Feminism In The Great Gatsby - 1643 Words

Adam Renaud Mme McLaughlin EAE4U-01 25 october 2017 A Beautiful Fool: What More Could a Girl Aspire to Be in the 1920s? ‘‘I hope she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool’’ (17) Women obtained the right to vote in the 1920s, representing major strides in feminism and political empowerment. Societal conventions of the time era, however, reinforce patriarchal ideologies and traditional values, as women were expected to marry and be subservient to their husbands. This is perpetuated in works of literature of the time era, notably The Great Gatsby, published by F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1925. Feminist literary theory helps expose the misogynist undertones of the novel by†¦show more content†¦In this confrontation, Gatsby proclaims â€Å"[s]he never loved you, do you hear? She only married you because I was poor and she was tired of waiting for me. It was a terrible mistake, but in her heart she never loved any one except me!† (72). Evidently, Gatsby thinks he understands her feelings and has reduced Daisy to a damsel in distress that he feels compelled to save. He has made these assumptions and is forcing Daisy to be apart of his fantasy world, shed ding light on male domination in relationships. In reality, she is committed to Tom and does not need to be saved. In fact, they even have a daughter, showing her commitment and devotion to her husband. In a meeting with house guests, it is revealed that â€Å"[t]he child, relinquished by the nurse, rushed across the room and rooted shyly into her mother’s dress† (62). The shyness of the daughter in confronting her mother demonstrates their distant relationship. It is apparent that Daisy does not enjoy motherhood, however, she has assumed this role because it’s what is expected of her in this society. Women are pressured to conform to this American Dream idea of a perfect family as a result of societal expectations. Her feelings of motherhood are not accounted for and she is objectified and seen solely for her birth giving features despite her true feelings and desires. Tom is not even present duringShow MoreRelatedThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald877 Wor ds   |  4 Pagesin culture today and sometimes completely misconceived, feminism is simply the idea that all people should have equal rights and opportunities, no matter their gender or race. This paper will look into two cultural texts from different time periods and analyse them through a feminist perspective, discussing the producers’ use of women in the works and feminist or anti-feminist ideas. This paper will first look at the novel The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald, F, S, 1925), analysing Fitzgerald’s use ofRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1516 Words   |  7 Pagesbe the â€Å"perfect† wife. In his novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald tells the story of a Long Island man, Nick Carraway, who is also the narrator, and his interactions with an extremely wealthy man, Jay Gatsby, who has aspirations to rekindle his romance with a former lover, Daisy Buchanan. Fitzgerald highlights the â€Å"un-feminist† ideas which drove the characters’ actions and beliefs in the novel. Although some feminist ideas are shown in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the impact ofRead MoreThe Feminist Criticism Of The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1697 Words   |  7 PagesFrom the feminist criticism, everything seems somehow related to everything else. Feminism is involved in any given field cannot be cordoned off. Marxism, however, ignore d the position of women which is strange as its key concepts are the â€Å"struggle between social classes and the blinding effects of ideology†, it might have been employed to analyze the social situation of women. Feminism saw clearly that the widespread of negative stereotyping of women in literature and film constituted a formidableRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1272 Words   |  6 Pagesafterward.† F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby, describes his own insight to his writing techniques, which gain his success through the agelessness of his novels. This is clear with The Great Gatsby, a novel narrated by the character Nick Caraway and centered on Jay Gatsby’s short-lived life. This novel is a timeless piece of literature that is still relevant to American society today because of its attitude on materialism and its portrayal of feminism relating to the era and modern day. OneRead MoreComparing Marber And Fitzgeralds The Great Gatsby1257 Words   |  6 Pagesrelationships between individuals, can be connoted as ‘forbidden’ such as Daisy, Gatsby, Tom and Myrtle. Comparably, in ‘Closer’ the relationships of Alice, Dan, Larry and Anna. On the contrary, you could say that there is also an element of underlying homosexuality in both the book and the play as Nick idolises Gatsby because of his ‘sensitivity to the promises of life’ and Dan and Larry’s chatroom scene. ‘The Great Gatsby’ written by Scott Fitzgerald was set in 1922 and published in 1925. This novelRead MoreThe Great Gatsby Analysis1327 Words   |  6 Pageslifestyles of people living at that time.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"The Great Gatsby† by F. Scott Fitzgerald can be viewed as a lens into the 1920s by depicting how different socioeconomic classes lived and the feelings of these different groups of people.   Ã‚  Ã‚   The 1920s are often referred to as the roaring 20s because it was a prosperous time for America.   This period was was a crucial time for America, socially and politically, and Fitzgerald is able to emulate this in â€Å"The Great Gatsby†.   The tone Fitzgerald utilizes throughoutRead MoreComparison Tom and Gatsby in The Great Gatsby1570 Words   |  7 PagesTom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby... perfect foils? By: Daniela Calderon In â€Å"The Great Gatsby,† written by Scott Fitzgerald, Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby are two characters that struggle with the idea of losing their shared love interest, Daisy. Tom and Gatsby’s attachment to Daisy is differently justified due to their contrasting views, personalities, attitudes, actions, backgrounds, and other factors, some of which they do share and concur in. Fitzgerald did a great thing here. He created two purposefullyRead MoreAre All Men `` Really Created Equal?1380 Words   |  6 Pagesobjective way in his novel The Great Gatsby and uses this to show the false reality of the American dream and how it plays on the idea that in America â€Å"all men are equal†. During the 1920’s huge changes were made concerning the roles of women, like getting the the right to vote in 1922, feminist movements, Throughout history women have been negatively objectified and Fitzgerald paints a picture of that using his own values. He influences his rea ders to perceive The Great Gatsby with a bias that women haveRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald984 Words   |  4 PagesIn the â€Å"Great Gatsby† F. Scott Fitzgerald explores the modern woman’s symbolic signiï ¬ cance in an era of luxury and excess. Many of the female characters are seen enjoying the freedoms of the ‘flapper’ lifestyle during the Inter-War period. Fitzgerald offers the public an image of the ‘flappers’ who are modern young woman sexually liberated, self-centered, fun-loving, and magnetic. Fitzgerald uses the female characters in the novel, such as: daisy buchanan, Jordan baker and myrtle wilson as a wayRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1543 Words   |  7 PagesK.B. Denis Ms. Chandhok English 9-2 5/112016 In The Great Gatsby, Scott F. Fitzgerald explores the amourous institutions of marriage (Tom and Daisy Buchanan), dating (Nick Carraway and Jordan Baker), and affairs (Tom and Myrtle Wilson) only to come to the conclusion that true love is unattainable. Gaps in gender, personal disposition, and social standing prevent these relationships from reaching their full potential. By comparing and contrasting these three different kinds of relationships with each