What Is The Sacrifice In The Great Gatsby

There can be no wealthy without the poor. Wealth is measured in material goods; he who has more is wealthier man. Often times, this material wealth will come to the expense of others. The material goods used by the wealthy need to come from somewhere. Many times, it is up to the poor to provide for the wealthy. The poor sacrifice their wealth, happiness and even life for a chance to be like the wealthy. The wealthy will sacrifice the same in order to keep this wealth. Both classes will do almost anything in order to be the privileged of society. Both the wealthy and the poor sacrificed in the events of The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Throughout the events of The Great Gatsby, the indulgences of the wealthy lead to the downfall of

Throughout her life, Myrtle aspired to be of the upper class. She looked down on her husband, George Wilson, thinking him to be too poor and unsuccessful. According to Myrtle, George, “‘borrowed somebody’s best suit to get married in, and never even told me about it’” (39). Myrtle looked down on this, as it showed how poor George truly was. In order to a least provide a semblance of wealth, she had an affair with Tom Buchanan, the wealthy resident of East Egg, who himself was having an affair with his wife, Daisy. Tom purchased expensive gifts for Myrtle, such as dresses and jewelry. When Myrtle’s husband finally learned she was having an affair, she ran, “out in into the dusk, waving her hands and shouting” (160). However, the driver was not Tom, but Daisy, and Myrtle was hit and subsequently killed by the car, ending her dreams of wealth. By having the affair with Tom, Myrtle had sealed her own fate. Her husband George loved her, but Myrtle wanted more than just love. The affair with Tom made her feel as if she shared his wealth, with his expensive gifts making her feel as if she was among the elite. Without this drive for riches, she would not have died. If she had accepted George’s love, she would have lived a happy life, without need of an affair. When Myrtle ran into the road to meet with Tom, she was doomed to die. Tom would not accept her due to his own wife, and George would not accept her back due to the affair. Myrtles dreams of gold lead to her eventual