Gender Equality In The Great Gatsby

556 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The great gatsby power and wealth

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby portrays how gender equality was so different in the time era than it is now. Beauty and money plays a major key, and although that shouldn't be the main focus in a relationship, it is widely focused on in this text. Fitzgerald uses women as an object to express the American Dream. Women and money. To be a woman married to a man with old or new money was the goal. Women were portrayed as little idiots that followed their wealthy husband’s footsteps in everything that they did. Women were portrayed as “wealthy” if their husbands were. Women were not allowed to work, leaving the men to lay down all of the money. Women typically went to wealthier men so they could be supported right and have …show more content…

They want to seem dumb in a way that guys will foolishly just hand over money in exchange for their heart. They want all of the wealth. Daisy uses her beauty as an advantage so she can live the amazing and wealthy life that she has always wanted. She's acts dumb around Tom because she does not want to leave him but she knows if he knew that she was aware of the affair. She is very aware of everything going on around her but he thinks she’s oblivious. … and the history of the summer really begins on the evening I drove there to have dinner with the Tom Buchanan’s.” Nick refers to Tom and Daisy as the “Tom Buchanan’s”. This clearly shows that Daisy has no control in their relationship.
Men found women weaker and felt like they could push them around. “-the knuckle was black and blue. You did it Tom” ( Fitzgerald 12) Tom somehow hurt Daisy and even though it is not mentioned how he did it, everyone gets that message that it was not in an accidental matter. Whatever he did, he did it on purpose and he was trying to hurt her. Although when Nick and Jordan began to date, Jordan was the one that controlled their relationship, it should be an equal amount of controlling. Why can’t both of them wear the pants? Why does it have to be limited down to one

Show More
Related

  • The Great Gatsby Essay

    812 Words  | 2 Pages

    Tom and Daisy Buchanan originally show how careless they are by deciding to get married and having love play a very small role in the decision. Daisy’s love for Jay Gatsby is undeniable, but as he spent many years away from her, the pressure to do something with her life grew. She grew tired of waiting for Gatsby to return from the war and: “She wanted her life shaped now, immediately – and the decision must be made by some force” (Fitzgerald 144). Daisy felt a burden to get married and the feeling of loneliness from Gatsby’s absence gave Tom the opportunity to come into her life. She was careless in her decision to get married and similarly, Tom was careless in his decision ...

    Read More

  • The Women in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

    529 Words  | 2 Pages

    Set in the Roaring ‘20s, The Great Gatsby focuses mainly on the lives of men as Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby. However, it also clearly outlines the lives of several women : Daisy Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson, and Jordan Baker. On the surface, the lives of these women couldn’t be more different. Daisy, a rich debutante, is torn between her husband, Tom, or her first love, Jay Gatsby. Lower on the social ladder is Myrtle, who is having an affair with Tom, hoping to rise above her station in life. Jordan, on the other hand, is unmarried and a successful golfer, who travels the country participating in tournaments. While these women may have seemed independent, they’re still subject to the will of society which sees them as inferior and objects to be controlled by men.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Sexism In The Great Gatsby

    1047 Words  | 3 Pages

    “I hope she’ll be a fool - that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool” (Fitzgerald 20). This quote is as true now as it was when Daisy Buchanan said it about her daughter in The Great Gatsby. Women grow up in a box of expectations. They are told to act a certain way and do certain things. Daisy knew that this was the world that her daughter was going to be growing up in, and that if she grew up to be a fool then she would fit into the world very nicely. If she grew up and became someone who noticed inequality, or who wanted independence, she would struggle in the world. While woman are no longer put in such a black and white box, there are still many expectations and limitations that woman have to face in their

    Read More

  • Free Great Gatsby Essays: Deception

    979 Words  | 2 Pages

    Our story unravels early on in The Great Gatsby, Nick's very wealthy cousin, Daisy, simply has it all: she is beautiful and graceful; her bank account is large; she's traveled and knows people no matter where she goes. Her husband, Tom Buchanan, is without a doubt very lucky to be with her; but there's a ripple in this perfect couple: he's cheating on her. Not only is Tom cheating on her, but he's cheating on her with someone of a far lesser class; which makes the reader question why he's with her in the first place. Daisy had a very good reputation among the elite; she had never done anything that would have embarrassed her. "They moved with a fast crowd, all of them young and rich and wild, but she came out with an absolutely perfect reputation" (82). This illustrates how well put together Daisy is, he has used her, and continues to use her not only for her wealth, but also for her firm social standing. She could, literally, make or break Tom depending merely on whether or not she stayed with him; of course he'd remain with her, she defined his social standing.

    Read More

  • Gender Roles in the Roaring 1920s: An Examination of the Women of The Great Gatsby

    1786 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Great Gatsby is often referred to as the great American novel; a timeless commentary on the American Dream. A dream that defines success, power, love, social status, and recreation for the American public. It should be mentioned that this novel was published in 1925, which is a time when the American public had recently experienced some significant changes, including women’s suffrage, which had only taken place 6 years prior to the publication of this novel May of 1919. The women of this era had recently acquired a voice in politics, however, the social world does not always take the same pace as the political world. F. Scott Fitzgerald developed female characters that represented both women in their typical gender roles and their modern counterparts. I will be analyzing gender roles within the context of this novel, comparing and contrasting Myrtle Wilson, Jordan Baker, and Daisy Buchanan alongside one another, as well as comparing and contrasting their interactions with the men in the novel.

    Read More

  • Gender Confusion in The Great Gatsby & The Awakening

    1530 Words  | 4 Pages

    The twentieth century was filled with many advances which brought a variety of changes to the world. However, these rapid advances brought confusion to almost all realms of life; including gender roles, a topic which was previously untouched became a topic of discourse. Many authors of the time chose to weigh in on the colloquy. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, gender role confusion, characteristic of modernist literature, is seen in Nick Carraway and Edna Pontillier as they are the focal points in the exploration of what it means to be a man or a woman, their purpose, place, and behavior in society.

    Read More

  • Women In The Great Gatsby Essay

    1969 Words  | 4 Pages

    She becomes scared and no longer wants to be with him. She chooses Tom because, despite his indiscretions and temper, he is able to give Daisy financial security. According to "The Great Gatsby A Misogynistic Tale English Literature Essay," Daisy is ultimately bringing the downfall of Gatsby because of her selfishness and need for security. Gatsby will control her as much as Tom and not be able to give her enough financial security because he does not make his money legally and could lose his money more easily than Tom. Daisy does come from wealth, but she does not have the experience in finances to invest or manage her money, a man has always done that for her.

    Read More

  • Emergence of Women in the Great Gatsby

    1313 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the 1920’s, the role women had under men was making a drastic change, and it is shown in The Great Gatsby by two of the main female characters: Daisy and Jordan. One was domesticated and immobile while the other was not. Both of them portray different and important characteristics of the normal woman growing up in the 1920’s. The image of the woman was changing along with morals. Females began to challenge the government and the society. Things like this upset people, especially the men. The men were upset because this showed that they were losing their long-term dominance over the female society.

    Read More

  • Free Great Gatsby Essays: Criticism of American Society

    869 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the novel The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald is criticizing American society of the 1920s. He uses the characters to demonstrate the power than men had over women during these times, as well as their mindless, self-indulgent actions, where consequence was only an afterthought. The attitude towards and the role of women is shown throughout the novel. Fitzgerald also shows how many people in America during this time were delusional and had meaningless existences.

    Read More

  • Gender Roles in The Great Gatsby

    1299 Words  | 3 Pages

    Even if they disagree about other issues, all feminists believe patriarchal ideology works to keep men and women confined to traditional gender roles so male dominance may be maintained. Utilizing the precepts of Feminist criticism, it could be argued “The Great Gatsby” promotes a thinly veiled patriarchal agenda. Through Fitzgerald’s treatment of the three women in “Gatsby”, as well as masking the possible homosexuality of a central character, the novel seems to promote only the traditional gender roles, swaying uncomfortably from any possible variance.

    Read More

  • Green Light Symbolism

    798 Words  | 2 Pages

    The embodiment of the two ideas incorporated shows that the characters, Daisy and Tom, are in a loveless marriage. Tom answers the phone to talk to a mystery mistress during dinner “-It’s romantic, isn’t it Tom?” Daisy pokes at Tom showing her disapproval of him talking to this other women while eating dinner with guests for appearances sake. Not to much later the phone rings again “Daisy shook her head” again showing her signaling to Tom that it is not the time or place for him to be talking to his ladylove. Fitzgerald put this juxtaposition together to show that Daisy and Tom are in a loveless marriage, they are simply in to for the social status.

    Read More

  • The portrayal of women in The Great Gatsby

    1057 Words  | 3 Pages

    From the start of the book we can see that women in the book are

    Read More

  • Attitude Towards Women In The Great Gatsby

    729 Words  | 2 Pages

    Tom Buchanan and George Wilson have plenty in common with their attitude pertaining towards women in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald throughout the entire novel gives the audience an insight on his thoughts about the nature of man. Fitzgerald portrays men often treating women harshly throughout his novel. For example, there are many violent acts towards women, a constant presence of dominance, and also ironically Tom and Georges over reactions to being cheated on.

    Read More

  • Tom And Daisy Quotes Analysis

    669 Words  | 2 Pages

    Daisy stays with the Tom, because in that particular time period it was wrong to be divorced. One place the story shows the affair, is in the New York apartment. It states “She’s a Catholic and they don’t believe in divorce.’ Daisy was not a Catholic…”- (Fitzgerald 38). This quote shows that it would be against public morals to divorce Tom. Daisy appears to claim that she is “higher” then divorcing someone. The time period affected their relationship, because it was looked down upon. “Neither of them can stand the person they’re married to.”(Fitzgerald 37). This shows that even though they hate each other they constantly stay together. They don’t want to be looked down upon. In conclusion, the unhealthy balance of their relationship and social status is nowhere to be

    Read More

  • Sexism In The Great Gatsby

    1447 Words  | 3 Pages

    She believes that she is a beautiful little fool, but no one can blame her. Whenever Daisy is spoken about it is not in relation to her intelligence, but rather that, “‘Her voice is full of money,’ [Gatsby] said suddenly. That was it for me. Tom had never understood before.

    Read More

More about Gender Equality In The Great Gatsby

Open Document