Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby: The Women
The women in Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby would likely face a difficult environment in today's modern society. Since the women, however, were the harbingers of today's worldly 'women about town' it could be an interesting conjecture as to whether they were the actual foundation and support for the development of today's women. Whether they thought of themselves in that respect is certainly food for thought, but the tone of the book does nothing to propagate that belief. Instead, most of the women in the book seem to be insipid little snipes that are more concerned with shopping, looking good and the next party or event they can attend in order to show off all the results of such shopping. Even such a mundane excursion as an afternoon spent in an apartment in New York with her lover and friends was cause for Mrs. Wilson to don elaborate afternoon wear. In the book we discover that Mrs. Wilson had changed into an "elaborate afternoon dress of cream colored chiffon which gave out a continual rustle as she swept about the room" (Fitzgerald, 35). It was a time when the women were not only looking to impress the men they associated with, many of the ladies in the book also seemed to be acting to impress anyone else of any p
Wilson was much more impressed by the glitter of gold and the things it could buy than Daisy ever could be. Wilson's affections and love than Daisy's. Wilson "the despairing figure on the couch bleeding fluently and trying to spread a copy of 'Town Tattle' over the tapestry scenes of Versailles" (Fitzgerald 42). The casual attitude towards each other, whether men towards women, or women towards men and each other, reflects a societal attitude of the era which can be disconcerting to the reader. Allowing for the fact that the women had a limited, but evolving role in U. Wilson seemed to be seeking the same type of fervent behavior from Tom. One expert wrote of Gatsby's women "the right clothes and accessories matter even more. "In reality Daisy is a bitch" yet Gatsby never sees past the superficial "fur coats of the girls returning from Miss This or That's and the chatter of frozen breath and the hands waving overhead" (Fitzgerald 184). In this belief he is totally mistaken. This is especially true of both Daisy and Jordan, although certainly more so of Daisy. What Fitzgerald portrays in The Great Gatsby is the lack of meaningful relationships to be found during that era. society during the early 20th century, they are still portrayed in the book as being somewhat less than the men in the book, and the men consistently treated them in that manner. 'Town Tattle' brings to mind the types of yellow journalism prevalent in today's supermarket tabloids so popular with many individuals in society. What is ironic is that while the two chasers of love seemed to be more human, the two who were being chased could not have cared less, perhaps even reveling in the feelings and effects they produced in others. Dishonesty in a women is a thing you never blame deeply - I was casually sorry, and then I forgot" (Fitgerald 63).
Common topics in this essay:
Fitzgerald's Gatsby,
Jordan Daisy,
Nick Daisy,
Characters Gatsby,
Tom Buchanan,
Versailles Fitzgerald,
Miss That's,
Daisy Daisy,
Nick I'm,
Daisy Tom,
women book,
towards women,
green light,
reality daisy,
elaborate afternoon,
'town tattle',
casual attitude,
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