Women's Role In The Great Gatsby Essay

Women’s role in The Great Gatsby In The Great Gatsby women play the role of instigators and have no important role within the story itself. Even Scott Fitzgerald acknowledges this dilemma himself saying, “…the book contains no important woman character.” (qtd. in Turnbull 197) and that, regarding to The Great Gatsby, “Women do not like it. They do not like to be emotionally passive.” (ibid. 507). Fitzgerald’s Novel portrays a new social and sexual freedom explored by women like Daisy, Jordan Baker, and Myrtle Wilson, as well as the many women who attend Gatsby’s glittering parties.
Daisy’s explorations are the most impactful within the story.
“Fitzgerald informs the reader too often of her charm without providing her with substance as a thinking, sentient woman. The effect is to reduce her to a charming wraith, a being who exists only as a fragile veneer, a shining radiance of Gatsby’s construction, the centerpiece of Tom’s wealth, rather than a woman with a personality of her own” (Strba
Ultimately Daisy falls for the “materialistic” things in the world. This explains perfectly why she married tom while Gatsby was at war. Although she had second thoughts she ultimately went through due to the fact that Gatsby was a poor soldier and she wanted more, a.k.a Tom. However, when Daisy finds out that Gatsby has returned and has brought much wealth with him, she begins to have an affair with him, almost leaving Tom twice. This toying of emoting only makes Gatsby’s dream more real than ever and makes Tom even more of a threat than ever. To even further solidify our vision of Daisy, Fitzgerald has Daisy not attend Gatsby’s funeral and instead has her run away from the problem to chase more prosperity. The upper class women of this novel are seen as “brilliant creatures who are morally and economically passive in a world which has no other role for them.”