Misogyny in the Great Gatsby
1920s is an era of great social upheaval, a time when new ideas challenge the old ideas, during which the new feminist movement came up against the old patriarchal society. During the 20s the feminist movement was fiercer than it ever was, and because of so, many traditional patriarchal followers felt threatened and the need to counter such movement. In the book the Great Gatsby, trace of such conflict is also seen. From Daisy’s self-awareness and Jordan Baker’s self-sufficiency, the audience see that women’s position in the society is changing. Fitzgerald, The author of the book and the defender of the old established patriarchal order, upheld his misogynistic attitude towards woman in the novel by criticizing …show more content…
He believed that a woman would do anything she can in seeking for her own pleasure while ignoring the higher virtues such as love. This misconception of women comes from his earlier romance with Ginevra and Zelda. Ginevra King was Fitzgerald’s first girl friend who broke up with him in 1917 because he is unable to sustain Ginevra’s upper class luxury lifestyle. Later He met Zelda at Montgomery Alabama, while serving in U.S. army stationed at Camp Sheridan. Again, because he is a poor boy, Zelda refused to marry him until his first publication “This side of Paradise”, which he used to prove his capability to success. Because Fitzgerald’s twice failure in pursuing the girls he loved, he had developed his cynical attitude towards women, and thinks that all women are materialistic. Daisy is the representation of the corrupted nature of woman in the Great Gatsby for she was extremely materialistic and void of meaning. In the beginning, Daisy received a necklace from Tom and a letter from Gatsby. “She took it [the love letter] into the tub with her and squeezed it up into a wet ball, and only let me leave it in the soap-dish when she saw that it was coming to pieces like snow.” Daisy surrendered the love from Gatsby to the material good from Tom, because she believed that material good will provide her a sense of stability and guarantee her a luxury lifestyle. This connects back to Ginevra who broke up with Fitzgerald because he is poor. Later when Gatsby return to America rich and powerful, Daisy once again started dating Gatsby; however, she has only fall in love with what Gatsby can provide
1920s is an era of great social upheaval, a time when new ideas challenge the old ideas, during which the new feminist movement came up against the old patriarchal society. During the 20s the feminist movement was fiercer than it ever was, and because of so, many traditional patriarchal followers felt threatened and the need to counter such movement. In the book the Great Gatsby, trace of such conflict is also seen. From Daisy’s self-awareness and Jordan Baker’s self-sufficiency, the audience see that women’s position in the society is changing. Fitzgerald, The author of the book and the defender of the old established patriarchal order, upheld his misogynistic attitude towards woman in the novel by criticizing …show more content…
He believed that a woman would do anything she can in seeking for her own pleasure while ignoring the higher virtues such as love. This misconception of women comes from his earlier romance with Ginevra and Zelda. Ginevra King was Fitzgerald’s first girl friend who broke up with him in 1917 because he is unable to sustain Ginevra’s upper class luxury lifestyle. Later He met Zelda at Montgomery Alabama, while serving in U.S. army stationed at Camp Sheridan. Again, because he is a poor boy, Zelda refused to marry him until his first publication “This side of Paradise”, which he used to prove his capability to success. Because Fitzgerald’s twice failure in pursuing the girls he loved, he had developed his cynical attitude towards women, and thinks that all women are materialistic. Daisy is the representation of the corrupted nature of woman in the Great Gatsby for she was extremely materialistic and void of meaning. In the beginning, Daisy received a necklace from Tom and a letter from Gatsby. “She took it [the love letter] into the tub with her and squeezed it up into a wet ball, and only let me leave it in the soap-dish when she saw that it was coming to pieces like snow.” Daisy surrendered the love from Gatsby to the material good from Tom, because she believed that material good will provide her a sense of stability and guarantee her a luxury lifestyle. This connects back to Ginevra who broke up with Fitzgerald because he is poor. Later when Gatsby return to America rich and powerful, Daisy once again started dating Gatsby; however, she has only fall in love with what Gatsby can provide