ipl-logo

Gender Lens In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

598 Words3 Pages

Gender Lens
Daisy, a high-status woman, is constrained by her position, which influences her actions and choices.
Due to her high status, she's constricted from society. In the 1920s, society put pressure on women to behave a certain way. Daisy was under more pressure than those in middle or lower classes due to her high status. High-class women in the 1920s needed to be ladylike, marry someone from their social class and comply with their husbands. Debutante was a way that wealthy families could present their daughters when of age, to find a husband who is suitable. Often times the suitors would have to be wealthier than the women’s family. In Daisy’s case “She was just eighteen…and by far the most popular of all the young girls in Louisville” (74). She was expected to marry someone extremely wealthy given her background. When more details emerged about …show more content…

Tom cheats on Daisy multiple times in the novel, even when he tries to hide it from her. Daisy, as a woman, is unable to express her true feelings to Tom; instead, she must keep them to herself. When Daisy failed to keep Tom from interacting with his mistress she tries to forget about it. According to Daisy, “It couldn’t be helped! …cried Daisy with a tense gayety” (15). Daisy is unable to pursue her desired actions because she must comply with her husband. Even though she despises that her husband cheats on her and wishes she could leave him she knows in her head and heart that she cannot. When Daisy was at Gatsby’s house and saw all of his beautiful shirts, she is described as sobbing. While sobbing she commented on the shirts “ It makes [her] sad because [she have] never seen such-such beautiful shirts before”(92). Daisy realized at this point that no matter what she did, she would never be able to leave her husband. No matter how much she despises him and is unhappy with her life, she cannot leave Tom without societal

Show More
Related

Daisy And Gatsby Research Paper

680 Words | 3 Pages

Her husband Tom is having an affair with another woman Daisy doesnt know but of course, has her ways and knows what happened. Daisy and Gatsby have had a past history of being in love but it doesn't end up working out. But later they came together and showed the love they have for each other hasn't gone away. “Can’t repeat the past?…

Read More

Jordan Baker's Representation Of Women In The Great Gatsby

1421 Words | 6 Pages

The 1920s is a time of technological, economical, and social exploration. Myrtle, Daisy, and Jordan display the full image of what it is like to be a women in New York during the 1920s. They each have a personal struggle with society and the fight between what they want and what is expected of them. Each of these women wants to experience the glamor of the 1920s but has to maintain some of the traditional elegance of a woman. If the neglect to do so, they are treated harshly by society.

Read More

Examples Of Daisy In The Great Gatsby

1197 Words | 5 Pages

Daisy is not just a shallow gold digger, she is a tragic lover who was corrupted by greed and money and materialistic things. Her whole life shows the extreme extent of how the love and lust for money affected Americans in the

Read More

Lack Of Power In The Great Gatsby

871 Words | 4 Pages

Historically, women have had to overcome much harder challenges than men to be recognized. This was no different in the 1920’s where, amongst the glitz and glamor, women still dealt with hypocritical thinking. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald critiques the lack of power that women had by showing hypocritical and harmful thinking towards women like Daisy and Myrtle, and how this mindset is still prevalent within society. In the novel, The Great Gatsby, the character of Daisy Buchanan is used to portray the hypocrisy between women and men during the time period.

Read More

Daisy's Perception Of Others In The Great Gatsby

458 Words | 2 Pages

Since divorce is frowned upon during the 1920s, Daisy stays with Tom despite his infidelity and aggressive personality. As a result, viewers can assume Daisy’s perception of herself may be overshadowed by insecurity and inadequacy despite the fact she is far from it, considering the fact she is still extremely wealthy and beautiful. Ok come back to this paragraph cuz idk what im saying anymore. It is common knowledge that women in the twenties were often objectified. Men viewed women as things, not people, and that the main purpose of women was to be objects of the male gaze.

Read More

Stereotypes In The Great Gatsby

1196 Words | 5 Pages

Daisy is put on a pedestal by the men around her; she is viewed as a “prize” that must be won and a decorative ornament rather than a person they genuinely love. Compared to this, in modern-day society, other qualities such as intelligence and independence are also indicators that many look for in others. However, in the story, “Daisy’s physical beauty and social gifts. [ensures] her social success: she is “by far the most popular of all the young girls” in town; hordes of “excititives” find her desirable and seek her attention” (“Chapter 8 The Great Gatsby: An Unusual Case of Mate Poaching”). This causes Daisy to have to prioritize such shallow qualities in order to secure financial and emotional security via her spouse.

Read More

Examples Of Patriarchy In The Great Gatsby

1072 Words | 5 Pages

Instead of raising her daughter to be emotionally intelligent, she wants her to fit society’s expectations of women: simple and obedient. Daisy believes that it is better to conform to what society wants and be content with that, than to have to hide her true self from others. Furthermore, The Lehigh study adds to Fitzgerald descriptions of her by saying, “while Daisy conforms to a shared, patriarchal idea of femininity that values subservient and docile females, she also understands these social standards for women and chooses to play right into them” (Lehigh University). Daisy chooses to maintain her identity as “America’s golden girl” instead of standing up for herself because of fear. Men would perceive her differently if she were to call out Tom for his affair or choose to live her life for herself and not others.

Read More

Marginalization Of Women In The Great Gatsby Analysis

853 Words | 4 Pages

Daisy realizes how women during her time were always led by men without a voice since their decisions, opinions, and thoughts were second to those of males and their everyday lives were determined men. Daisy is expressing how due to their marginalization women are better off being fooled and dumb because the voice of women did

Read More

Character Analysis Of Jordan Baker In The Great Gatsby

1154 Words | 5 Pages

Jordan’s physical appearance shows her as a “blonde and very athletic, physical, tan, and angular” (Best Character Analysis). In contrast, Daisy is described as a more fragile figure with dark hair and she is married, unlike Jordan. In the book, Daisy is perceived as one of the most socially acceptable woman of the time. During the 1920’s, women were expected to marry, especially wealthy women. Staying home with the children was the main job of women during this time.

Read More

Daisy In The Great Gatsby Essay

428 Words | 2 Pages

In Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Daisy is portrayed as a modern woman; she is sophisticated, careless and beautifully shallow. Daisy knows who she is, and what it takes for her to be able to keep the lifestyle she grew up in, and this adds to her carelessness and her feigned interest in life. In all, Daisy is a woman who will not sacrifice material desires or comfort for love or for others, and her character is politely cruel in this way. Daisy’s main strength, which buoyed her throughout her youth and when she was in Louisville, is her ability to know what was expected of her and feign cluelessness.

Read More

Alice Walker The Color Purple Quotes

495 Words | 2 Pages

Well, back in the early 1900’s women were looked at as lower than the lowest even if they were married to the rich. Daisy’s husband, Tom, is one of the richest men in New York, along with Mr. Gatsby, the man she tried waiting for. Tom treats Daisy as if she means nothing to him, and even though Mr. Gatsby treats her better than Tom, he still wants too much from

Read More

Theme Of Women In The Great Gatsby

2397 Words | 10 Pages

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel, The Great Gatsby, is full of themes of wealth, love, and tragedy, as well as a subtle but powerful representation of gender. During the time this book was written, women’s suffrage had begun, so women were taking their first steps towards equality with men. The three main women characters in the novel - Daisy Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson, and Jordan Baker- all have things in common but can be vastly different; they reflect both man and society’s view of women in the early 20th century. The Great Gatsby portrays the characters Daisy, Myrtle, and Jordan as stereotypes of women during the 1920s, which is shown through their behavior, beliefs, and ultimate fates and their personalities display both powerful and potentially harmful stereotypes of women at this time.

Read More

The Great Gatsby Love Analysis

1062 Words | 5 Pages

In the present time, Daisy is moved on and married, with a child in a beautiful grand home. Her relationship with Tom can be speculated to be based on her wanting to gain his finances or that he can support her like no one else can. Daisy portrays an idealistic vision of herself, and , throughout the story, shows a selfish and narcissistic persona at times. Daisy and Gatsby

Read More

Gender Roles In The Great Gatsby

2059 Words | 9 Pages

For example, girls and women are generally expected to dress in typically feminine ways and be polite, accommodating, and nurturing. Men are generally expected to be strong, aggressive, and bold. In the Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald presents the female characters using the gender roles in the 1920s to suggest that because Myrtle rejects the gender standards, she faces failure whereas Daisy fulfills the gender expectations, is submissive to maintain stability in life. Fitzgerald presents the female character of Daisy Buchanan as submissive women through repetition and oxymoron to portray how she values traditional gender norms. Fitzgerald introduces the scene of delivery of Pammy through Daisy’s perspective to show the struggle of female gender in society.

Read More

Fitzgerald's Portrayal Of Women In The Great Gatsby

430 Words | 2 Pages

Fitzgerald depicts the women of the novel as deceitful, sexual beings that are naturally subordinate to men through Daisy, Jordan, and Myrtle. Daisy exemplifies the naturally inferior role of women relying on the wealth of men in their lives to take care of them. When Daisy talks about her daughter she claims, “a fool–that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool”(21) establishing women’s subordinate role in which they are ignorant to the affairs of their husbands and expected to rely on their beauty to carry them through life. When Daisy is accused of infidelity with Gatsby in the hotel, Gatsby claims that Daisy is attracted to men of wealth and, “only married [Tom] because [Gatsby] was poor and she was tired of waiting for [him]”(137).

Read More

More about Gender Lens In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Related Topics

Open Document