The Great Gatsby: Old Wealth vs. New Wealth Immigrants from various nations left many Americans jobless. New wealth and old wealth had a major gap than others recognized. The Great Gatsby showed the gap between the Buchanan’s and Gatsby in assorted ways. The feelings and relationship between Tom and Gatsby reflected upon the money they had. The wealth described the social status of many of the individuals. The wealth helped a few individuals, but proved to be a disaster for others. Many of the relationships within the novel depended highly on the category of wealth . Signs of the Great Depression were greatly showing but it did not bother any of the individuals in the novel. The culture and society of the 1920s greatly emphasized the division
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Ronald Berman in The Cambridge Companion to F. Scott Fitzgerald, stated, “... [s]ocial judgement matters more. Daisy knows that life has many things more permanent than love, and Gatsby knows, or Fitzgerald knows for him, that equality is only a political virtue…” (Berman 79). Everything involved money; money was the missing key to the treasure. Daisy became known for the symbol of money. She was befuddled between her love for Gatsby and Tom. During that time, money was becoming a major issue. In the future, there was going to be a shortage of money. Money made Daisy even more distracted than she already was. To her, the wealth of the person mattered more than the love (Donaldson & …show more content…
They were both rich, which could have easily made them friends. Near the beginning of the novel, Tom did not know about Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship in the past. Since he did not know, there was no reason for Tom and Gatsby to not become friends. This was not the case; Tom and Gatsby were more of frenemies than friends. The reason behind this was the type of money they had. Tom was filled with old wealth and Gatsby had the new wealth. They both considered each other fake for having the money which they had and hated each other for that reason. Gatsby and Tom showed mutual feelings toward each other, when in reality it was more than regular, friendship feelings. On the other hand, both Gatsby and Tom loved to freely spend their money (Fitzgerald). The Great Depression was nearing but money was still being thrown into waste. There were many signs which warned that the Great Depression was nearing. Inflation was occurring in many parts of the nation. Businesses began to con many of their customers. Finding jobs was becoming harder than usual. The Stock Market crash was also nearing. The crash led the United States to losing $14-$16 billion. After the 1929 crash, unemployment rates increased drastically. Also tariffs and tax rates were increasing dramatically. It made the lives of the people more severe
Ronald Berman in The Cambridge Companion to F. Scott Fitzgerald, stated, “... [s]ocial judgement matters more. Daisy knows that life has many things more permanent than love, and Gatsby knows, or Fitzgerald knows for him, that equality is only a political virtue…” (Berman 79). Everything involved money; money was the missing key to the treasure. Daisy became known for the symbol of money. She was befuddled between her love for Gatsby and Tom. During that time, money was becoming a major issue. In the future, there was going to be a shortage of money. Money made Daisy even more distracted than she already was. To her, the wealth of the person mattered more than the love (Donaldson & …show more content…
They were both rich, which could have easily made them friends. Near the beginning of the novel, Tom did not know about Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship in the past. Since he did not know, there was no reason for Tom and Gatsby to not become friends. This was not the case; Tom and Gatsby were more of frenemies than friends. The reason behind this was the type of money they had. Tom was filled with old wealth and Gatsby had the new wealth. They both considered each other fake for having the money which they had and hated each other for that reason. Gatsby and Tom showed mutual feelings toward each other, when in reality it was more than regular, friendship feelings. On the other hand, both Gatsby and Tom loved to freely spend their money (Fitzgerald). The Great Depression was nearing but money was still being thrown into waste. There were many signs which warned that the Great Depression was nearing. Inflation was occurring in many parts of the nation. Businesses began to con many of their customers. Finding jobs was becoming harder than usual. The Stock Market crash was also nearing. The crash led the United States to losing $14-$16 billion. After the 1929 crash, unemployment rates increased drastically. Also tariffs and tax rates were increasing dramatically. It made the lives of the people more severe