F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, is a controversial yet intriguing novel published in 1926. The 1920’s in America where this novel is set play an important role in the overall context of the novel, especially as it follows the conclusion of the First World War. During this timeframe the American society lived a very over the top lifestyle and Fitzgerald uses the characters in the novel in order to display the societies values and beliefs. This is represented through themes such as old money versus new money and the corruption of The American Dream. Fitzgerald cleverly manipulates the characters in this novel in order to portray themes relevant to the excessive 1920’s timeframe.
In this novel, Fitzgerald uses characters to demonstrate …show more content…
In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald has divided where the characters live into four places, New York, the Valley of Ashes, and East egg and West egg. The holders of new money are situated in West egg which is excessive and over the top living due to the high level of new income, holders of old money are located in East egg which is high class and are more reserved with their lifestyle, which leads to a rivalry between the two. The remainder of the society are located in the Valley of Ashes, which is described as a wasteland between New York and the two eggs, covered in ash and soot. Fitzgerald paints a picture to the readers of the Valley of Ashes as a black and grey wasteland, reflecting the lower class population of the area. This is represented by a character known as George who is introduced as the ignorant husband of Tom’s mistress, Myrtle. This demonstrates in particular Tom Buchanan’s carefree lifestyle during this era and the attitudes and beliefs of his character that this is a socially acceptable situation to partake in. Gatsby is used to illustrate the excessive lifestyle of new money, through his large mansion and decadent
In this novel, Fitzgerald uses characters to demonstrate …show more content…
In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald has divided where the characters live into four places, New York, the Valley of Ashes, and East egg and West egg. The holders of new money are situated in West egg which is excessive and over the top living due to the high level of new income, holders of old money are located in East egg which is high class and are more reserved with their lifestyle, which leads to a rivalry between the two. The remainder of the society are located in the Valley of Ashes, which is described as a wasteland between New York and the two eggs, covered in ash and soot. Fitzgerald paints a picture to the readers of the Valley of Ashes as a black and grey wasteland, reflecting the lower class population of the area. This is represented by a character known as George who is introduced as the ignorant husband of Tom’s mistress, Myrtle. This demonstrates in particular Tom Buchanan’s carefree lifestyle during this era and the attitudes and beliefs of his character that this is a socially acceptable situation to partake in. Gatsby is used to illustrate the excessive lifestyle of new money, through his large mansion and decadent