How Does Myrtle Wilson Use Deception In The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby is a novel written by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald that takes place during the Jazz Age. It is told by our narrator, Nick Carraway, a young man who recounts his year living in New York. The novel is filled with instances of deceit and lies, and Myrtle Wilson is one of the characters that does not seem the same on the outside as she does on the inside. Her character also leads the larger theme of deception in the novel. When Myrtle Wilson is first introduced, it is in her home in the Valley of Ashes. She is described as having a “soft, coarse voice” when speaking to her husband, George Wilson. The use of these adjectives is ironic because the different meanings foreshadows the diverging personalities of Myrtle when

Deception plays a large role in the novel, and many characters use it. One character in particular is Jay Gatsby. Gatsby has an outward appearance of being sophisticated and coming from old money. He tells Nick that he inherited money from his wealthy family in the Midwest (65), when in fact he was the son of “shiftless and unsuccessful farm people” (98). He always tries to validate his wealth and sophistication by throwing opulent parties every weekend and calling everyone “old sport”, but there are cracks in his deceptive mask. For example, when Gatsby tells Nick and Daisy that earned the money to buy his mansion in three years, he forgot that he told everyone that he inherited his money. Then when Nick notices this discrepancy, he questions Gatsby on where he got the money. However, Gatsby snaps and tells Nick “That’s my affair” (90). From this inappropriate reply, we can see that Gatsby isn’t as polite and truthful as he seems. He deceives everyone by hiding behind his wealth, collected through illegal means, and pretending that he is old

He many have cheated on Daisy numerous times, but the most despicable thing he did was tell George Wilson that Gatsby was the one who killed Myrtle. Tom gave Gatsby’s name, knowing that Wilson was in a deranged state and would probably kill Gatsby. Moreover, he had no remorse doing it and believed his actions were “entirely justified” (179). He even tells Nick, “That fellow had it coming to him. He threw dust into your eyes just like he did in Daisy’s” (178). Tom could have done something to prevent Wilson from killing Gatsby, but he nothing because he despised Gatsby and had every intention of hurting him; so he decided to save himself and Daisy instead. While Gatsby was killed and everyone forgot about him, everything went back to normal for Tom and Daisy—they retreated back into their money and carelessness and let others clean up the mess they made