Chapter 2, pages 23-38
Tom forces Nick to visit a poor working class section of the city on their way to work. There, Nick meets Myrtle, Tom's mistress, and takes them to a secret apartment he keeps in New York City for them to have sex in. Later that night, Tom has a small gathering at the apartment with Myrtle's sister and a couple of friends named McKee from New York. Nick gets drunk for only the 2nd time in his life at that gathering. Nick leaves after Tom punches and breaks Myrtle's nose for mentioning Daisy's name at the party.
Myrtle: "Mrs. Wilson had changed her costume some time before, and was now attired in an elaborate afternoon dress of cream-colored chiffon, which gave out a continual rustle as she swept about the room. With the influence of the dress her personality had also undergone a change. The intense vitality that had been so remarkable in the garage was converted into impressive hauteur. Her laughter, her gestures, her assertions became more violently affected moment by moment, and as she expanded the room grew smaller around her, until she seemed to be revolving on a noisy, creaking pivot through the smoky air" (27).
From F. Scott Fitzgerald's description of Myrtle Wilson, I can easily imagine her in my mind. I see a clear resemblance to both Daisy and Jordan from chapter 1. I see somewhat of a pushover and conformist through her remaining married to her husband, although clearly dissatisfied with her married life. However, the description given above by Nick at the party suggests her strong minded and opinionated nature. I see Myrtle as a somewhat breakthrough for women in this time period. Although an adulteress, her independence has been rarely been seen through women in this novel.
Although Myrtle does many questionable things and could be seen as a fellow villain, I see her as more of an anti-hero, through her independence during the time period. However, her stereotypical 1920s housewife persona (remaining married to her husband) reminds me of Daisy's cowardly behavior towards Tom, depicted when she says, “I can’t seem to remember, but I think we talked about the Nordic race. Yes, I’m sure we did. It sort of crept up on us and first thing you know ——” (22).
The passage "Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand" (37) struck me in particular for multiple reasons. First, the reason Tom resorted to abuse, Myrtle's standing up for herself, reflects the movement Myrtle could possible join for independence. Also, the passage shocked me because of the casualness described in Tom's beating of Myrtle. Society during this time looked very poorly on women, seeing most of them as inept and inferior to men.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Great Gatsby Reading Journal - Chapter 1
The Great Gatsby Chapter 1, Pages 1-21.
The audience immediately is introduced to a man named Nick Carraway, who works in a bonds company, and takes credit for the story. Nick tells of a man named Gatsby, whose personality he describes as gorgeous. Tom goes to a distant cousin's, Daisy, house for dinner, who happens to be married to Tom Buchanan, a former acquaintance of Nick's. Later that evening, the phone rings and a woman at the party named Jordan tells Nick the caller is likely Tom's lover in New York. After their company leaves, Tom and Daisy discuss a possibility of Jordan and Nick going out.
Tom: “Not even the effeminate swank of his riding clothes could hide the enormous power of that body-he seemed to fill those glistening boots until he strained the top lacing, and you could and you could see a great pack of muscle shifting when his shoulder moved under his thin coat. It was a body capable of enormous leverage – a cruel body” (7).
While Nick comes off as a respectable person, showing kindness to everyone, and an interest in Daisy's well being, Tom displays selfishness, shown through his affair with another woman and view of whites as a dominant race. Tom also shows off his wealth through his purchase of multiple horses and large home in an upper-class neighborhood. However, through all this negativity the one positive quality seen is he ability to provide for Daisy and their child's future.
In my opinion, Tom's role in the book is to be a villain and rival character to the protagonist Nick, who is his total opposite. It is likely that future chapters in the book will display this hinted rivalry between Nick and Tom. As the antagonist, Tom's description gives off the impression of having a threatening physical appearance, including his eyes, which Fitzgerald describes as "Two shining arrogant eyes had established dominance over his face and gave him the appearance of always leaning aggressively forward" (7).
“I’m glad it’s a girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool” (Fitzgerald 17): This quote stood out to me because when I originally read it, I did not understand what Daisy meant by saying it. Looking back to the notes we took in class on the time period in which Fitzgerald wrote the novel, I began to understand what Daisy meant. Although my generation and society values both men and women equally, the 1920s saw men as the leaders of society, while women and children were to be seen and not heard. Daisy expresses her hopes that a daughter will not have to worry about anything except getting married and taking care of children, which women did during this time.
The audience immediately is introduced to a man named Nick Carraway, who works in a bonds company, and takes credit for the story. Nick tells of a man named Gatsby, whose personality he describes as gorgeous. Tom goes to a distant cousin's, Daisy, house for dinner, who happens to be married to Tom Buchanan, a former acquaintance of Nick's. Later that evening, the phone rings and a woman at the party named Jordan tells Nick the caller is likely Tom's lover in New York. After their company leaves, Tom and Daisy discuss a possibility of Jordan and Nick going out.
Tom: “Not even the effeminate swank of his riding clothes could hide the enormous power of that body-he seemed to fill those glistening boots until he strained the top lacing, and you could and you could see a great pack of muscle shifting when his shoulder moved under his thin coat. It was a body capable of enormous leverage – a cruel body” (7).
While Nick comes off as a respectable person, showing kindness to everyone, and an interest in Daisy's well being, Tom displays selfishness, shown through his affair with another woman and view of whites as a dominant race. Tom also shows off his wealth through his purchase of multiple horses and large home in an upper-class neighborhood. However, through all this negativity the one positive quality seen is he ability to provide for Daisy and their child's future.
In my opinion, Tom's role in the book is to be a villain and rival character to the protagonist Nick, who is his total opposite. It is likely that future chapters in the book will display this hinted rivalry between Nick and Tom. As the antagonist, Tom's description gives off the impression of having a threatening physical appearance, including his eyes, which Fitzgerald describes as "Two shining arrogant eyes had established dominance over his face and gave him the appearance of always leaning aggressively forward" (7).
“I’m glad it’s a girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool” (Fitzgerald 17): This quote stood out to me because when I originally read it, I did not understand what Daisy meant by saying it. Looking back to the notes we took in class on the time period in which Fitzgerald wrote the novel, I began to understand what Daisy meant. Although my generation and society values both men and women equally, the 1920s saw men as the leaders of society, while women and children were to be seen and not heard. Daisy expresses her hopes that a daughter will not have to worry about anything except getting married and taking care of children, which women did during this time.
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