English Coursework TGG
‘Despite Gatsby’s attempts, at the end of the novel, we are left with a clear sense that the expectations of men and women of different classes hasn’t changed.’
Discuss Fitzgerald’s presentation of money and how this affects men and women’s presentation of themselves in ‘The Great Gatsby’ and ‘The Diamond as Big as The Ritz and Other Stories.’
PART ONE
Throughout Fitzgerald’s classic novel ‘The Great Gatsby’ the themes of money and how this affects the way that men and women present themselves is very prominent and is still relevant today.
In the opening 3 chapters of the novel, the main themes of wealth and sexist stereotypes are established. As this novel is set in the 1920’s, it is Fitzgerald’s personal view on society and the problems which were mostly caused by wealth and the overwhelming desire to achieve the American Dream. At the beginning, we see through Nick’s eyes, Tom Buchanan he is the symbol of ‘Living the American Dream’ and all that means to be a man in the ‘Golden Age.’ Buchanan’s entrance is described as ‘standing with his legs wide open,’ and ‘Two shining arrogant eyes had established dominance.’ This creates a forceful and a very arrogant atmosphere around Tom, as his character issues dominance, plus being so physically strong ‘a giant pack of muscle’, we get the sense that Nick is intimidated by him, but also hates him. Nick knows however, that he is superior intellectually. ‘One of those men who reach such excellence at twenty-one that everything afterward savours of anti-climax;’ this clearly reinforces Nick’s distaste for Buchanan and maybe touches on Buchanan’s physical anger and frustration as his life peaked at 21.
In contrast to Tom, Daisy his wife is portrayed totally differently. Due to social standing, she had to be beautiful, dainty, heavenly, goddess like. But all this social pressure put on her by society and her husband, means that women of her standing had no time to work on anything else. Their purpose in life was to be a
Discuss Fitzgerald’s presentation of money and how this affects men and women’s presentation of themselves in ‘The Great Gatsby’ and ‘The Diamond as Big as The Ritz and Other Stories.’
PART ONE
Throughout Fitzgerald’s classic novel ‘The Great Gatsby’ the themes of money and how this affects the way that men and women present themselves is very prominent and is still relevant today.
In the opening 3 chapters of the novel, the main themes of wealth and sexist stereotypes are established. As this novel is set in the 1920’s, it is Fitzgerald’s personal view on society and the problems which were mostly caused by wealth and the overwhelming desire to achieve the American Dream. At the beginning, we see through Nick’s eyes, Tom Buchanan he is the symbol of ‘Living the American Dream’ and all that means to be a man in the ‘Golden Age.’ Buchanan’s entrance is described as ‘standing with his legs wide open,’ and ‘Two shining arrogant eyes had established dominance.’ This creates a forceful and a very arrogant atmosphere around Tom, as his character issues dominance, plus being so physically strong ‘a giant pack of muscle’, we get the sense that Nick is intimidated by him, but also hates him. Nick knows however, that he is superior intellectually. ‘One of those men who reach such excellence at twenty-one that everything afterward savours of anti-climax;’ this clearly reinforces Nick’s distaste for Buchanan and maybe touches on Buchanan’s physical anger and frustration as his life peaked at 21.
In contrast to Tom, Daisy his wife is portrayed totally differently. Due to social standing, she had to be beautiful, dainty, heavenly, goddess like. But all this social pressure put on her by society and her husband, means that women of her standing had no time to work on anything else. Their purpose in life was to be a