Examples Of Classism In The Great Gatsby

Walter Benn Michaels starts off the piece with the topic of classism. But instead of taking the traditional approach, he decides to use the writings and opposing viewpoints of Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. As he breaks down the classism in The Great Gatsby, he introduces the way people seek separation and makes a transition into the topic of diversity. From there he explained how the living definition of diversity has changed over time and is now a widely accepted concept. However, he highlights how he thinks diversity shouldn’t be a tool used to erase identity and differences but instead embraced. Finally, Michaels ends where he began with a message of economic equality.
Fitzgerald famously told Hemingway, “The rich are different than you and me.” To which he replied, “Yes they have more money than you and me.” Even though Fitzgerald thought that the way he thought about the rich was problematic, he still found himself “mythologizing and sentimentalizing the rich” and treating them as a “special glamorous race”. Alternatively, Hemingway simplified the differences, he believed that it was just a matter of belongings and race. Despite their polar opinions, …show more content…
He speaks on economic inequality and how people view each different class group and what’s wrong with it. Afterwards he moves to racial inequality and the troubles with diversity, how erasure of identity can be a problem if you approach it the wrong way. He ends off with how he thinks we should deal with these issues and that we should shift more energy toward economic diversity. Ultimately Michaels wants people to understand and identify the ways they try to separate themselves from each other and make differences between people who are similar to them, while also appreciating diversity and working together to bridge the gaps where diversity is