Daisy Buchanan: The Golden Girl Daisy Buchanan is a whirlwind character in The Great Gatsby that represents ultimate wealth and beauty. She seems to be the figure created only by the wild imagination of F. Scott Fitzgerald. In reality, Daisy is based on two of the most influential women in Fitzgerald’s life: Ginevra King and Zelda Fitzgerald. These women are the two great loves of Fitzgerald and play the dominant role in creating Daisy Buchanan. The controversial role of Daisy shows the challenges of a woman in high society along and the complexities that go along with various relationships with the people in her life. Because she is based on real women in Fitzgerald’s life, the story is more compelling and captures the life of Daisy in a
…show more content…
He incorporates Zelda’s free-spirit (Bick) and Ginevra’s care-free attitude in the complex character of Daisy Buchanan (Lehan 69). Fitzgerald brought the intensity of his relationship with Ginevra while writing The Great Gatsby and dreaming up the character of Daisy (Lehan 68). She appears in his writing as much as 20 years after their relationship ends in stories such as “Babes in the Woods” and “The Debutante” (Lehan 68). After Ginevra, there was Zelda: a woman that requires proof of Fitzgerald’s success before allowing herself to be with him (Bick). His first successful novel was part of his journey to gain Zelda’s hand in marriage (Bick). This is the basis of Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship in the novel. Gatsby has to prove his worth before he can be with Daisy. Both Zelda and Daisy were considered southern belles (Bick). These women create the streamline for most of Fitzgerald’s works because of his attachment to them, which he also brings to Daisy …show more content…
. . I’m glad it’s a girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool- that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool” (Fitzgerald 17). She says this because she knows her husband Tom isn’t being faithful to her. Daisy is seen more as a victim because of Tom’s infidelities and the fact that she never confronts him about it (Lehan 75). Daisy suffers from this until Gatsby offers her a way out of her troublesome relationship and away from Tom (Murphy). But Tom will not allow Daisy to be taken from him by Gatsby. At this point, Daisy becomes a chess piece that Tom and Gatsby argue over (Lehan 76). This is when Daisy becomes impalpable and turns away from both of them. Daisy is victimized by Tom while also embodying the world that he is part of at the same time (Lehan 76). This is why she returns to the comfort of her husband and leaves Gatsby, because she doesn’t live up to the high standard he set for her. Gatsby needs Daisy to tell him that she never loved Tom so their lives can go back to the way it was in Louisville. She becomes less relevant as her story becomes more dependent on her being there for Gatsby (Lehan 74). But Daisy is unable to tell Gatsby what he needs to hear. She does this so easily because she is a “careless person” along with her husband Tom (Lehan 67). Gatsby’s death is almost seen as a merciful act because it is even more painful for him to live without Daisy
He incorporates Zelda’s free-spirit (Bick) and Ginevra’s care-free attitude in the complex character of Daisy Buchanan (Lehan 69). Fitzgerald brought the intensity of his relationship with Ginevra while writing The Great Gatsby and dreaming up the character of Daisy (Lehan 68). She appears in his writing as much as 20 years after their relationship ends in stories such as “Babes in the Woods” and “The Debutante” (Lehan 68). After Ginevra, there was Zelda: a woman that requires proof of Fitzgerald’s success before allowing herself to be with him (Bick). His first successful novel was part of his journey to gain Zelda’s hand in marriage (Bick). This is the basis of Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship in the novel. Gatsby has to prove his worth before he can be with Daisy. Both Zelda and Daisy were considered southern belles (Bick). These women create the streamline for most of Fitzgerald’s works because of his attachment to them, which he also brings to Daisy …show more content…
. . I’m glad it’s a girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool- that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool” (Fitzgerald 17). She says this because she knows her husband Tom isn’t being faithful to her. Daisy is seen more as a victim because of Tom’s infidelities and the fact that she never confronts him about it (Lehan 75). Daisy suffers from this until Gatsby offers her a way out of her troublesome relationship and away from Tom (Murphy). But Tom will not allow Daisy to be taken from him by Gatsby. At this point, Daisy becomes a chess piece that Tom and Gatsby argue over (Lehan 76). This is when Daisy becomes impalpable and turns away from both of them. Daisy is victimized by Tom while also embodying the world that he is part of at the same time (Lehan 76). This is why she returns to the comfort of her husband and leaves Gatsby, because she doesn’t live up to the high standard he set for her. Gatsby needs Daisy to tell him that she never loved Tom so their lives can go back to the way it was in Louisville. She becomes less relevant as her story becomes more dependent on her being there for Gatsby (Lehan 74). But Daisy is unable to tell Gatsby what he needs to hear. She does this so easily because she is a “careless person” along with her husband Tom (Lehan 67). Gatsby’s death is almost seen as a merciful act because it is even more painful for him to live without Daisy