readers and critics to be greedy and materialistic.

After closer reading, however, this seems like an unfair label for her. Daisy’s final

decision is partly influenced by greed, but if the decision she makes at the end of the

novel was fully made out of greediness, readers may have been given a different ending.

If Daisy’s number one priority is having as much wealth and material items as she

possibly can, it does not matter how these items are obtained. Gatsby’s criminal

background would make no difference to her as long as he continues to do what he needs

to in order to maintain his wealth. Nothing in the story indicates any guarantee that he

can or will. This is part of her reason for staying with Tom. Nothing in the story indicates

a possibility of Tom losing his wealth, and living with Gatsby would mean constantly

worrying that they could lose everything. Daisy’s decision is often seen as one fueled by

greed alone, but making a different decision would mean taking the chance of losing her

wealth. If Daisy loses her wealth, she loses her pure identity.

Daisy’s demonstration of the little power she has as a beautiful fool is in the

murder of Myrtle. By murdering her with Gatsby’s car, Daisy creates a compromise with

Tom. She has rid herself of the threat to her marriage and security and has left open the

opportunity for Tom to rid himself of the threat to his pure image. Daisy possibly truly

loves Gatsby, but love is not enough for her. Daisy will not feel protected and secure with

love, and love will not protect her daughter from Tom’s “hulking” personality. Although

murder is an irredeemable act, Daisy should not be considered an antagonist. She is quite

aware that even though Gatsby is exposed as a fraud, he will most likely never give up

pursuing her, and as long as he is around, he will always serve as a threat to Tom. The

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more Tom is threatened the more likely he is to continue to see Myrtle or other women.

Murder is the only way Daisy feels she can successfully terminate all threats.

Readers may notice a similarity between Myrtle’s and Gatsby’s deaths. Gatsby’s

death is the result of blind rage and jealousy for destroying Wilson’s relationship with his

wife. Myrtle’s death is the result of her threatening not only Daisy’s marriage with Tom,

but also her financial and social standing in society. Myrtle often gets overlooked by

readers, but Myrtle is not much different from Gatsby or even Daisy. Myrtle comes from

a background of which there is no wealth or luxury just as Gatsby does, and she feels

trapped in a marriage in which she has very little romantic attraction for her spouse. With

the help of Tom’s money and the apartment he buys her to carry out her affair with him,

Myrtle can pretend to be something more just as Gatsby could pretend to be a successful

businessman and demonstrate his fake success by throwing extravagant parties. During

the small party Nick attends at Myrtle’s apartment, he watches Myrtle show off an

expensive party dress to her admiring friends. With Tom’s money, she can pretend that

she is someone as pure as a woman like Daisy. Tom provides her with an illusion that

makes her feel like she is married to him just as Gatsby feels like he is married to Daisy.

The novel also seems to confront notions of masculinity and femininity. Frances

Kerr, author of "Feeling ‘Half Feminine’: Modernism and the Politics of Emotion in The

Great Gatsby,” points out that Fitzgerald’s personal feelings towards the female gender

were that women were the weaker and more emotionally unstable gender (Kerr 406). If

readers consider what Fitzgerald believes to be feminine characteristics, they can

conclude that the narrator, Nick, fears that his emotions must be kept under control in

order to appear masculine, since uncontrolled emotions are a personality trait associated

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with women. Kerr believes that the purpose of hiding his feminine qualities is to protect

himself from aggressive hyper-masculine men such as Tom.

Readers may see signs of Nick’s homosexuality within his descriptions of other

characters in the novel. They may notice Nick’s very descriptive illustration of Tom

when first introducing him to the reader:

He was a sturdy straw-haired man of thirty with a rather hard mouth and a supercilious manner. Two shining arrogant eyes had established dominance over his face and gave him the appearance of always leaning aggressively forward. Not even the effeminate swank of his riding clothes could hide the enormous power of that body—he seemed to fill those glistening boots until he strained the top lacing, and you could see a great pack of muscle shifting when his shoulder moved under his think coat. It was a body capable of enormous leverage—a cruel body (Fitzgerald 7).

Nick is vividly descriptive of Tom’s masculine physical features, such as his eyes that

“establish dominance” and his “cruel body” of which the “pack of muscle” is visible

under his clothing. Readers may also consider the way Nick describes Gatsby’s smile

upon first meeting him:

It was one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced—or seemed to face—the whole external world for an instant, and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself, and assured you that it had precisely the impression of you that, at your best, you hoped to convey (48).

Nick seems to be immediately attracted to Gatsby, because Gatsby’s smile gives him a

feeling of comfort. Soon after this first encounter, Nick finds himself staring at Gatsby

and noticing that his “tanned skin [is] drawn attractively tight on his face and his short

hair [looks] as though it [is] trimmed every day” (50). Nick also points out that he can see

“nothing sinister about him” (50). Nick’s detailed descriptions about Gatsby’s appearance

and how his smile makes him feel is a sign of not only a physical attraction but an

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emotional attraction as well. This is not to say that Nick would not partake in a loveless

and strictly physical affair with a man, and such a relationship is hinted at near the

beginning of the novel. Readers may notice a significant contrast in the way he describes

the women he meets compared to the men. When he first introduces readers to Jordan and

Daisy, he describes them as “two young women” whose dresses are “rippling and

fluttering as if they had just been blown back in after a short flight around the house” (8).

Nick sees no distinguishing differences between the two women. Nick’s first impression

of Jordan is far from pleasant. Their first encounter seems very awkward:

She was extended full length at her end of the divan, completely motionless, and with her chin raised a little, as if she were balancing something on it which was quite likely to fall. If she saw me out of the corner of her eyes she gave no hint of it—indeed, I was almost surprised into murmuring an apology for having disturbed her by coming in (8).

Jordan, whom Nick participates in a brief affair with, is introduced in a way that does not

encourage readers to think highly of her like his description of Gatsby encourages readers

to think positively of him. The same can be said for his description of Myrtle. Myrtle is

described as a woman in her “middle thirties, and faintly stout” but Nick also notes that

she is able to “[carry] her surplus flesh sensuously as some women can” (25). He also

points out that her face has “no facet or gleam of beauty” (25). If Nick is a heterosexual

man, this description of the woman Tom, a very powerful and wealthy man, has chosen

to be his mistress seems very peculiar. Shortly after this, Nick is introduced to Myrtle’s

sister who she claims is “said to be very beautiful by people who ought to know” (28). It

is obvious that Myrtle is trying to set Nick up with her sister, Catherine, who Nick also

describes less than desirably for the reader:

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The sister, Catherine, was a slender, worldly girl of about thirty, with a solid, sticky bob of red hair, and a complexion powdered milky white. Her eyebrows had ben plucked and then drawn on again at a more rakish angle but the efforts of nature toward the restoration of the old alignment gave a blurred air to her face.

When she moved about there was an incessant clicking as innumerable pottery bracelets jingled up and down upon her arms (30).

Although Myrtle claims that Catherine is considered to be attractive by people who

readers can only assume are of a similar status as Tom, Nick seems to view her as

someone who is not only unattractive but also fake. Nick’s description of Mr. Mckee, a

photographer attending the same party, is a sharp contrast to Catherine’s:

Mr. McKee was a pale, feminine man from the flat below. He had just shaved, for there was a white spot of lather on his cheekbone, and he was most respectful in his greeting to every one in the room. (30).

Readers can see from this description that Mr. McKee is both attractive and real. He is

not without flaws, but unlike Catherine’s imperfections, they are not intentional, and they

are a sign of being less than perfect. Catherine’s imperfections, such as her plucked

eyebrows, are meant to fool those she meets into believing that she is physically flawless

while Mr. McKee’s “white spot of lather” illustrates that he is concerned about his

appearance but not so much concerned with fooling anyone. Nick views him as honest

and trustworthy. This is also demonstrated when Nick describes him to be respectful.

Readers may also notice some subtle dislike for Mr. McKee’s wife who he describes as

“shrill, languid, handsome, and horrible” when she informs him that he has photographed

her “a hundred and twenty-seven times, since they had been married” (30). Even though

Nick finds her to be “handsome,” he views her as someone who is concerned with her

own perfection rather than the emotional needs of those around her, including her

husband. From these descriptions, readers may get the impression that Nick views most

Shani Jeanpierre 18

of the women others would consider to be attractive to be quite unattractive and self-

absorbed while he finds most of the men (with the exception of Tom who he only seems

to find physically attractive) he meets to be dependable and ideal companions who are

more trustworthy to be around.

Gatsby is often criticized for his reckless choices and decision-making, but with

closer reading one can see that Nick is almost just as reckless as Gatsby is. Kerr believes

that some of Nick’s behavior matches that of a conflicted man hiding his true sexuality.

She first focuses on what seems to be an attraction between Nick and Mr. McKee. Kerr

believes that the attraction the two have for one another is illustrated during an awkward

scene in an elevator during Myrtle’s party. McKee, according to Kerr, is attempting to

make an advance towards Nick by inviting him to lunch. She believes that word choice

plays a role in rousing this suspicion, suggesting that the word “groaned” used to describe

the sound of the elevator moving towards the ground level implies a desire for sexual

satisfaction (Kerr 414). There is an awkward and sudden change of scenery towards the

end of the chapter when Nick transports the reader from the elevator to Mr. McKee’s

bedroom where he is “clad in his underwear” and sitting on his bed (Fitzgerald 37). The

reader is not told what else happens in the bedroom, because Nick changes the scenery

again just as suddenly before anything else takes place. The chapter closes with Nick at

the train station waiting for the train to take him home. Kerr suggests that it is easy for

the reader to assume that the two engage in some sort of homosexual activity within the

time he spends in Mr. Mckee’s bedroom.

Nick never gets as close to Gatsby as he does to Mr. McKee, but there are subtle

hints throughout the book that Nick has homosexual feelings towards him. Gatsby,

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according to Kerr, possesses the kind of feminine qualities that Nick finds attractive in a

man. She goes on to explain what it means to be masculine in 1920’s America.

According to her, a “powerful man maintains his social position by denying his own

emotional interior while penetrating the emotional secrets of other men. To lose control

of one’s woman or one’s inner emotions in the presence of others is to risk losing one’s

masculinity” (Kerr 420). Tom realizes that he is close to losing control of both his women

when he makes a stop at the home and gas station of George Wilson, Myrtle’s husband,

to get some gas on the way to the hotel in the city. Nick explains that after viewing

Myrtle watching them from the window mistaking Jordan to be his wife that he could tell

that “Tom was feeling the hot whips of panic. His wife and mistress, until an hour ago

secure and inviolate, were slipping precipitately from his control” (Fitzgerald 125). Tom

also demonstrates a slight loss of control with his emotions when he steps “on the

accelerator with the double purpose of overtaking Daisy and leaving Wilson behind”

(125). This demonstrates Tom’s realization that, in order to keep Daisy, he is most likely

going to have to end his affair with Myrtle. He can no longer control both of them, so he

must choose one. If he chooses to continue an affair with Myrtle, his pure wife will leave

him for an impure man. The only way he can keep Daisy is to end his affair with an

impure woman and expose the man who is threatening his marriage as someone who is

also impure.

Tom is able to prove his masculinity during the confrontation he has with Gatsby.

He reveals that Gatsby’s money was obtained through criminal acts and regains control

of Daisy who at first seems to be close to leaving him. Tom also informs Gatsby that

“[There are] things between Daisy and [him] that [Gatsby will] never know, things that

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neither of [them] can ever forget” (Fitzgerald 132). Nick explains that this statement

seems “to bite physically into Gatsby” (132). This suggests that Tom’s statement is an

attack against Gatsby’s masculinity. Gatsby fails to get Daisy to do as she suggested she

wants to do and leave Tom, and he cannot get her to tell him that she never loved him. He

fails to control Daisy and attack Tom’s masculinity. Gatsby is, therefore, not adequately

masculine enough by 1920’s American standards, but possesses just the right amount of

femininity that Nick likes. What is ironic about Tom’s establishment of his masculinity is

that almost everything he says and does is fueled by emotion and meant to awaken

feelings of disgust and fear within the other characters. He equates Gatsby to a black man

by comparing his affair with Daisy to be similar if not the same as interracial marriage.

He even goes so far as to tell Gatsby that the only reason he should ever be around his

house is to drop off groceries. This comment is both degrading to Gatsby and to black

men and is meant to make the other characters uncomfortable around him. Tom’s racism

is a result of his insecurity, so in a way Tom is using this seemingly feminine emotion in

order to manipulate the emotions of others. Readers may also notice that Tom speaks to

Daisy with what Nick calls a “husky tenderness” when Daisy tells him that she never

loved him (132). This is effective, since Daisy retracts her statement and confesses that

she loves both Gatsby and him before choosing to stay with Tom in the end. Tom,

ironically, establishes his masculinity by briefly loosing control of his emotions while

manipulating the emotions of others at the same time. Fitzgerald, perhaps, wrote this

particular situation this way in order to point out some inconsistencies he felt were

present in his society’s standards for gender roles.

Shani Jeanpierre 21

Nick also seems to be ruled by his emotions. Despite suspecting that Gatsby is

being dishonest about his background and how he obtained his wealth, Nick helps him to

get close to Daisy in whatever way he can. Some may speculate that this is due to the

attraction he has towards Gatsby. Nick most likely views Gatsby’s willingness to do

everything he can to attract wealth and power to obtain Daisy’s affection as emotionally

reckless, so he views him as being a feminine man. Kerr also points out that “once

George Wilson murders Gatsby, Nick’s language swells to lyrical heights as he

transforms the devastated con man with dreams into a mythic American hero” (Kerr 421).

This is unlike the rest of the characters, who only seem to see Gatsby as a lying fraud by

the end of the novel. Nick has much admiration for Gatsby and tells him during their last

meeting that he is better than all of those he tries to impress.

Throughout most of the novel Nick’s tone is critical with Gatsby. This is

illustrated when Gatsby gives him a false background. Nick states that he “suspected that

he was pulling [his] leg,” and when Gatsby claims that he “lived like a young rajah in all

the capitals of Europe” after inheriting wealth from his deceased family Nick states that

with “an effort [he] managed to restrain [his] incredulous laughter” (Fitzgerald 65).

Nick’s willingness to help Gatsby win Daisy’s affection is irresponsible, because despite

suspecting that he is being dishonest about his background, he does everything he can to

help Gatsby be reunited and happy with Daisy. This behavior of Nick’s is emotionally

reckless because by helping him he is risking his own conceived identity being revealed

as something false. If a masculine man like Tom were to question his motivation in

helping Gatsby, Nick’s emotional attraction to Gatsby would be revealed. Such a

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connection can be seen as something feminine, and if Nick does not fulfill his masculine

role, Tom may no longer accept him in his wealthy social circle.

One of the characteristics that seems to attract Nick to Gatsby is the fact that he

knows he is not the person he claims to be. He is not so different from him, because the

reality is that he is another outcast living among the wealthy. Gatsby, however, is able to

convince most of the wealthy otherwise. Ironically, the wealthy Tom is more accepting of

Nick than he is of Gatsby. This, perhaps, goes back to Michaels’s observations about race

and the perceived characteristics of the Nordic culture. Although Nick is not wealthy,

Tom views him as being Nordic, because he is related to Daisy who he views as pure.

Tom’s requirements for men to be considered Nordic are different than his expectations

of Nordic women. For a woman to be considered Nordic, she must be from a wealthy and

a desirable background. Men must exhibit masculine traits and not pose a threat to him. A

man does not necessarily have to be wealthy or come from an acceptable background,

although in Nick’s case it probably helps that he is related to the grail, Daisy. Nick

successfully poses as a man in control of his emotions and does not pose a threat to him,

because he is related to Daisy. Because he is related to Daisy, Tom does not have to

worry about him coming between his wife and him. Gatsby outwardly exhibits the traits

of a feminine man and is a threat to his marriage. Even if Gatsby were from an acceptable

background and obtained his wealth through inheritance rather than through questionable

methods, he could never be considered Nordic, because Tom views him as a personal

threat. Tom’s views about the Nordic race seem to be developed not only from Goddard’s

ideas but from his own insecurities. If he loses Daisy to a feminine man, he can’t be any

less feminine than the man he lost her to.

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Despite choosing to do whatever he can to help Gatsby, Nick’s tone towards him

is critical throughout most of the novel. One exception is how Nick talks about him at the

very beginning of the novel. He states that Gatsby “turned out all right at the end” and

that “it is what preyed on Gatsby, what foul dust floated in the wake of his dreams that

temporarily closed out [his] interest in the abortive sorrows and the short-winded elations

of men” (Fitzgerald 2). This suggests that Nick does not believe Gatsby to be the villain

he is made out to be and that the true villains are those Gatsby had to lie to in order to be

welcomed. In this statement, Nick is criticizing the standards of his society that Gatsby

felt he needed to fulfill. Gatsby’s desire to be seen as a rich and powerful man in order to

win Daisy’s love is what eventually leads him to his tragic end. The true villain is Tom.

Tom fulfills all the requirements to be a successful, wealthy, and masculine man. Of all

the characters, he holds the most power over everyone. An individual with this much

power can influence the ways others think. His obsession with purity is the very kind of

idea that makes Gatsby feel the need to lie about himself and where he comes from.

These lies are what lead to the confrontation between the two men in the hotel room,

which leads to Daisy’s murdering of Myrtle and Myrtle’s husband murdering Gatsby as a

result of jealousy and mistaken identity.

Nick behaves in many other ways to suggest that he is a man hiding his true

feminine and homosexual identity. One such act is writing letters to a girlfriend who

supposedly lives in his hometown. This girlfriend of Nick’s does not have a name nor

does she ever appear in the story. She seems to be only a scapegoat. He does not give the

reader any vivid details about her as he does the characters he actually introduces to the

reader, and he does not tell the reader much about her personality either. All readers are

Shani Jeanpierre 24

told is that she exists. Whether or not she exists is debatable, but the purpose of her being

mentioned serves as a clever way to distract his peers and the reader from his attraction to

Gatsby.

Nick does not just seem to be someone who is struggling to hide his sexual

identity, but also a man who is struggling with his gender identity. Kerr believes that

Nick shows signs throughout the novel that he is a man who is struggling to hide his true

psychological gender identity. She points out that one activity he enjoys doing during his

visit to the city is follow attractive women around and pretend to be them. He also enjoys

the fact that no one ever has to know what is on his mind as he does this. This may lead

readers to further speculate the nature of his relationship with Gatsby and Daisy. Nick

views Daisy in a similar way he views the attractive women he sees in the city. Nick

might believe that by arranging the meeting between Gatsby and her and rekindling their

romance that he might be able to better fantasize intimacy with Gatsby. No one, including

Tom, would ever have to know about these fantasies. Unlike Tom, Nick does not want to

control any of the women in his life. He has more of a desire to be the women in his life,

and he values his possession and privacy of this desire.

Jordan Baker is much like Nick. Although she is a woman, she exhibits very few

feminine traits of the 1920’s. She is an athlete, a cheater, and is able to remain

emotionally composed throughout most of the novel. Nick and she establish a

relationship early on in the novel, but with closer reading this seems more like a ploy to

distract others from the feminine and masculine characteristics she and Nick fail to fulfill.

Jordan, who is staying with Tom and Daisy, cannot risk her peers growing suspicious of

her masculine characteristics and views a relationship with Nick to be a way to possibly

Shani Jeanpierre 25

distract her peers from these traits. There is a point in the novel when Nick compares

himself to Tom and Gatsby stating that

Unlike Gatsby and Tom Buchanan, [he] had no girl whose disembodied face floated along the dark cornices and blinding signs, and so [he] drew up [Jordan] beside [him], tightening [his] arms. Her wan, scornful mouth smiled, and so [he] drew her up again closer, this time to [his] face (79).

Nick, at this point, realizes that he is the only man who does not have a female love

interest.. If he does not show interest in a woman, he may stand out among the men and if

he stands out, his true identity may be revealed. By establishing a relationship with

Jordan, he protects his true identity from being revealed. Nick also takes notice of her

“wan” and “scornful” mouth as she smiles at him. Jordan seems to be the perfect

candidate to distract him from his attraction to men, because she has masculine

characteristics.

Edward Wasiolek argues in his article “The Sexual Drama of Nick and Gatsby”

that gender and sexual identity is an issue that causes Nick tension. Wasiolek points out

that throughout the novel are hints of similarities between Gatsby’s desire to be loved by

Daisy and Nick’s desire to cover up his homosexual feelings towards men by using

Jordan as a mask. He goes on to argue that Jordan helps Nick to try to forget about his

homosexual desires by being a masculine woman and points out her masculine qualities:

her “jaunty” body, her dishonesty, her involvement in sports, and the way she sweats

(Wasiolek 20). While she has all of these masculine characteristics, Wasiolek also points

out some of the feminine similarities she has with Daisy. For example, both Daisy and

Jordan possess beauty and have the same friends. Similarities such as these make Jordan

the perfect candidate to help Nick hide who he truly is. By engaging in a relationship

Shani Jeanpierre 26

with a woman whom people see as a similar woman to Daisy, Nick is protecting himself

from people like Tom who only seem to see the feminine qualities she shares with Daisy.

Kerr suggests that Nick’s attraction to femininity does not necessarily mean that

he is attracted to feminine or masculine women. Nick not only uses his relationship with

Jordan as a way to hide his feminine and homosexual qualities, but also to distract

himself from his own true feelings. He even points out that, while he writes letters to his

girlfriend, he finds it difficult not to think of Jordan’s “mustache of perspiration”

(Fitzgerald 58). Nick, perhaps, believes that he could distract himself from his attraction

to men by participating in a relationship with a woman with masculine characteristics.

Despite the fact that Jordan is a very masculine woman, Kerr argues that this does not

necessarily make her homosexual. She points out that towards the end of the novel after

Myrtle’s death she makes what seems like an advance towards him by touching him on

his arm and inviting him into Tom’s house. When Nick rejects her invitation, she quickly

turns and runs up the steps. Kerr believes that this reaction is significant, because it

shows the reader a different side to her than what they have been seeing throughout the

novel. In this moment readers see a vulnerable woman looking to confide in a man

emotionally, but unlike most men Nick is not attracted to the emotional vulnerability of a

woman as he is attracted to the vulnerability of men (419). Jordan’s reaction, however,

can indicate that she realizes she has possibly lost the person who has been helping her

blend in with their heterosexual surroundings.

A woman who is masculine is not necessarily a woman who is a lesbian just as a

man who is feminine is not necessarily a man who is gay. This is a fact that is

demonstrated by Gatsby. Gatsby exhibits feminine qualities, but he is obviously not

Shani Jeanpierre 27

homosexual since he goes to great lengths to win Daisy’s love. The same can be said

about Jordan. Although she exhibits vulnerability the moment Nick rejects her, this does

not mean that she is a heterosexual woman. Most of Kerr’s observations are accurate, but

some seem to be based on the assumption that those who don’t fit in with their gender

roles are most likely homosexual.

Maggie Gordon Froehlich, author of "Jordan Baker, Gender Dissent, and

Homosexual Passing in The Great Gatsby," suggests that because Jordan is white, she has

the ability to blend in with other women. This helps protect her from people like Tom

who would no longer view her as pure (Froehlich 102). Nick often puts much emphasis

on the whiteness of Jordan’s attire. Jordan’s white clothing serves as a reminder to those

around her that she is white and pure, so no one pays much attention to any masculine

behavior she may exhibit. It should be taken into consideration, however, that Tom

requires much more than being white in order to be considered pure. He views Jordan as

Nordic. It is specifically this label that helps her to mask both her masculine and

homosexual characteristics. Froehlich also goes on to suggest that readers are often blind

to her homosexual behavior because of the love triangle taking place between Gatsby,

Daisy, and Tom (102). She also points out that Jordan is able to blend in and become

indistinguishable from other women by wearing feminine attire and associating with

them at different events and parties (102).

Jordan’s relationship with Daisy is similar to the relationship Nick has with

Gatsby. She wants to see Daisy happy and does whatever she can to help her carry out

her affair with Gatsby. When Jordan recounts her first meeting with Daisy she explains

that she “was flattered that she wanted to speak to [her], because of all the older girls

Shani Jeanpierre 28

[she] admired her most” (Fitzgerald 75). This could be seen as the behavior of a young

woman who is flattered that the most popular girl would show interest in being her friend.

Her desire to see Daisy happy with Gatsby, however, suggests that Jordan views her as

someone who is more than just a woman she wants a friendship with. When convincing

Nick to arrange a meeting between Daisy and Gatsby, Jordan states that “Daisy ought to

have something in her life” (79). Jordan knows that she cannot fulfill Daisy’s desire for

romantic attention. She seems to believe that by helping Daisy to be reunited with Gatsby

that she can in a way live through him. She wants Daisy to be happy like she was in the

past, and she knows that Gatsby is the only one who can bring out that happiness.

Towards the end of the novel, Nick has one final meeting with Jordan in which

she reveals that she is engaged. Nick states that he “[doubts] that” because “there were

several she could have married at a nod of her head” (Fitzgerald 177). This situation

presents two possibilities. Jordan, who is known to be a cheater and a liar, could be lying

in order to hurt Nick for rejecting her. The other possibility is that Jordan really is

engaged to another man. If readers believe that Jordan is a woman with a conflicted

sexual identity, her sudden engagement after turning down many men in the past may be

the result of fear she has that others may find out her true sexual orientation.She, perhaps,

sees Nick as one of her final opportunities to play the role of a heterosexual woman.

Nick’s rejection possibly makes her feel as if she has to quickly find a new way to appear

heterosexual before people around her begin to view her single lifestyle as something that

sets her apart from everyone else. As both Nick and she learn with Gatsby, being

different from those around them can draw a lot of unwanted attention, which can make

them open to speculation. Jordan possibly does not believe that she can handle all of the

Shani Jeanpierre 29

questioning without revealing herself or being revealed in the process of being

questioned.

Fitzgerald seems to have written the end of the novel as a way to test the reader.

After reading everything about the different characters and their personalities and

learning about Gatsby’s criminal background and dishonesty, it seems readers are

encouraged to form their own opinion about what kind of person Gatsby is. Nick explains

that after Gatsby’s funeral he makes a final visit to his house and sees an “obscene word”

written on the front steps that he smudges out with his shoe (Fitzgerald 179). He never

tells the reader what the obscene word is. Fitzgerald’s intention seems to be to encourage

readers to think about all the events of the novel and conclude for themselves what word

is written on the steps. It would make sense that Fitzgerald would wish to challenge his

readers, since the novel seems to be a criticism of the materialism and judgmental nature

of American society.

Part 2: The Life Experiences of Fitzgerald and their Significance to The Great

Gatsby

Many critics and readers have noticed similarities between characters and events

in Gatsby and those in Fitzgerald’s life. Although speculations as to why Fitzgerald

would include these similarities in his novel have been made, few have speculated why

he wrote these similarities the way he did. Fitzgerald seemed to want to write a story

about his life, but he probably did not want to feel as if he was threatening the privacy of

Shani Jeanpierre 30

any of the people in his life. By incorporating different aspects of these people in his

character, he was able to safely criticize these aspects without directly exposing their

flaws to the public.

Fitzgerald grew up and lived in a society that was very materialistic and

concerned with class. He was not born into a life of wealth as many of his influences

were just as Gatsby is not born into a life of privilege or wealth as those he tries to

impress are. Much like how Gatsby’s Caucasian ethnicity does not qualify him to fit in

with the Nordic whites, his newly obtained wealth does not offer him full acceptance

with other wealthy individuals. People who attend his over-the-top parties are more than

happy to indulge in all of the luxuries he provides, but this does not stop them from being

suspicious about his background and even spreading rumors that he kills people. Gatsby

was not born into his wealth, so although he can enjoy the luxuries and benefits of being

rich, he is not considered to be pure like those who are born into wealth. Readers who

look into the life of Fitzgerald may come to the conclusion that Fitzgerald based this

aspect of his novel on his own experience of obtaining wealth later in his life but never

feeling fully accepted among the wealthy. Like Gatsby, Fitzgerald was often rejected by

people he cared about for others who came from a background of wealth. Once Fitzgerald

obtained his wealth it seemed he still had to work tirelessly to keep those he cared about

in his life. Fitzgerald had witnessed those who had more money easily win over those he

strived to get the attention of, but he probably noticed that it was not as easy for him once

he earned a good amount of money to be considered wealthy. Fitzgerald most likely felt

as if he was struggling to obtain a level of purity that was impossible to reach because of

his background.

Shani Jeanpierre 31

Some aspects of Fitzgerald’s novel seem to be based on his own personal

relationships. Many people in his life were attracted to the material aspects of wealth,

which caused dysfunction in some of his friendships and with his romantic interests.

Daisy, for example, seems to be based heavily on more than one figure that significantly

impacted his life in many different ways. Matthew J. Bruccoli, author of the biography

Some Sort of Epic Grandeur: The Life of F. Scott Fitzgerald, explains that Fitzgerald’s

mother “became reconciled to her husband’s lack of business acumen” and that this

caused her to hope for Fitzgerald to become a successful business man and do her best to

discourage him from pursuing his dream of becoming a writer (Bruccoli 21). She even

went so far as to throw away some of the work he wrote as a child. This behavior was

most likely not mean spirited, but rather illustrate her concern, because his family

struggled with financial problems. Much like Daisy, Fitzgerald’s mother believed that

financial security took priority over anything that would bring pleasure to a person.

Leaving Gatsby would probably bring Daisy happiness for a short time, but the happiness

she got from receiving romantic attention would not ensure that she wouldn’t need to

worry about any financial problems or her place in society. Fitzgerald’s mother most

likely feared that the happiness he received from writing would not be enough to ensure

financial security or a stable and respectable place in society.

One of Fitzgerald’s more positive influences was a priest by the name of Cyril

Sigourney Webster Fay. Bruccoli describes as “a romantic intellectual figure who made

the church seem glamorous” (33). Daisy is described in a similar way in The Great

Gatsby

I looked back at my cousin, who began to ask me questions in her low, thrilling voice. It was the kind of voice that the ear follows up and down,

Shani Jeanpierre 32

as if each speech is an arrangement of lovely with bright things in it […], but there was an excitement in her voice that men who cared for her found difficult to forget: a singing compulsion, a whispered “Listen,” a promise that she had done gay, exciting things just a while since and that were gay, exciting things hovering in the next hour (Fitzgerald 9).

There is an obvious similarity in the way people viewed them. Father Fay made the

church “seem glamorous” while Daisy had a voice that suggested that “she had done

gay.” Fay was a person whom children liked, because “he was like a child; youth reveled

in his company because he was still a youth and couldn’t be shocked” (Bruccoli 35).

People are drawn to both figures, because they are inviting and charismatic. An obvious

parallel is their name. Daisy’s maiden name is Fay. One could also consider the impact

Father Fay had on Fitzgerald’s life and draw similarities with the impact Daisy had on

Gatsby’s life. According to Bruccoli, Fay “encouraged [Fitzgerald] to think of himself as

one of the brilliant young men who would make American Catholicism socially and

intellectually respectable” and “tried to win him to Irish independence as a romantic

cause” (35). Fay played a role in pushing Fitzgerald to be more than what others viewed

him as. This experience of Fitzgerald is similar to the way Gatsby is motivated by his

love for Daisy to change his background to one that would be more acceptable to the

wealthy. His attention towards Fitzgerald, however, was rivaled by another student by the

name of Stephan Parrot who was the son of a “wealthy San Francisco family” (36).

Readers may see a parallel between this situation and the love triangle between Daisy,

Tom, and Gatsby. Gatsby can only offer his love to Daisy while Tom can offer her wealth

and a sense of security. The only way Daisy would ever choose Gatsby is if he had

wealth like Tom. Fitzgerald probably felt the same about Fay.

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Nick’s homosexual behavior may be inspired by the nature of some of

Fitzgerald’s relationships. Nick’s homosexual attraction to Gatsby represents Fitzgerald’s

incapability to permanently gain the affection of those he truly desires. Nick can never

have Gatsby, because although Gatsby is feminine, he is not homosexual and is in love

with Daisy. Gatsby could never have Daisy, because although he is able to give romantic

affection, he cannot give her financial security or stability. The relationships and

conflicting attractions in Gatsby most likely represent all of Fitzgerald’s own struggles

with his own relationships. Although Fitzgerald caught the attention of Fay, he still had to

compete for his attention. It is not much different than his relationship with his wife,

Zelda, who like Daisy was very popular among both men and women.

Some of Daisy’s behavior towards Nick may suggest that Fay may have acted

inappropriately with Fitzgerald at some point during their relationship. When Nick

arranges for Daisy to meet with Gatsby, she is unaware of what is going on. She takes the

opportunity to flirt with Nick. She whispers “low in [his] ear” asking him if he is in love

with her (Fitzgerald 85). Later at one of Gatsby’s parties Daisy tells Nick that if he wants

to kiss her to “just let [her] know and [she will] be glad to arrange it for [him]” (104).

Clayton’s film adaptation does not make light of this behavior. In his film, other

characters seem to take notice. At one of Gatsby’s parties, Jordan greets Nick and

flirtatiously informs him that she knows “[his] cousin has an absolute craving for him”

and that she will “borrow [him] for the night” (Clayton). Later in the film when Daisy

attends one of Gatsby’s parties, she jokingly informs Tom that she is leaving him for

Nick and that they will run away to Africa. Tom hardly seems phased by her comment. In

Shani Jeanpierre 34

the film such behavior from Daisy seems something that the rest of the characters have

come to expect from her, but she is corrected in neither the book nor film.

Although Daisy is related to Nick by marriage and not by blood, this is enough to

make readers uncomfortable. The relationship between a priest and a follower can be

taken into consideration. A priest’s role is to provide spiritual guidance to those who seek

it, and those seeking the guidance usually address the priest as “Father.” This label is not

meant to suggest that the priest has any parental authority over those who seek guidance

from him, but it does establish a bond between his followers and him. For the priest to act

in a way that is outside of his role of a spiritual mentor is considered inappropriate. Such

behavior would include seeking affection or flirtation from any of his followers. Priests

are viewed by many to be pure human beings because of their status within their church.

They are not expected to act outside their role or participate in any inappropriate

behaviors with their followers. Although Daisy is Nick’s second cousin, readers expect

the relationship between the two of them to be of a familial nature and strictly platonic,

since they are bound by the cousin label. Daisy, however, flirts with Nick as if the label

does not exist between them.

Despite her inappropriate behavior, Nick cares deeply for Daisy much like

Fitzgerald cared for Fay. Nick never corrects her behavior, nor does he tell the reader of

any discomfort he feels as she acts inappropriately towards him. He never accepts her

advances, but he does seem to tolerate them. If Fay ever behaved in a similar way

towards Fitzgerald, this may be the way he responded to any advances he may have

made. Because Fitzgerald cared deeply for Fay, he probably did not want to ruin the

reputation of the priest by telling others of his behavior or speak of any discomfort felt

Shani Jeanpierre 35

when he was around him. What he may have decided to do instead is incorporate his

personality and behavior in one of his fictional characters. By doing this, Fitzgerald

would have been able to share his personal experiences with Fay without blatantly

exposing him or threatening his pure reputation.

Daisy’s character may also be based on a man named Shane Leslie. Leslie,

according to Bruccoli, was the cousin of Winston Chruchill and a successful writer.

Fitzgerald would later write about the impact Leslie had on him:

He first came into [his] life as the most romantic figure he had ever known.

He had sat at the feet of Tolstoy, he had gone swimming with Rupert Brooke, he had been a young Englishman of the governing classes when the sense of being one must have been, as Compton McKenzie says, like the sense of being a Roman citizen.

Also, he was a convert to the church of [his] youth, and he and another, since dead, made of that church a dazzling, golden thing, dispelling its oppressive mugginess and giving the succession of days upon gray days, passing under its plaintive ritual, the romantic glamour of an adolescent dream (Bruccoli 35).

Fitzgerald was attracted to glamour and glamorous people. Leslie seemed to be viewed as

the epitome of purity because of his background and connection to notable names such as

Churchill and Rupert Brooke, a well-known handsome English poet. This statement

illustrates how his negative view of the church was changed by Leslie and Fay. Leslie

and Fay made it a more inviting place that became the embodiment of what Fitzgerald

wanted in his life: “romantic glamour.” It is much like the way Gatsby views Daisy.

Daisy seems to have the charisma that can make any event seem exciting or glamorous.

Gatsby, who comes from very little, believes that having Daisy in his life can make it

seem more glamorous as well. Although Gatsby loves Daisy, a part of him sees her as an

object that can gain him the respect that he never received as someone who did not come

from wealth or good breeding.

Shani Jeanpierre 36

Fitzgerald’s complicated relationship with his wife seemed to be a very

significant inspiration for Gatsby. Like Gatsby, Fitzgerald fell in love with a beautiful

young woman who came from a higher social and more financially stable background.

Zelda was charismatic and very popular among her peers. This is just one of many

similarities she shared with Daisy. Bruccoli explains that Zelda knew “exactly who she

was and what she could get away with” (Bruccoli 87). Zelda had stated later on in her life

that “when [she] was a little girl [she] had great confidence in [herself], even to the extent

of walking by [herself] against life as it was then. [She] did not have a single feeling of

inferiority, or shyness, or doubt, and no moral principles” (87). This parallels Daisy’s

statement that the best a girl can be is “a beautiful little fool.” Zelda was an outgoing

person that would try anything or rise up to any challenge despite the consequences. This

behavior describes Daisy’s willingness to participate in an affair with Gatsby while

realizing everything she’s risking (her economic stability and her daughter). Like Zelda,

however, Daisy is able to get away with such a reckless activity without ever having to

answer to her dishonesty. She is the one who is able to resume her old life while Gatsby

is the one who has to pay for her dishonesty and even for the murder she commits.

During the confrontation between Gatsby and Tom, Tom focuses most of his

anger and resentment towards Gatsby even though Daisy is the one who has been

unfaithful to him. Tom is more focused on Gatsby’s criminal activity than his wife’s

dishonesty. Because he is in love with her and would do anything to win her acceptance

and love, Gatsby does not hesitate to take the blame for Myrtle’s death and pays the price

for it in the end. Daisy knows people view her as a grail, so she knows that although she

is risking the loss of her stable life and daughter, she will get away with it in the end.

Shani Jeanpierre 37

Tom’s lack of attention towards Daisy’s responsibility in the affair is probably also a

result of sexism. Because the two men seem to view Daisy as more of an object, Tom

may believe that Daisy does not have the ability to make good judgments or really

consider the consequences of her actions. This sexism, however, works to her advantage.

No one will suspect Daisy to be the murderer of Myrtle nor will they suspect that she has

a hand in framing Gatsby. A person who does not have the ability to develop personal

ideas could not possibly plan such a crime. Daisy is probably very aware of the way

people view her, which is why she so easily gets away with murder and lying.

The similarities between Zelda and Daisy can also be seen in letters exchanged

between Fitzgerald and her. Their letters reveal that their relationship was constantly

threatened by Zelda’s restlessness. Bruccoli explains that she was “not prepared for a

long engagement” (94). The two of them had promised to write to one another on a daily

basis when they could not be together, but Zelda soon began to break her end of the

promise and Fitzgerald immediately took notice. She explained her lack of writing in a

letter by stating that she “[hated] writing when [she did not have] time, and she just [had]

to scribble a few lines” (94). She then advised him to write “calmly and whenever [he

felt] like it” (94). According to Bruccoli, Zelda had been known to see other men even

when Fitzgerald “worked his way up to the position of her number-one suitor” (89). This

is most likely the reason Fitzgerald had written in one of his letters that he “used to

wonder why they kept princesses in towers,” (94). Shortly after Zelda expressed her

dismay for such comments in her letter Fitzgerald began to look for an apartment that the

two of them could live in and wrote to her father requesting her hand in marriage.

Shani Jeanpierre 38

Bruccoli explains that Fitzgerald believed that a girl who was “worth having won’t wait

for anybody” (94).

Daisy’s decision to marry Tom instead of waiting for Gatsby to come back from

war is similar to the way Zelda would get restless when Fitzgerald (who was also in the

military) was not around. Zelda was a woman whose attention was something that many

men competed for, and Fitzgerald most likely often felt threatened by this fact. This also

might cause readers to think about the similarities between Tom and Fitzgerald. Tom

realizes that Daisy is a woman who is admired, but no one before Gatsby has threatened

his marriage to her. This is the reason he feels he can get away with having an affair, and

for a while he does get away with it. Tom knows that Daisy will not wait for him to lose

interest in Myrtle when Gatsby offers her the romance she does not get from him, so

readers see a suggestion that Tom is willing to give up his affair in order to keep her.

Fitzgerald had been known to speak of Zelda as if she were a possession. One

such statement is one he made to the critic Edmund Wilson that he “wouldn’t care if she

died, but [he] couldn’t stand to have anyone else marry her” (97). Zelda, at times, even

seemed to see herself as a prize. In one of her more passionate love letters, she stated that

“everything [seemed] so smooth and restful, like this yellow dusk. Knowing that [she

would] always be [his]—that [he would] really own [her]—that nothing [could] keep

[them] apart—[was] such a relief after the strain and nervous excitement of the last

month” (94). Much like Daisy, Zelda probably did not enjoy being viewed as an object

but saw some aspects of her objectification that she considered to be romantic. She

seemed to like the idea of a man working tirelessly to convince her to allow him to keep

her, but she also didn’t like the idea of being one man’s possession. Zelda enjoyed being

Shani Jeanpierre 39

the center of many men’s attention, and she liked being competed for. It seems that

money was not the only concern in regards to her accepting his proposal, but also the fact

that she would have to give up a life of which she could enjoy getting attention from

several different men at a time.

Fitzgerald’s possessive comments about Zelda are illustrated in the behavior of

both Tom and Gatsby who seem to view Daisy as more of a prize of purity rather than a

person. Zelda seemed to both enjoy this identity given to her as well as hate it at the same

time. She seemed to like the idea of Fitzgerald struggling and doing whatever possible to

win her attention and hand in marriage, but she didn’t seem to like the idea of staying

committed to him. It is similar to the way Daisy uses the identity of a grail given to her

by both of her lovers in order to get what she needs from both of them. She does not

necessarily like having her identity chosen for her, but she knows how to use it to her

advantage.

One of the greatest similarities readers can see between Daisy and Zelda is their

failure to be able to devote all of their affection to one man. Although Daisy promised

Gatsby that she would wait for him while he was away at war, she soon stopped writing

to him and married Tom. Gatsby, however, refuses to give up on her and is convinced

that she will still marry him one day. He obtains a great amount of money in whatever

way he can and creates a false background for himself believing that his lack of money

and less desirable background to be the only reason she doesn’t wait for him. He does not

take into consideration that Daisy may not have loved him as much as he thought she did

during their brief romance. It is similar to how Fitzgerald hoped that the publication of

Shani Jeanpierre 40

his first novel would sway Zelda into finally accepting his marriage proposal. In his case,

however, the money he earned from his publication was just the motivation she needed.

Fitzgerald had some similarities with Tom as well as Gatsby. During their stay in

Paris, France, Zelda had a brief affair with a sailor by the name of Admiral Edouard

Jozan. Zelda caught the attention of many men during her time in Paris with Fitzgerald.

Bruccoli suggests that Zelda enjoyed getting the attention and that it gave her an

opportunity to live as she did before marrying Fitzgerald (195). Jozan was known to visit

Zelda on a regular basis. No one is quite sure how far the affair went, but Jozan claimed

that their romance was “only a flirtation” (195). Both Fitzgerald and Zelda incorporated

her relationship with him in novels they wrote. In Zelda’s novel Jozan is “an aviator

[who] wants a lover but does not encourage her to leave her husband” (195). Zelda later

asked for a divorce. This caused Fitzgerald to want a confrontation with Jozan, but Jozan

avoided such a meeting. Both Fitzgerald and Zelda have different versions as to what

happened shortly after her request for the divorce. Zelda had later claimed that Fitzgerald

had her locked away in the villa they were staying at, but Fitzgerald wrote of a duel in

one of his novels that was supposedly based on one he had with Jozan over the affair. He

later admitted that it had been fabricated (Bruccoli 198).

Readers may be able to see a resemblance between Gatsby and Jozan. Jozan had

fallen for a woman who was already married. It is similar to the way Gatsby loves Daisy

even though Daisy is married to Tom. Although Jozan did not know Zelda for as long as

Gatsby knows Daisy, their affairs are similar. Jozan would often show off his planes to

Zelda with hopes of impressing her just as Gatsby wishes to show off his large house and

possessions with extravagant parties (198). According to Bruccoli, Zelda enjoyed the

Shani Jeanpierre 41

attention she got from Jozan, because it reminded her of her days in Montgomery when

men competed for her attention and worked to be her suitor. Daisy’s affair with Gatsby is

similar, because it reminds her of a time when she was younger.

Fitzgerald’s desire for a confrontation may draw thoughts of the confrontation

between Gatsby and Tom. Fitzgerald had stated that the duel between two characters in

the novel Tender is the Night is based on the imagined duel he would have had with

Jozan (195). Since Jozan’s affair with his wife had its similarities to the affair between

Gatsby and Daisy, the same can be said about the confrontation between Gatsby and

Tom. Fitzgerald probably wanted a confrontation with Jozan, because he wanted to prove

to Zelda that he was worth staying married to since he worked to get to his financial

position through writing novels while Jozan’s only way to impress Zelda was by showing

off his planes. If Fitzgerald locked Zelda in a room in their villa, this was probably meant

to demonstrate his masculinity by controlling her (195).

Zelda was not the only one who inspired the character of Daisy. Long before

Fitzgerald met her, he fell in love with the young and rich sixteen-year-old Ginevra King.

According to Bruccoli, Ginevra “matched his dreams of the perfect girl: beautiful, rich,

socially secure, and sought after” (Bruccoli 54). Nick explains in Gatsby that one aspect

of Daisy’s character that attracts Gatsby is the fact that she is the object of many men’s

affections. Some critics, such as Joahn S. Korenman, author of the article entitled “‘Only

Her Hairdresser…’ Another Look At Daisy Buchanan,” have noticed small

inconsistencies in Nick’s many descriptions of Daisy. Koreman points out that in some

passages, particularly when Daisy introduces her daughter, she is “unmistakably blonde”

while in other descriptions, such as the one that describes Daisy’s experience with Gatsby

Shani Jeanpierre 42

the day before he goes off to war, she is described to have “dark shining hair” (Koreman

574). Koreman also points out that such inconsistency appears more in Fitzgerald’s early

manuscripts of Gatsby. She explains that there are sections crossed out that describe

Daisy to be a “dark lovely girl” (575). Koreman believes this to be evidence that Daisy is

not only modeled after Zelda but also after Ginevra as well.

Fitzgerald’s struggles with the women he loved in his life are present in Gatsby.

Koreman cites Richard D. Lehan, author and critic of American and French literature,

who believes that “Fitzgerald brought to The Great Gatsby ‘his resentment over losing

Ginevra King and almost losing Zelda Sayre’” (576). Koreman also believes that “he

based his description of Daisy’s wedding on ‘memories of Ginevra’s wedding’” (576).

Although Fitzgerald had a romantic relationship with Ginevra, she was soon pursued by

men from wealthier backgrounds, and he was no longer her top suitor (Bruccoli 63).

According to Bruccoli, Ginevra “pointedly remarked that poor boys should not think of

marrying rich girls” (64). Bruccoli also points out that much “of Fitzgerald’s fiction

would take the form of self-warnings or self-judgements” (76). Daisy’s character was not

only inspired by the wife he could not control, but also by his first and lost love who

would not marry a poor boy.

Myrtle’s character may also have some similarities with Ginevra. Fitzgerald later

married Zelda, but if he still had lingering feelings for Ginevra, Tom’s affair with Myrtle

might have served as a metaphor for Fitzgerald’s remaining love for Ginevra. It is likely

that Tom is more in love with Myrtle than he is with Daisy, but issues of class, purity,

and wealth prevent him from leaving Daisy for her. It is also likely that Fitzgerald

harbored feelings for Ginevra even after he married Zelda, but Fitzgerald’s “puritanical”

Shani Jeanpierre 43

ideas about sex stopped him from further pursuing her after she married (76). Fitzgerald

had described Zelda as “sexually reckless” even though her friends often denied this

image of her stating that “No one to [their] knowledge ever questioned her good

reputation as to morals” (86). This may remind readers of Tom’s hesitance to label Daisy

as Nordic. Fitzgerald most likely thought more highly of Ginevra than of Zelda as a result

of his dislike for her supposed recklessness. Zelda was known to be “unconventional and

even wild, but she maintained her position within the boundaries of Southern feminine

conduct” (87).

Myrtle and Daisy’s unfaithful behavior to their husbands also probably reflects

Fitzgerald’s opinion of the behavior of the women in his own life. Both Daisy and Myrtle

are unfaithful to their husbands. Fitzgerald, perhaps, considered what life would be like

for Ginevra if she married him when he created Myrtle’s character. Myrtle is miserable in

her relationship with Wilson which leads her to have an affair with Tom, a man with a lot

of wealth and power. Fitzgerald probably figured that had Ginevra married him she

probably would have been miserable like Myrtle and possibly would have sought

romance elsewhere. He probably felt that he would be similar to Wilson and have very

little power over what she did when he was not around, and he might have felt that he had

been blind to her actions for a while during any affair she may have had. Fitzgerald may

have written Myrtle’s character as a way to accept that a marriage between a rich woman

and a poor man may not have worked out the way he wished it would. Although Myrtle

does not come from a rich background, she is very aware of the kind of life that is

considered luxurious, and she wants that for herself. The difference between Zelda and

her and Ginevra is that Zelda and Ginevra knew all of their lives what it meant to be from

Shani Jeanpierre 44

a background of economic security, because they actually came from that background.

Myrtle simply wants a life in which she no longer has to worry about not having enough

to be happy.

Daisy and Myrtle share a similarity, because both of them feel something lacking

in their marriages. Both of their husbands lose control over them just as Fitzgerald

probably felt he lost control of Zelda when she had her affair with Jozan. Fitzgerald

writes Daisy’s and Myrtle’s characters in a way that seems to be an underlying message

for Zelda. Readers may notice that the price Myrtle, the wife of a poor car salesman, pays

for her affair is death while Daisy suffers little consequence for her actions. This might

have been a message that he hoped would come across to Zelda when she read Gatsby.

The message seems to be that he was able to forgive her for her affair with Jozan mostly

because of her background, but it may have been harder for him to forgive her or forget

about her actions had she come from a less pure and financially secure background. This

does not necessarily mean that Fitzgerald was content with these feelings, but it was a

way for him to demonstrate how strong of an influence his materialistic and

discriminating society had on him. Fitzgerald loved both Ginevra and Zelda, but he knew

that part of the love he had for them was due to their wealthier background.

One of the most significant similarities Fitzgerald had with his character Gatsby

besides the obvious parallel between his relationship with Zelda and Gatsby’s

relationship with Daisy is their feelings about their identities. Gatsby did not believe his

background was good enough to fit in with the wealthy, so he lied about his life and

education in order to be a more believable wealthy man. Fitzgerald was similar. Although

Fitzgerald had an Irish background, he refused to identify himself as Irish. In a time when

Shani Jeanpierre 45

people of Irish descent were looked down upon, this makes a lot of sense. Like Gatsby,

however, Fitzgerald could do his best to blend in with other Caucasian ethnicities since

he was not of a non-Caucasian ethnicity. Unfortunately, Fitzgerald’s heritage was

probably something that caused him to feel set apart from other whites just as Gatsby’s

skin color contributes to the uneasiness the wealthy whites feel when he is around them.

Fitzgerald feared that his Irish heritage would harm his literary career and was

reluctant to give himself the Irish label. His reluctance to identify himself as Irish is

similar to the way Tom wishes to be viewed as Nordic rather than a polo player. Both he

and Tom seem to be bored with where they are in life and therefore pick a new identity

for themselves. Fitzgerald wanted to be associated with some of the most respected

English writers, such as Robert Hughes Benson (35). Tom chooses a new identity with

hopes to escape from a life he feels is unglamorous just as Fitzgerald did. It is apparent to

the reader that the other characters are very aware of Tom’s insecurity with himself and

joke about his obsession with the Nordic race at his expense. This, perhaps, is

Fitzgerald’s illustration of a realization he may have had about how ridiculous others

probably found his denial of his own heritage.

One of the people who recognized his insecurity was a critic named Edmund

Wilson. Wilson harshly criticized Fitzgerald by quoting Edna St. Vincent Millay to

describe him as “a stupid old woman with whom someone has left a diamond” and stated

himself that Fitzgerald “[had] been given imagination without intellectual control of it, he

[had] been given the desire for beauty without an aesthetic ideal; and he [had] been given

a gift for expression without very many ideas to express” (161). Wilson’s opinion of

Fitzgerald was that he was talented but not talented enough to be called an artist. It is

Shani Jeanpierre 46

much like how it was an accepted fact that Gatsby had a lot of money but the wealthy

were not ready to accept him as one of their own.

The character of George Wilson is most likely loosely based on Edmund Wilson

and his review. George Wilson is the naïve husband of Myrtle and the one who murders

Gatsby believing him to be the man who both has an affair with his wife and murders her.

George is probably the blindest character in the novel. He fails to catch his wife and Tom

affectionately touching one another when they are right in front of him, and he does not

notice the way she treats him “as if he [is] a ghost” when Tom is around (Fitzgerald 26).

This was probably Fitzgerald’s way of illustrating to his readers that Edmund was blind

to the art in his work. This kind of blindness is dangerous, because Gatsby’s death is the

result of George’s blind and irrational rage. Fitzgerald most likely viewed Wilson’s

negative review as an opinion based on blindness. Wilson failed to see the artistic

qualities of his work which caused him to publish a review that “damaged [his]

contemporary reputation” and “impeded the fulfillment of his genius by depriving him of

the critical respect he sought” (Bruccoli161). Edmund Wilson almost put an end to

Fitzgerald’s career just as George Wilson put an end to all of Gatsby’s hopes and dreams

of being respected among his peers by murdering him.

The desire to demonstrate one’s wealth or to become wealthy is present in most of

the characters in Gatsby, and a desire that Fitzgerald had himself. Nick seems to always

be aware of how much more money his family and friends in New York have and is also

aware of how much less others have. The same can be said about Fitzgerald. This ability

to observe who has what amount of wealth is probably a result of coming from a

background of minimal luxury. This can be natural for someone who comes from so

Shani Jeanpierre 47

little, but even those who are wealthy in Gatsby are always aware of how much more or

less someone else has. Daisy is first attracted to Gatsby in their younger years because of

his romantic personality, but he is not marriage material for her because he did not

possess the wealth that Tom has. She is attracted to him once again when he reappears in

her life and seems to have more money than Tom. Gatsby realizes in the beginning,

however, that he needs to demonstrate his wealth in order to prove to Daisy that she will

be happier with him, so he throws extravagant parties in hopes that she will show up and

be impressed by his wealth.

Fitzgerald most likely felt he needed to demonstrate whatever wealth he earned

after losing Ginevra to a wealthy man, and he feared that Zelda would leave him for

someone richer if he did not continually illustrate what a good husband he can be by

indulging in luxurious activities. The couple, for example, was often criticized by

neighbors in some of the places they lived for having such loud parties (169). After

keeping this in mind while examining the parties Gatsby arranged in the novel, it is clear

that Fitzgerald’s parties were not thrown for his own enjoyment, but for the benefit of

keeping his wife interested and content. Zelda was the more fun-loving and outgoing

individual while Fitzgerald was known to be much more socially conservative and

“puritanical.” This can also be gathered from Gatsby revealing that he doesn’t attend his

parties because he really doesn’t care for parties at all. All of Gatsby’s parties are thrown

for Daisy. It is not enough for him to simply be rich. He has to illustrate his wealth to the

community in order to catch her attention. At the beginning of the novel, Daisy’s

attention is caught briefly when Jordan mentions his name. This is simply her reaction to

finding out that the man she once loved is possibly close. This reaction, however, is

Shani Jeanpierre 48

followed by her going on to sit at the table with Tom for dinner. Daisy does not venture

over to West Egg to attend one of his parties until after Nick and Jordan arrange for her to

be reunited with him. Daisy is already surrounded by luxury and most likely does not

decide herself to see Gatsby because she fears losing the luxury she has. It is not until she

sees how much more Gatsby seems to have than Tom that she engages in an affair with

him and attends one of his parties.

Tom dislikes not only Gatsby because he is a threat to his marriage, but also

because he initially seems to be more successful and wealthier than he is. To have more

money is to be more powerful in the society the characters live in. This is most likely

loosely based on Fitzgerald’s feelings towards the men who had come between him and

the women in his life. Although Fitzgerald did not come from a wealthy background like

Tom did, he was known to be intelligent, talented, and handsome. These traits, however,

were not enough if he wanted to be married to the rich women he had fallen in love with.

Fitzgerald most likely felt resentment towards men who were able to successfully attract

the attention of the women in his life just by having more money or more popularity than

he did when he himself had much more than money to offer them. He was able to briefly

win Ginevra’s affection through his charm, but he quickly lost her to a wealthy man from

a wealthy background. It is reasonable to have negative feelings towards a relationship

that could end so fast due to such a materialistic reason. The same can be said about

Zelda’s relationship with Jozan who seemed to have characteristics similar to Gatsby in

regards to his popularity and ability to show off material items such as his planes. Much

like Daisy’s relationship with Gatsby, the affair was short, and Fitzgerald was able to

Shani Jeanpierre 49

convince her not to divorce him just as Tom convinced Daisy not to leave him for

Gatsby.

The affair between Zelda and Jozan probably ended as a result of Jozan not

having much to offer Zelda in regards to money. In Gatsby, Tom calls Gatsby “Mr.

Nobody from Nowhere” when confronting him about the affair (Fitzgerald 130). Daisy’s

reason to stay with Tom instead of Gatsby is not only because she knows that she will

have a stable and secure life with Tom, but also because Tom points out to her that

Gatsby’s wealth is a result of criminal activity. He is not truly the entrepreneur he makes

himself out to be, which means he is not as financially secure as she initially thought.

This is probably similar to the way Fitzgerald was able to convince Zelda to stay.

Because Zelda was motivated by the success of Fitzgerald’s writing to marry him, he

most likely reminded her of the success and money he received through writing novels.

He needed to remind Zelda of everything she had that was due to his success and what

she could lose if she left him.

Shani Jeanpierre 50

Conclusion:

Fitzgerald wrote the parallels in The Great Gatsby the way he did, because it

enabled him to subtly criticize his society and the people he knew. By writing certain

people’s characteristics and personalities in some of his characters, he was able to express

his concerns and criticism for them within the safe confines of fiction. In doing this,

Fitzgerald was able to share his own personal story with his readers in a way that would

cause little turmoil from those who shared similarities with his characters. Those who

knew him who chose to read his novel were most likely able to recognize themselves

within the pages of his novel, but they could also continue to live their lives without

receiving criticism from the public. Fitzgerald could also safely incorporate some of his

own traits within some of his characters without blatantly exposing himself.

Some of the most obvious connections between Fitzgerald and his characters are

found in Gatsby. Throughout Fitzgerald’s life he struggled to become wealthy in order to

be respected within his materialistic society, but even when he obtained wealth he found

he still was not completely respected as he wished to be. The similarities Fitzgerald

shared with Nick are also similarities he shared with Gatsby. Nick does not have a lot of

money like the characters he socializes with, so although he is accepted by the rich, he is

not one of them. Although Gatsby’s money is obtained through criminal acts, he appears

to have more money than most of the wealthy people of East and West Egg. Gatsby,

however, is never accepted by the wealthy community. The social situations of both Nick

and Gatsby were probably inspired by a feeling Fitzgerald had of never completely fitting

in with the people he wished would respect him. Fitzgerald also seemed to struggle with

Shani Jeanpierre 51

notions of masculinity, because he was not entirely in control of the choices the women

in his life made. He could not convince Ginevra to marry him, because he was poor, and

although he was able to convince Zelda to marry him once he became rich, he could not

stop her from having an affair with another man. Feeling as if he was not in control of the

women in his life is the similarity Fitzgerald shared with Tom. Tom’s fear of losing

control of the women in his life comes from the desire to be viewed as masculine and

pure. If he loses Daisy, he loses his purity, and if he fails to control Myrtle, he feels that

he will lose his masculinity. Tom’s sensitivity towards his identity comes from being

known as the polo player. He wants to be known for more than a title he obtained during

his college years, so he decides to follow Goddard’s views about Nordic purity in hopes

that it will bring him more excitement and respect. This is not unlike the way Fitzgerald

must have felt struggling to overcome his past of being known as a poor Irish boy once

he obtained enough money to be considered wealthy.

After struggling most of his life to meet the superficial and materialistic standards

of American society, Fitzgerald most likely wrote The Great Gatsby as a way to

challenge ideas of purity. As demonstrated with Daisy’s character, being completely pure

and without flaws are standards that are impossible to live up to, but these standards are

still what people strive to meet. The novel’s ending illustrates the result of working to

obtain an identity of complete purity. There is no happy ending for any of the characters.

No amount of money, lies, or material items can help them achieve perfection. The Great

Gatsby is a novel that challenges the idea that true happiness comes from perfection. It

provides readers with an illustration of what can happen to a person if they spend too

much of their lives desiring something unobtainable. Fitzgerald’s purpose in writing the

Shani Jeanpierre 52

novel the way he did seems to be to encourage his readers to create their own identity,

because struggling for one that is not their own can result in a life of unhappiness like the

characters in the novel.

Shani Jeanpierre 53

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Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Scribner, 2004. Print.

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American Studies 7.2 (1973): 171-81. JSTOR. Web. 27 July 2012.

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