Attractiveness In The Great Gatsby

“They’re out of my league.” Every true American dreamer has felt this statement at some point in their lives. That’s why people love stories with an underdog because they too hope to beat the odds. One of the most well renowned stories in the world, The Great Gatsby, is about a man who attempts to beat the odds, all because of his love for a woman. This man’s name is Gatsby, and throughout the book he is portrayed as an attractive and alluring character, but he came from a middle class family and fell in love with a high class woman. They began to fall in love when they were young. Then, Gatsby was sent off to war, and to college; ergo, he was not able to see this woman for 5 years. After those 5 years, the woman was married to another man,

According to www.psychologytoday.com, physical looks, charm, and wealth are features that make a man attractive. All of these components of attractiveness were possessed by Gatsby. “He smiled understandingly --- much more understandingly. It was one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal resistance in it, that you may come across four or five times in your life” (Fitzgerald 48). This is the narrator, Nick, explaining how Gatsby’s smile is an extremely charming physical feature. Fitzgerald's diction alludes to Gatsby being a very charming, and good-looking man. He used words such as eternal resistance, rare, and understandingly to ensure that the reader can understand that Gatsby is exceptionally charming. “‘They’re beautiful shirts,’ she cried, her voice muffled in the thick folds. ‘It makes me sad because I haven't seen such---such beautiful shirts’” (Fitzgerald 92). In the novel Gatsby shows Daisy around his house, and he showed her his clothing wardrobe. She was already attracted to Gatsby because of his charm and looks, but was moved to tears when she saw how wealthy he was. “‘Absolutely real---have pages and everything. I thought they’d be a nice and durable cardboard. Matter of fact, they’re absolutely real’” (Fitzgerald 45). In this section of the novel Nick is with a man in Gatsby’s library. The man was astounded by Gatsby’s wealth because all the books in Gatsby's library were real. Usually people had fake books to make it look like they were rich and well educated, but Gatsby was different and this man was attracted to that. “Looking from one group to another with approving eyes. His tanned skin was drawn attractively tight to his face, and his short hair looked as if it were trimmed every day” (Fitzgerald 50). This is another description of Gatsby’s physical appearance being attractive because he has a very masculine face and well kept hair. “I saw