Class Divide In The Great Gatsby

Many times, it is hard for people to accept the fact that they are classified purely based on where they live and/or where they are educated. In both, The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald and Class Divide by Marc Levin, the characters are separated into neighborhoods or schools, which ultimately display the wealth they obtain. The Great Gatsby is a novel that consists of many characters who either live in the West Egg, East Egg, or Valley of Ashes. The West Egg represents the idea of new money, the East Egg signifies old money, and the Valley of Ashes represents impoverishment. Moreover, Class Divide is a documentary that interviews several people, mostly youths, who either attend public schools or private schools, such as Avenues. The students

In The Great Gatsby, there exists a divide between the people who live in the three separate areas. Although the East Egg and the West Egg are both wealthy, they each represent different types of inherited money. Specifically, the East Egg is a place where the well-born people live: Nick and Gatsby and the West Egg is a place where the newly, self-made rich people reside: Tom and Daisy Buchanan. A conversation between Nick and Tom exists in which Tom reveals that he was the one who told Wilson that Gatsby owned the car that killed Myrtle. Nick is furious and begins to hate on the Buchanans for doing horrible things knowing that their money will secure them from having to face repercussions. For example, in the novel, Nick says, “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy - they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made” (Fitzgerald 170). This proves that although both Eggs are seen to be wealthy, unlike the East Egg residents, the West Egg residents use their money as a way to protect them in situations. This supports

The students who attend Avenues private school are extremely wealthy and some can even afford to fly a private jet to Turks and Caicos for just one weekend. On the other hand, the students who attend public schooling who live in West Chelsea are underprivileged and dream of living a better life with more money. Although the public school students perceive the Avenues students as wealthy, spoiled, and undeserving, the Avenues students make it clear that even though they are privileged, they don’t think that they are better than others. Furthermore, students who live in West Chelsea and who attend public schools experience a much harsher and difficult life compared to the Avenue students. For example, a young girl Rosa who lives in West Chelsea and attends public school, says, “I’ve seen the stuff that happens in Chelsea. I have friends that died like Dantae. I’ve seen a lot of bad stuff in my area and I understand it. For a kid my age, I really understand it. I live in the projects… I live in the middle of a very poor place.” The fact that she is forced to experience the effects of these horrific acts of violence and horrible news about her brother’s friend proves that she doesn’t live in a safe and protected environment. This goes along with the theme of conflict in that Rosa is used to seeing and hearing about frightening things that no one, especially a child, should ever