ipl-logo

Social Class In The Great Gatsby

993 Words4 Pages

The Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, comprises of many ideals of the Roaring Twenties such as power, greed, and the American dream. The Great Gatsby offers a vivid peek into what life was like in the U.S. in the 1920s. Fitzgerald breaks this novel down to show the distinct social classes of wealth - no money, new money, and old money and shows how money and power can enable a person to do many lamentable actions. The "Roaring Twenties" sets a distinct phase for Fitzgerald to transition the differences between the three social classes in his book and how it relates to the wealthy classes controlling everyone. F. Scott Fitzgerald was born on September 24, 1896, in St. Paul, Minnesota. He attended the St. Paul Academy, and when …show more content…

The quote shows that Tom thinks that the lower class must be kept ‘under control or in check’ so the upper class can be prevalent, demonstrating Tom’s dislike for others and makes the other classes sound ineligible of anything. This illustrates Tom’s shallowness as he still holds the confidence of upper class supremacy. He treats George Wilson poorly during visits since he lives in the ‘Valley Of Ashes’ which is not a wealthy part of town. Tom has an affair with George’s wife, and never foresees the consequences. As such, it can be implied that Tom really has no sympathy, as he doesn’t care what his actions do to his wife or George. The majority of 1% tend to run the market, get away with corruption and get away with many illegal scandals due to the immense amount of money they have. “If there is a modicum of good news, it’s that average Americans sometimes get what they want — but only because their views often coincide with what rich people want.”(U.S. News) Showing that Toms views how the ‘dominant race’ must control

Show More
Related

How Does Social Class Occur In The Great Gatsby

462 Words | 2 Pages

Social classes represent the hidden structure of America, as well as in several other countries in the world. If one is unsatisfied with the social class they are born into, however, is it possible for them to change it? The answer is yes, they can, as per evidence from real life situations and from The Great Gatsby. Some might say that it is impossible to change the social class one is born into. In their opinion, if that person is born poor, consequently they will certainly die poor.

Read More

Can Social Class Be Changed In The Great Gatsby

346 Words | 2 Pages

Can social class be changed.? The novel, The Great Gatsby, coquets this question. When this inquiry is argued, two main stances tend to arise. In one instance, changing social class is said to be an attainable goal; however, in opposition to that argument, the correct stance to take on this states that social class, at least as it pertains to this novel, is an immutable part of all peoples lives. The opposing platform believes social class can be changed based on the assumption that anyone could do anything if they work hard enough.

Read More

Examples Of Corruption In The Great Gatsby

717 Words | 3 Pages

Tom is engulfs in his wealth which feeds into his horrible personality just because he is ‘superior’. This shows how putting money and wealth in the same box as the ‘American dream’ creates dishonorable and mean people. Especially, when it collides with a person who is a wastrel, like

Read More

Social Class Divide In The Great Gatsby

1509 Words | 7 Pages

t was winter holidays, and I made a rare trip to Brisbane City with my family, quicky putting into perspective the social class divide within our community. Turning the city street corners, in my jeans and puffer jacket, I walked past 4-5 homeless people, curled up for warmth. Their demoralising reality is so distant to my own – suburban house, small white dog, air-conditioning to accommodate Queensland’s unpredictable weather. From this city trip, I couldn’t help but notice we are constantly living in a social divide, and now, as critically consuming teenagers, we are becoming aware.

Read More

Social Classes In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

1693 Words | 7 Pages

To be known as someone higher up in social class within America is a huge divide. In the novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the main character Jay Gatsby is driven by the power of money to raise his status within the social classes to impress Daisy. Gatsby’s obsession with money and his high ambition are what caused his downfall and led to him getting killed at the end of it all. The chase that Gatsby goes through to up his stats within a social class will hurt his relationships, his reputation, and himself. Despite Gatsby's ambition to chase his dream, he is not achieving what he has set out for.

Read More

Examples Of Social Class Structure In The Great Gatsby

267 Words | 2 Pages

The superposition of the social class structure is developed through the accumulation of money a person or family has acquired . Some may work long and hard to change their status, while others may have their fate handed to them from someone who paved the way for their future generations. This social class hierarchy is the basis for the conflict found in the book, The Great Gatsby. The feeling of superiority can be found uniformly in the characters portrayed in the book as the upper class. As a result of this the upper class is represented in a way that highlights their negligent and arrogant ways of being.

Read More

Examples Of Social Class In The Great Gatsby

1283 Words | 6 Pages

60 percent of the population was below the poverty line. The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a novel that explores the theme of social class and status throughout the roaring twenties. Within the story, characters are defined by their social standing and pursuit of wealth. The characters in The Great Gatsby can be grouped into

Read More

Social Classes In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

1110 Words | 5 Pages

Social classes are something so familiar but not so normal to many of us. In our world you are either rich, middle class or poor, that’s a social class in very simple broad terms but during the jazz era, social classes had a twist. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald took place during the roaring twenties “jazz era” and two very prominent social classes in this story were named the Old Rich and the New Rich. You see the old rich were the ones born into generational wealth and the New rich were the ones who made something of themselves and made themselves wealthy.

Read More

Social Status In The Great Gatsby

1543 Words | 7 Pages

The Prohibition, cigarette holders, drop waist hemlines, and the tunes of jazz. What does each of these things share in common? While separate they are simply just things; together they represent one of the most illustrious decades in America’s history. The Roaring Twenties was a time of leisure and economic stability in the country. As seen in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, as more money was being made, the more individuals splurged whether in their business or in their everyday life.

Read More

Social Classes In The Great Gatsby

741 Words | 3 Pages

F. Scott Fitzgerald uses the setting to differentiate the social classes and divisions of the 1920’s in his novel The Great Gatsby. East Egg, West Egg, and New York City are among the most significant settings that exhibit the classes and the divisions between them. Throughought the novel, Fitzgerald consistently alludes that the residents of East Egg are wealthy, while the residents of West Egg are poor. He also displays that social classes are unable to mesh and will always be divided during the altercation at the Plaza Hotel in New York City.

Read More

Social Stratification In The Great Gatsby

1091 Words | 5 Pages

In The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald brings to our attention the ideas of greed, power, betrayal, and the American dream in the 1920’s. The social stratification peeks this list of themes as you can see through Nick Carraway 's point of view, the different complications of the everyday life. As Nick begins his new life in West Egg, he encounters three types of people. Daisy, an image of perfection, and grace, who comes from ‘old money’. Myrtle, born poor, and holds her reputation as the ‘other women’.

Read More

Lower Class In The Great Gatsby

945 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout the novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald portrays power and privilege through the characterization of the working lower class society in order to showcase their inferiority during the time period. Set during the mid-1920’s the novel is set in New York which is mostly run by the actions of the people in Long Island - specifically East Egg and West Egg. Fitzgerald is able to not only depict the lifestyle of those of live in the poorer valley of ashes but also draw insight on how their lives are impacted by the actions inhabitants of Long Island as they are unable to build a life that could bear semblance to the American Dream The use of various literary devices enabled Fitzgerald was able to quickly distinguish between the

Read More

Social Class In The Great Gatsby

1376 Words | 6 Pages

The Roaring Twenties was the beginning of a new era for Americans as the economy grew rapidly due to high demands of consumption, which offered the golden opportunity for people to rise up the social pyramid from the lower to the upper class. One example of the social class rising dream is the striving love for Daisy from Gatsby. In the first past five years, the dream is unachievable, and even as it has a higher possibility to be fulfilled later on, the hope is finally demolished once Daisy decides to choose Tom over Gatsby, a similar situation for most Americans trying to obtain materialistic items, but ultimately fail to achieve the dreams. F. Scott Fitzgerald illustrated in the American classic The Great Gatsby the difference in social

Read More

The Great Gatsby Separation Of Social Class

887 Words | 4 Pages

Life is made up of social classes. Everyone is a part of them. Everyone wants to climb up the social ladder. Can everyone move up social classes? Is it possible to change one’s entire demeanor to fit that of a higher social class?

Read More

Examples Of Social Class In The Great Gatsby

537 Words | 3 Pages

In The Great Gatsby, social status is a significant element in the book as it separates the haves from the have nots. However more importantly, social status portrays the personalities of people belonging to different classes. In the end, you are stuck in the class you are born into, and attempting to change classes only leads to tragedy and heartbreak.     In The Great Gatsby, there are three main social classes portrayed. These are old money, new money, and no money.

Read More

More about Social Class In The Great Gatsby

Related Topics

Open Document