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.