Examples Of Privilege In The Great Gatsby

“Privilege is invisible to those who have it”. A famous quote by Professor Michael Kimmel. Privilege, although very prominent in today’s society is not a modern concept. Privilege dates back hundreds of years. It shaped the way people thought all through history; how they view others, and how they viewed themselves. F. Scott Fitzgerald, the Author of The Great Gatsby (1925) and T. Melfi, the Director of hidden figures both heavily applied the theme of privilege in their storylines. They strategically used privilege to highlight the historical accuracy at the time, of the disadvantages between gender, class status, and race.

Throughout the 19th century, the stereotype of women was that their sole purpose was to serve men. To cook, to clean,

Right? But what is rarely talked about by high-class society is the wealthier they are, the more privilege they gain. Fitzgerald, however, did a remarkable job at portraying this exact matter in The Great Gatsby. The book begins with the narrator, Nick Carraway, introducing himself, and he then begins to describe the layout of the West Egg and East Egg of New York, “their physical resemblance must be a source of perpetual confusion to the gulls that fly overhead. to the wingless, a more arresting phenomenon is their dissimilarity in every particular except shape and size. Pg7" Nick demonstrates New York’s privilege already by comparing birds, who have no sense of wealth or status to ‘the wingless’; referring to people and how even though the land is the same, people will do anything to separate themselves from others they view as less. What is the specific AF/SD explored here? And through this line, it also gives insight to the readers into how even a man like Nick Carraway, who prides himself on being non-judgmental, separates even identical land just by who lives there. Link to

Fitzgerald used Tom as a way for the reader to understand how people could so easily abuse their privilege in society at the time. Due to his wealth and lifestyle, Tom takes it upon himself to abuse the privilege he has to get away with anything he wants. He is described in the novel as, “Two shining arrogant eyes had established dominance over his face and gave him the appearance of always leaning aggressively forward. Not even the effeminate swank of his riding clothes could hide the enormous power of that body”. This is exactly what happens throughout the book with his affair with his mistress named Myrtle. Despite Tom’s wife being one of the most sought over women of the East Egg, he still disregards her feelings and has an affair that he doesn’t even bother to keep secret. Because he eulogizes himself that much. Tom refuses to acknowledge any faults he has throughout the book; including cheating on Daisy, breaking Myrtle’s nose, and assisting in the Death of Gatsby. His privilege is used as a shield from the violent nature of his character. Fitzgerald represented Tom as a motif for everything that is wrong with the class and status system; how privilege can get into your