Character Analysis of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

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1. Nick Carroway was a great narrator for The Great Gatsby because he was so unbiased and open-minded to the world. He was tolerant and an attentive listener to whoever was speaking. He represented a quiet, tolerant, and reflective man from the Midwest during the 1920’s. "I was conscious of wanting to look squarely at every one, and yet to avoid all eyes." (15), this quote expresses Tom’s quiet feature and how he wants to avoid all unnecessary attention. Jordan Baker is a prime example for the changes that women are going through during the 1920’s. She embraces a carefree lifestyle and expresses herself as a young woman that is just trying to have fun. Daisy represented complete perfection in a woman and constant success that she strived for. She was charming, sophisticated, and graceful. “Her face was sad and lovely…bright eyes and a bright passionate mouth” (9). She was completely beautiful and lovely in so many ways. All she ever dreamed of was wealth and that is what Jay Gatsby had. Gatsby even made the comment about her that “her voice was full of money” (120). George represents a hard-working, God fearing man that doesn’t have many flaws. He seems to be very loyal to his wife and undeserving of her actions with Tom. Gatsby represents wealth, success, and the American Dream. He had a huge house, many servants that helped him, and an abundance of money. Nick compared his house to Gatsby’s, “My own house was an eyesore…so I had the view of the water…and the consoling proximity of millionaires” (5). Tom displayed power and had money to back up his opinions and mistakes. He had very much authority in the way he talked to people. Myrtle was a good example for showing the unhappiness in many women during this time. It portrayed u... ... middle of paper ... ... and was cheating on him with Tom. Although, Myrtle did state her reasoning for being with George: "I married him because I thought he was a gentleman" (34). That was her main reason for being with George and also that she assumed he would be good at breeding. Whenever Myrtle saw Tom she grew jealous if any other woman was with him. “Her expression was curiously familiar…until I realized that her eyes…were fixed not on Tom, but on Jordan Baker, whom she took to be his wife.” (125). The way Myrtle looked at Jordan was obviously a display of jealousy. They both worked very hard to persuade their lovers to desert their spouses and go to them. However, neither of their plans worked because they both were killed by the spouses that were being betrayed. Gatsby and Myrtle were both determined to sway their lovers away from their spouses but in the end they didn’t succeed.

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