How Does Jordan Baker Create Dishonesty In The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby: Symbols of Honesty and Dishonesty within its Characters
The 1920’s are known as the Roaring Twenties where there was economical prosperity and moral decline. Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby displays many symbols throughout the text of this moral decline, one being honesty versus dishonesty, these symbols are represented within the characters Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway. Jordan Baker is a symbol of dishonesty and vice versa so is Nick Carraway but rather for honesty. Nick’s truthfulness is evident, as it has been instilled within him since early childhood. Jordan’s untruthful actions appear to be instilled within her from early childhood but as a method to protect herself. In short, Carraway and Baker’s perspective on honesty …show more content…
When Nick first came upon meeting Miss Baker, he is startled by her cool demeanor as “her chin raised a little, as if she were balancing something on it which was quite likely to fall” (8). Even then he feels the need to provide an apology for “having disturbed her by coming in” (8), showing that the impression and atmosphere she invokes is intimidating. The more one learns about Jordan Baker, the more one sees that she is not only cold but deceptive and dishonest as well when she borrowed a car and lied about leaving the top down when it was raining. As well as the scandalous golf tournament that she cheated in, because of these events Nick considers Jordan “incurably dishonest” (58). He suspects that “she began dealing in subterfuges when she was very young in order to keep that cool, insolent smile turned to the world and yet satisfy the demands of her hard jaunty body” (58) as a way to protect herself. She even avoids dating clever men, as she doesn’t want anyone exposing her weaknesses. Therefore, the conclusion can be made that her dishonesty is conditioned into her from an early age to protect
The 1920’s are known as the Roaring Twenties where there was economical prosperity and moral decline. Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby displays many symbols throughout the text of this moral decline, one being honesty versus dishonesty, these symbols are represented within the characters Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway. Jordan Baker is a symbol of dishonesty and vice versa so is Nick Carraway but rather for honesty. Nick’s truthfulness is evident, as it has been instilled within him since early childhood. Jordan’s untruthful actions appear to be instilled within her from early childhood but as a method to protect herself. In short, Carraway and Baker’s perspective on honesty …show more content…
When Nick first came upon meeting Miss Baker, he is startled by her cool demeanor as “her chin raised a little, as if she were balancing something on it which was quite likely to fall” (8). Even then he feels the need to provide an apology for “having disturbed her by coming in” (8), showing that the impression and atmosphere she invokes is intimidating. The more one learns about Jordan Baker, the more one sees that she is not only cold but deceptive and dishonest as well when she borrowed a car and lied about leaving the top down when it was raining. As well as the scandalous golf tournament that she cheated in, because of these events Nick considers Jordan “incurably dishonest” (58). He suspects that “she began dealing in subterfuges when she was very young in order to keep that cool, insolent smile turned to the world and yet satisfy the demands of her hard jaunty body” (58) as a way to protect herself. She even avoids dating clever men, as she doesn’t want anyone exposing her weaknesses. Therefore, the conclusion can be made that her dishonesty is conditioned into her from an early age to protect