Wealth Inequality In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, the economic health and distribution during the 1920s are deeply explored through the wealthy characters in the novel. While some characters are more representative of how wealth was earned and used by the upper class, some other characters can show how the upper class disregards everything other than their wealth and status. The Great Gatsby is a novel that delves deep into the lives of many upper-class individuals who benefitted from the economic situation of the 1920s. Now, what exactly was this economic situation during this period? While the economy was certainly “booming”, it is clear that there was also a massive downside to the roaring economy. Many of the rich after the war had only grown

Scott Fitzgerald addresses wealth inequality in several different ways. One of the major symbols in his novel is the valley of ashes. This is an industrial area that is between West Egg and Manhattan. This can be representative of the strong divide between the rich as well as the depressing wastelands that the poor are left in and forgotten about. In order for the characters in the novel to travel to Manhattan which inhabits many of the poorer citizens, they must travel through the Valley of Ashes by train, which can again symbolize a divide between the rich and the poor by showing how the rich even have the luxury of riding the train while others have to trudge through the soot and the ash. This strong divide between the rich and the poor can also be seen in other things, such as the character's mannerisms and behaviors. For example, some of the characters who grew up in old money are much more dependent on it and will seek it out above anything else. Then there are the characters who are not too concerned with wealth, like Nick. Nick is a more self-aware and humble character, in contrast to the rest of the characters who seem to have become corrupted by wealth and

During the 1920s, upward mobility became quite rare and unattainable. This led to a lack of elasticity among the lower class, as they were faced with a lack of ability to gain more wealth than their parents and climb the social ladder. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby is a character that is known to have climbed the social ladder fairly swiftly through bootlegging. This represents how difficult it is for the lower class to climb the social ladder and garner a significant amount of wealth legitimately since the distribution of wealth was becoming so skewed. The rich hold so much power over the economy which allows them to bend it to their own needs over the needs of the majority. In contrast to many other developed nations, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Italy face the most wealth inequality. With an increase in wealth inequality, a lack of ability for the poor to move up in social classes is also seen due to the immensely arbitrary, prejudiced, and unequal distribution of