Comparing The Great Gatsby And Crazy Rich Asians

SINCE THE BEGINNING of society, the wealthy have reigned over the working-class. From Kings commanding their peasants to Jeff Bezos managing 1.5 million employees, the upper-class holds power far above anything the working-class could dream of. Set in two drastically different generations, The Great Gatsby and Crazy Rich Asians uphold themes of class privilege and privilege abuse, which is inescapable in both modern and traditional society. The depiction of class structure in these two texts exhibits the abuse of class privilege, cultivating segregation between upper-class and working-class people. With the portrayal of upper-class characters, Fitzgerald and Chu use a lack of consequences for characters’ actions, cruel choices and behaviour,

Tom feels no sadness or regret for Myrtle’s death, even when she died trying to be with him. Instead, he feels remorse that he has to sell the apartment they had their affair in, telling Nick ‘When I went to give up that flat… I sat down and cried like a baby.’ Fitzgerald uses Tom’s callousness to exhibit the disconnect the upper-class have from reality and the thoughtless indifference shown to those of the lower class. Fitzgerald negatively conveys the upper-class using a narrative viewpoint. Nick Carraway describes how he awaited Daisy’s call but never received it, explaining ‘...a feeling of defiance, of scornful solidarity between Gatsby and me against them all.’ in response to her cold carelessness towards Gatsby. Fitzgerald uses Nick’s resentment to show readers the self-preservation of the upper-class and how this results in cruelty towards the lower classes. The depictions of the upper-class lacking remorse for the suffering they cause only further Fitzgerald’s representations of class privilege throughout the

Chu depicts the Singaporean upper-class making countless cruel attempts at humiliating Rachel. Nick’s Ah Ma, whom Chu initially represents as a sweet, elderly grandmother, goes as far as to say, ‘But, I will not permit you to ruin my grandson with your ambition’. Chu’s display of Ah Ma turning against Rachel depicts the upper-class’s prioritisation of class and upholding this class instead of Nick’s happiness. Chu depicts Nick’s family as disrespectful and cruel towards Rachel’s working-class, modern upbringing, with Eleanor stating that ‘all Americans think about is their own happiness. It is an illusion.’ This scene also acknowledges the cultural assumptions surrounding Crazy Rich Asians and the separation this creates between Rachel and the characters with a traditional Asian upbringing. These scenes communicate the level of cruelty the upper-class characters in Crazy Rich Asians are willing to inflict on those in the working-class. Chu’s depictions of upper-class characters and their cruel actions represent the division between the working and