How Is Jay Gatsby Selfish

1555 Words7 Pages

Jay Gatsby (James “Jimmy” Gatz) is one of the main characters in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s book The Great Gatsby. Jay was born in North Dakota and he was brought by his poor family. In order to better his life, he enrolled at St. Olaf College. He dropped out the first semester because he did not like that he was supporting himself by working as a janitor. Soon enough, he ran away from home and went to Lake Superior. He discovered that a yacht, owned by a rich tycoon named Dan Cody, had dropped its anchor in a dangerous spot. He borrowed a rowboat and warned Dan. Cody hired him and from there, he learned to live the lavish life of a rich man. He changed his name to Jay Gatsby after five years of working alongside Cody.
When Cody dies, he leaves Jay some money, but Cody’s ex-wife cheated him out of it and took it all. Jay then enlisted into the army and became a soldier in World War I. In Louisiana, he met the lovely, rich and beauty, Daisy Fay. He quickly became smitten with her. Because he was in his uniform and he had a behavior of a wealthy …show more content…

When he saw the opportunity of warning Dan Cody about his yacht, he took it. He knew it would change his life the minute he figured out the problem. Even if he used unconventional methods, he made money very quickly. Jay even went to Oxford. His job might not have been amazing, but it made him the money he wanted. He would receive about a 5 in his social skills. He has a lot connections underground. He threw lavish parties that many people attended, but he didn’t always go down to greet his guests. Gatsby’s feelings, however, would be rated as low. He is stuck on the love of Daisy, who later on was married and has a child. He felt alone in the world. According to the hawthorne effect, the worse kind of punishment was isolation. No one deserves to be alone, and Gatsby believed that Daisy was the only way he wouldn’t feel this emptiness inside