Does Fitzgerald Present Myrtle's Perception In The Great Gatsby

Gatsby and the Characters’ Perceptions In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the characters’ perception of themselves and those around them lead them to live in worlds apart from reality while they try to climb up higher in the Eastern wealthy society. Their quest to advance to a place of extreme excess and wealth out of the reach of their incomes and birth rights leads them to their downfall as they try to outlive their luck. The characters falsely perceive their peers and surroundings, leading them to a false sense of security, where they can hide within their wealth and making them miscalculative and reckless. The characters perceptions of the meaning of love differ vastly, leading them to lose sight of love’s meaning or purpose.

“I love Daisy too. Once a while I go off on a spree… but in my heart I love her all the time,” and as Tom and Daisy break their vows, they still reconcile and come back together to hide within their wealth (138). Tom loves Daisy, but that does not stop him from putting on a facade that can trick Myrtle into believing his love for her. Myrtle’s belief in Tom attests to her foolishness, not to Tom’s ability to bend reality, as he does get caught in affairs. Nick’s perception of love based on personality does not always fit in his character of blind morality. Jordan liked Nick for his caution and honesty, but his interest in her represents the reality that he wants to advance in social class. He’d “been writing letters once a week and signing them: ‘Love, Nick,’ and all I could think of was how, when that certain girl played tennis, a faint mustache of perspiration appeared on her upper lip. Nevertheless, there was a vague understanding that had to be tactfully broken off before I was free,” and his arrangement by Daisy to Jordan marked the reality of him trying to gain notoriety; his advancement took priority over the other woman as he dismisses her over something as trivial as sweat to get a chance to move up in

Jay Gatsby’s secretivity draws scorn and allegations such as questions like “is [Gatsby] some big bootlegger… a lot of these newly rich people are” that are lobed at him by Tom and others to discount his character based on his lack of inheritance (114). As opposed to Tom, Gatsby pure personality relies not on names and net worth to determine who qualifies as a decent person, rather he treats everyone, such as his neighbor Nick, well and with respect. Like Gatsby, Wolfsheim’s work influences others’ to believe in his corruption. “Let us learn to show our friendship for a man when he is alive and not after he is dead,” Wolfsheim’s treatment of those around him showcases his innocent intentions (180). Tom and Jordan both try to get others to perceive them as pure, but in reality, they both corrupt. Tom hurls accusations at Gatsby and chastises him for an affair, while he too does not respect the marriage with Daisy that he tries to defend. Jordan tries to tout her morality, claiming to act like a lady, but her record does not support that, as she cheats.”She is incurably dishonest. She was not able to endure being at a disadvantage,” (63). Daisy crafts her likeness to the purity and fragility of a rose, which the others believe as her true identity. Her nature does not lend itself to loving men, but rather