Great Men of Great Gatsby

Jay Gatsby: The main character and the reason behind the title of the book. He is a youngman,around thirty years old, who rose from an impoverished childhood in North Dakota to become wealthy. However, he achieved wealth by participating in organized crime, by becoming a bootlegger. Though Gatsby has always wanted to be rich, his main motivation in acquiring his fortune was his love for Daisy Buchanan, who he met as a young military officer in Louisville before leaving to fight in World War I in 1917. Gatsby immediately fell in love with Daisy’s aura of luxury, grace, and charm, and lied to her about his own background in order to convince her that he was good enough for her. Daisy promised to wait for him when he left for the war, but married Tom Buchanan in 1919, while Gatsby was studying at Oxford after the war in an attempt to gain an education. From that moment on, Gatsby dedicated himself to winning Daisy back, and his acquisition of millions of dollars, his purchase of a gaudy mansion on West Egg, and his lavish weekly parties are all merely means to that end.

Nick Carraway: If Gatsby represents one part of Fitzgerald’s personality, the flashy celebritywho pursued and glorified wealth in order to impress the woman he loved, then Nick represents another part: the quiet, reflective Midwesterner adrift in the lurid East. A young man (he turns thirty during the course of the novel) from Minnesota, Nick travels to New York in 1922 to learn the bond business. He lives in the

West Egg district of Long Island, next door to Gatsby. Nick is also Daisy’s cousin, which enables him to observe and assist the complicated love affair between Daisy and Gatsby. As a result of his relationship to these two characters, Nick is the perfect choice to narrate the novel, which functions as a personal memoir of his experiences with Gatsby in the summer of 1922. (http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/gatsby/canalysis.html)

Tom Buchanan: Tom Buchanan is Daisy’s husband, an extremely wealthy man, a brute, and an athlete. He’s selfish and does what he needs to get what he wants. Most of all, he seeks control of his life and control of others. When Tom figures out that Daisy loves Gatsby, he forces a confrontation. He is then able to use Daisy’s momentary hesitation to regain control of his wife. Master of the situation once more, Tom dismisses Gatsby – and his wife – giving him permission to drive his wife home. "He won’t annoy you," he tells her. "I think he realizes that his presumptuous little flirtation is over." With that note of condescension, it is clear to all that Tom has the upper hand. Although Gatsby maintains hope beyond this scene, we all know it’s over.
(http://www.shmoop.com/great-gatsby/tom-buchanan.html)

-It's Gatsby Baby

Great Women of Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby wouldn't have ever come to be had it not been for one woman. That woman was Fitzgerald's wife, Zelda. People have said that Daisy is supposed to represent Zelda and Fitzgerald is Jay Gatsby. Lets take a look at the women who made this story a romance and a tragedy:

First is Daisy Buchanan who is Nick Carraway's cousin and the woman Gatsby is in love with. As a young woman in Louisville before the war, Daisy was tempted by a number of officers, including Gatsby. She fell in love with Gatsby and promised to wait for him. However, Daisy feels the need to be loved physically, and when a very wealthy man named Tom Buchanan asked her to marry him, Daisy decided not to wait for Gatsby after all. Now that she has become a socialite due to Tom's money, Daisy lives with Tom across from Gatsby on the more fashionable island, East Egg district of Long Island. She is sarcastic and very materialistic, and behaves superficially to hide the pain that she has because she knows that Tom is being unfaithful. Daisy also plays a huge role, not only in the life of Gatsby, but in the death of him as well. Due to the accident where Myrtle was hit by a car, Gatsby, to her benefit, suffered the consequences and was shot to death. (Sorry for the spoiler)

Next is Jordan Baker she is the friend of Daisy’s that was with her when Nick first visited the Buchanan's mansion. Nick starts to become romantically involved with her. A competitive golfer, Jordan represents one of the “new women” of the 1920s—pessimistic, boyish, and self-centered. Jordan is beautiful, but also dishonest (She cheated in order to win her first golf tournament and continually bends the truth.) Towards the end of the story Nick is so overwhelmed by everything going on that he can't seem to deal with Jordan and in one scene he hangs up on her. A little further into the book, when Jordan and Nick see each other she confesses to him that she is engaged to someone else and that he is the 'careless driver'. She is referring to the time when they were both driving in town and Nick had called her a careless driver because she was all over the road. Jordan replied with saying that they should stay out of her way because she is dangerous. Although Jordan is one the minor characters she does contribute a lot to the behavior of Nick and how she differs from Daisy.

And lastly there is Myrtle Wilson who is Tom’s other lover, whose husband runs a car garage in The Valley of Ashes. Myrtle herself possesses a great life that is contagious and desperately looks for a way to improve her situation; i.e. financially. Unfortunately for her, she chooses Tom, who treats her as a mere object of his desire and doesn't see her as anything more than something on the side. This may explain why he slapped her in the face after bringing up Daisy. Myrtle is a desperate woman who will do what she has to, to get where she believes she needs to be. This is where she went wrong. Upon seeing Gatsby's car, she runs from the car garage and it hit (Thanks to Daisy NOT Gatsby). This is the death of Myrtle, which leads to two more deaths.
(http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/gatsby/characters.html & ME)

Without the help, drama, and love that these women contributed, there wouldn't be a 'Great Gatsby'. This three women set the tone and mood to a lot of the scenes, and by paying attention to the comparisons and differences we can get the true meaning and moral of the story.

-It's Gatsby Baby