The Great Gatsby is a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and narrated by a man named Nick Carraway. This novel was written with the intent of showing the readers how morally corrupt the 1920s were. Throughout the novel, characters abandon their moral values for a materialistic lifestyle. The novel depicts a great picture of the roles men and women played in the 1920s. Even with the changing roles of men and women, they continued to rely heavily on whom they were married to and what social class they belonged to. It is assumed that men and women, for the most part, only married within their social upbringing. Wealth was the goal, but old money was the unreachable dream for some. Throughout the novel a major theme that is apparent is that morals …show more content…
The characters put wealth, power, and desires over moral values and respect for themselves and others. Fitzgerald’s makes it obvious that he believes people should not substitute their values for a materialistic life. The characters’ desire to achieve the American dream outweighs moral convictions, resulting in scandalous and fatal actions. A critical perspective that is approached throughout the entire novel and is most helpful in understanding the theme is the Marxist criticism. In the novel, Myrtle Wilson is the perfect example of a woman that would substitute morals for desires. Her actions were the result of her yearnings for money and power, which is in direct relationship with the Marxist critical perspective. She not only degrades herself to being a mistress, but she betrays a good man for a materialistic life. She uses her sexual appeal to achieve the lifestyle she wants. In the novel, The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Nick describes his meeting with Myrtle and gives the reader a clear visual of how Myrtle uses her looks to get what she wants and how she treats her husband as a result. Nick tells the reader, "She was in the middle thirties, and faintly