Evelyne Lefebvre is a Secondary 4 student at Alexander Galt Regional High School. She won the cycle two Peter Jennings Award for Excellence in Non-Fiction at the inaugural Galt Creative Awards.
The Great Gatsby written in the early 20th century is of the tragedy genre. F. Scott Fitzgerald, its author, wrote a powerful novel on forbidden love, capitalism, and the divide between old money and new money. This story is recounted by Nick Carraway, who was there for every important plot point in this novel, which leads into some symbolism. Nick recalls a past where he was neighbor to Jay Gatsby, a newly rich fellow who moves into the recently developed East Egg in hopes of being reunited with his lost love, Daisy Buchanan. As the story further advances, the readers get to indulge in some carefully placed plot points which are helpful to discover some discrete characteristics of the characters and the way they act. One of the themes approached in the novel is that despite social class, judgment can never be escaped from.
However, there's a misconception that the rich can escape it. In the case of Alex Murdaugh, a wealthy lawyer part of a family dynasty beginning in the early 20th century, he believed he could escape this cloud of judgment. On June 7th, 2022, Murdaugh killed his wife and son, to claim a large sum of money which would allow him to clear his debt. Murdaugh’s family owns one of the oldest family law firms in South Carolina, are quite rich and of a higher social class. Murdaugh believed since he was rich, he could escape the judicial system, getting away with the fraud of his wife and son’s life insurance and their murders. This is very reminiscent of Daisy Buchanan’s behaviors in the book. She kills Myrtle and Gatsby takes all the blame and public scrutiny because he loves Daisy. Daisy, in return, is absent for Gatsby’s funeral when Wilson murders Gatsby. She and her husband Tom leave New York to go live their rich lifestyle away from the city. These two stories connect as they both come from old money, they both murder, then try to escape judgment whether it be personal or social. These two events remind me of a rule for the royal family of England where “The Monarchy Comes First.” Almost like the old money comes first. Nonetheless, I believe it to be ridiculous that these two rich, old money people have such a sense of entitlement. Daisy’s true character is revealed when we take a deeper dive, and this event has so many things we can analyze.
The Great Gatsby is one of those novels where there is a plethora of symbolism we can dissect. Most prominently, the billboard of Dr. TJ Eckleburg. This billboard sits in the Valley of Ashes, a wasteland-like place between New York and the two Eggs. After much reflection, I can notice that most of the bad, morally horrible events or decisions have been made in the Valley of Ashes, such as the hit-and-run of Myrtle Wilson. TJ Eckleburg’s eyes were always there, watching every single detail and event going wrong. I view this symbol as the eyes of God judging society almost like a moral wasteland. In the actual Bible, God says, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Another quote is, “There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?” I believe The Great Gatsby is influenced by the Bible, for that era of time was heavily influenced by religion. These two quotes from the Bible tell us that nobody is safe from judgment. When Nick Carraway tells the reader, “My father gave me some advice, always see the best in people.” The part where he says “My father” could also be interpreted as God giving him some advice, due to similar lessons being explored in the Bible. The billboard is the largest piece of evidence that this is the theme of the book.
I believe that the character development of Daisy Buchanan proves that the theme is the one written above. Daisy, to me, was a character I was rooting for, and I wanted her to choose Gatsby. She was aware that Tom was cheating on her multiple times, and he treated her almost inferiorly. Yet, she stayed. I believe Tom married her to push the idea of the stereotypical rich American family. A rich man with a beautiful wife, with a child or two living in a gorgeous mansion. We know that Daisy was aware of Tom's infidelity, but stayed with him because he could offer more stability than Gatsby. Daisy is described as “Her voice is full of money.” Even before she met Gatsby for the second time, she looked as if she was unhappy in her life, wanting something different. When Gatsby is mentioned by Jordan Baker, Daisy exclaims, “Gatsby? What Gatsby?” in a tone of hopefulness and longing. However, when Gatsby offers Daisy absolutely everything she could want, especially happiness, she chooses Tom and abuses Gatsby’s love for her as a way to escape the judicial punishments of her hit-and-run. At the end, Nick resents her for not even showing up to the funeral, and views her as another brainwashed rich puppet. She couldn’t escape that judgment.
To reflect further, I believe the purpose of this story was almost like an opinion piece on American Society. Fitzgerald wrote this story to comment about how the rich and wealthy try to escape all problems and judgment by just… being rich. The story is a portrait of their "ignorant" and nonchalant lifestyles. Any person of an older age group could read this book and take away that money cannot make us invincible from judgment. However, I would have appreciated for Tom's character to be elaborated, showing the reader what made him the way he is. He is very complex as a person, and I think if there was more said on Tom, we could more greatly understand the novel. To conclude, The Great Gatsby is a story of love, loss, and the prominent view that judgment is inescapable, even if you are the richest of the rich.
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