The Role Of Sexism In The Great Gatsby

There’s been this burning question as to whether or not Nick, the narrator, is either straight or gay. The true answer to this question is that he falls under the asexual umbrella. More specifically under either asexual, the term for the lack of sexual attraction to others, itself or a little thing called graysexual, a term for lacking a sexual attraction to others with the occasion of feeling sexual attraction. One cannot say for sure that he is completely ace, however gray fits Nick Carraway like a glove. Throughout the book Nick describes characters in a detail that insinuates he focuses on the aesthetic appeal of most people, not just women and not just men. Add on the strange way his relationship with Jordan Baker flowed, his intense appreciation of Gatsby, and his uncomfort at the apartment Tom has for Myrtle, and you’ve got a recipe for a graysexual narrator.

Hair color, noticeable builds, the clothes they tend to wear, and how they act in certain situations, are generally the details given regularly. This generates the idea that maybe Nick doesn’t really notice anything short of sexual appeal to anyone he meets. Or perhaps it’s just his inner writer and/or the fact that he’s the one telling us the story. But that’s the thing, however, The Great Gatsby is from Nick’s perspective. One can assume that anything of a similar degree of writing done by anyone else, like Tom or Daisy, that certain people would have been clearly described as being “absolutely gorgeous” or “stunningly beautiful”. Nick is so neutral of everyone he meets that it reflects in his view of people, in fact the only person asides from Gatsby that he had described as being handsome or anything similar is