Selfish Actions In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Did you know that 7% of fatal car accidents are hit - and run accidents, and 30% are due to drunk driving? The Great Gatsby gives an example of both, showing how actions like these have poor consequences. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the motif of vehicles shows how selfishness affects relationships in a negative way. As a result of selfishness, not only vehicles were harmed, but people were as well. The damage on the car after a drunk-driving accident is also used to reflect the damage on the characters involved: “The sharp jut of the wall accounted for the detachment of the wheel, which was now getting considerable attention from half a dozen curious chauffeurs” (Fitzgerald 53). The wheel can physically represent the destruction of drunk-driving, but it can also represent the destruction of one's moral compass. Through the use of vehicles and drunk-driving, selfish actions begin to show the destruction of upcoming relationships during the

The friendship between Nick and Gatsby has many genuine qualities, yet there is also an aspect of greed because Gatsby used their relationship to create a relationship that he dreamed of with Daisy. Later on, the awareness of the selfish actions of others makes Nick more mindful of his relationships with others: “I am one of the few honest people that I have ever known” (Fitzgerald 59). The tragic result of drinking and driving made Nick more aware of people's corruption. Nick recognized the selfish action, and it caused him to be more apprehensive towards how he views others based on their honesty, which will in return affect his relationships with others. Altogether, The use of vehicles, as well as drinking and driving symbolized the direction as well as morality of multiple