Society's Expectations In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Women conflicting with society’s expectations in The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, a classic novel set in NY, during the roaring 20s. The novel tells the story of Jay Gatsby, a mysterious millionaire who throws extravagant parties to win back Daisy Buchanan, his long lost lover. Through the eyes of Nick Carraway, the narrator who claims to be unbiased and honest, Fitzgerald invents the female characters Daisy, Jordan, and Myrtle. Daisy stuck in a loveless marriage, Myrtle a working-class woman who desires to climb the social ladder, and Jordan a professional golfer with a sort of narcissistic personality, all go against the societal expectations of women in the 20’s. In Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, each woman's

Daisy finds herself in conflict with society's expectations of women in the 1920s due to her messy marriage. She puts on an act of being a loving wife to Tom and is expected to be a loving mother to their daughter. But Daisy is aware of her husband’s disloyalty in their marriage yet chooses to stay with him because it gives her an easy life and ticket to the upper class society. “That’s what I get for marrying a brute of a man, a great, big, hulking physical specimen of a… (F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Ch 1, Page 13)”. This quote shows Daisys potential regret but acceptance of the terrible man she married. After Gatsby arrives years later into her life, Daisy is faced with a new conflict. Daisy negotiates this conflict by trying to have the best of both worlds for a while. She continues to be with Tom but also has an affair with Gatsby. When faced with the choice of staying with Gatsby or returning to Tom, she

Jordan is a professional golfer who is financially independent and doesn't want to pick one man. Woman in the 1920s were typically obedient housewives yet, Jordan refused to conform to societal expectations. She continues to pursue her career and doesn't commit to a relationship, despite Nicks interest. Furthermore, her non-conformity leads many to believe she is a deceitful and dishonest person. Ironically, Nick almost admires her dishonesty, viewing her in a way most people did not. Jordan navigates her struggles of being a controversial woman figure in the 20s by partying and speaking her mind. In chapter 3, while at one of Gatsby’s grand parties, she says, “I like large parties. They’re so intimate. At small parties there isn’t any privacy.” This quote proves Jordans strong personality, and how she was unbothered by societies pressure to be