In the novel, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald shares with us a variety of themes. Such as power, the American Dream, love and justice. However on top of all of these Fitzgerald develops stratification within the social groups at that time. The Great Gatsby is a well known brilliant piece of literature, written by F.Scott Fitzgerald, offering a vivid peek into American life in the 1920s. Fitzgerald purposely shows the the distinct groups within the novel, old money, new money and no money and the problems associated with each. In particular the social group of new money, which are situated in West Egg. This is where the pivotal character of Gatsby lives and fits into this social group. Throughout the text Fitzgerald demonstrates how the new money
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Gatsby lives in West Egg and is of “new money” and throughout the novel Gatsby is trying to climb the social ladder and reach the idea of ”old money”, in order to win over Daisy Buchanan, who lives across the harbour in East Egg. Gatsby tries a number of methods in order to achieve this. A major reason for the class that Gatsby fits into is due to his family background and where he comes from. Gatsby makes an attempt to portray that he was educated at Oxford, in order to cover up his true background and to fit into the upper class society that Daisy is clearly a part of. . “I was brought up in America but educated at Oxford because all my ancestors have been educated there for many years. It is a family tradition.” He looked at me sideways – and I knew why Jordan Baker had believed he was lying. He hurried the phrase “educated at Oxford” or swallowed it or choked on it as though it had bothered him before”. Gatby’s attempt to convince the “old money” people does not work and it confirms the social distance between him and Daisy. Even though Gatsby owns an enormous house, cars and throws extravagant parties, he still feels the need to pretend to be an Oxford graduate in order to be accepted and seen as an equal in the eyes of the …show more content…
Gatsby uses his wealth to show Daisy that he is of the same class or level as her, as Daisy’s background is of “old money”. Gatsby brought Daisy back to his home to prove to her his wealth and she is fascinated by the extravagance and the luxurious lifestyle he leads. As Gatsby’s threw shirts over Daisy she bent her head into the shirts and began to cry. “They’re such beautiful shirts,” she sobbed, her voice muffled in the thick folds. “It makes me sad because I’ve never seen such – such beautiful shirts before”. By displaying his wealth in this manner, Gatsby tries to impress Daisy with material goods and it shows the lengths that Gatsby is willing to go in order to achieve his dream. These shirts are a symbol of Gatsby’s ability to spend money. However even though Daisy is impressed by the shirts, it does not affect the position in where Gatsby sits in society. This is because at that time it wasn’t about how much money you could spend but about where the money came from. This is the major barrier that prevents Gatsby from achieving his dream of winning over Daisy and reaching “old money
Gatsby lives in West Egg and is of “new money” and throughout the novel Gatsby is trying to climb the social ladder and reach the idea of ”old money”, in order to win over Daisy Buchanan, who lives across the harbour in East Egg. Gatsby tries a number of methods in order to achieve this. A major reason for the class that Gatsby fits into is due to his family background and where he comes from. Gatsby makes an attempt to portray that he was educated at Oxford, in order to cover up his true background and to fit into the upper class society that Daisy is clearly a part of. . “I was brought up in America but educated at Oxford because all my ancestors have been educated there for many years. It is a family tradition.” He looked at me sideways – and I knew why Jordan Baker had believed he was lying. He hurried the phrase “educated at Oxford” or swallowed it or choked on it as though it had bothered him before”. Gatby’s attempt to convince the “old money” people does not work and it confirms the social distance between him and Daisy. Even though Gatsby owns an enormous house, cars and throws extravagant parties, he still feels the need to pretend to be an Oxford graduate in order to be accepted and seen as an equal in the eyes of the …show more content…
Gatsby uses his wealth to show Daisy that he is of the same class or level as her, as Daisy’s background is of “old money”. Gatsby brought Daisy back to his home to prove to her his wealth and she is fascinated by the extravagance and the luxurious lifestyle he leads. As Gatsby’s threw shirts over Daisy she bent her head into the shirts and began to cry. “They’re such beautiful shirts,” she sobbed, her voice muffled in the thick folds. “It makes me sad because I’ve never seen such – such beautiful shirts before”. By displaying his wealth in this manner, Gatsby tries to impress Daisy with material goods and it shows the lengths that Gatsby is willing to go in order to achieve his dream. These shirts are a symbol of Gatsby’s ability to spend money. However even though Daisy is impressed by the shirts, it does not affect the position in where Gatsby sits in society. This is because at that time it wasn’t about how much money you could spend but about where the money came from. This is the major barrier that prevents Gatsby from achieving his dream of winning over Daisy and reaching “old money