Preview

Social Class In The Great Gatsby

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
671 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Social Class In The Great Gatsby
The book we are reading is The Great Gatsby by F.Scott Fitzgerald. The topic that we researched is social class. Social class is groups of people in a certain social and economic ranking. Tom and Gatsby were wealthy so they would be in a higher social class than Nick. Nick was raised around wealthy people all his life most of the people went to Yale and are in the bond business. That’s why I think Nick is so used to being around rich people. Nick, Gatsby, and Tom are all in their own level of wealth, Tom was born into wealth And is still has a business, Nick was always surrounded by wealthy people but he isn’t as wealthy himself, And Gatsby Became Wealthy on his own with his business of bootlegging.
In the Great Gatsby Social classes plays a big role in showing the characters in many different ways. One way in showing social classes In the book is how they describe New York as West egg and East egg. West egg would be for the lower class and East egg is for the higher class. Nick wasn’t as wealthy as Gatsby and Tom Nick considered his home as an eyesore. “I live at the West egg-Well the
…show more content…
In the first paragraph, Nick reminisces about what his father had once told him. He states “ Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.” (Fitzgerald 1). This is important because Nick gets told to not let his status get to him. Nick thinks about this when he’s talking to people of lower status than he is because he remembers it closely. While discussing Gatsby, one lady noted “He‘s a bootlegger… “One time he killed a man who had found out that he was nephew to Von Hindenburg and second cousin to the devil.”( Fitzgerald 61). This shows how people perceive Gatsby and how many different stories there are about him. The only thing they know about him is that he’s rich but they don’t know about his

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    F Scott. Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby follows narrator Nick Carraway's life after meeting Jay Gatsby, an extravagant man with an unknown past. By comparing and contrasting Nick Carraway’s interactions with people of different wealth, social class, and background, Fitzgerald explores the differences between those with different backgrounds and current wealth along with the role that it play in their social interactions and marriages.…

    • 355 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is the illustration of the contemporary American society of the Jazz Age. It is noted in the text that social status and class prevail there and play very significant roles concerning various issues in the light of American Dream. This classification is mainly an aftermath of World War One because of disillusionment and pursuit of wealth. Three types of social class people, upper class, middle class, and lower class, are nicely presented by Fitzgerald in The Great Gatsby. The dominance of the rich over the poor is a noted effect of this social stratification in this novel. People try to change their existed social class and upgrade reputation by any means. As a result, the characters of the novel become…

    • 274 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In fact, Nick is the only character that actually has an understanding of the themes that Fitzgerald employs in this novel. The most important underlined theme that Nick ends up coming to terms with is the diminishing of what is known to be “American Dream”. The idea that merit and hard work aren't enough, and being born into wealth and social class is the only way to really be seen as being “successful” is what ends up making Nick change over the development of the book from a man dreaming of a fortune, to a man who knows only too well what misery a fortune can bring. Nick ultimately goes through these understandings after the tragic death of Gatsby, particularly after seeing that no one that was a part of Gatsby’s life was even willing to make an appearance at his funeral. Nick stands by Gatsby after the tragic accident and even takes on the chore of handling Gatsby’s affairs after his death. Daisy and Tom not showing up to show respect to Gatsby was especially unsettling to Nick, and finally brought him to the conclusion that they were no different than the rest. "They were careless people, Tom and Daisy--they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money of their vast carelessness”. Daisy and Tom are the ultimate model of what wealth and materialism can turn people into, and are a perfect example of the type of people that make the glamorous East Coast the immoral and unprosperous place that it really is in this time period, subsequently making Nick want to move back to the Midwest, where the values and morals of people have yet to…

    • 1085 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the classic novel, The Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, a young man discovers concealed secrets from his neighbor, relatives, and close friends. At one point in the book, located on page fifty-five, Nick, the main character who is on a journey of mysteries, shows a fond interest in the peculiar acts of his neighbor Gatsby. Questions arise in Nick's mind. Why was such a popular man such a loner all at the same time? On this particular page, Nick questions these ideas. The passage reveals to the reader a sad sympathetic story behind the so-called "Great Gatsby" using tone, imagery, and diction giving the reader a more obsolete and clearer vision of Gatsby.…

    • 783 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the main character, Gatsby, has many different sides of his character, which are shown in different parts throughout the novel. The reader understands him to be a very versatile man who feels emotion deeply, but doesn’t show it on the outside nearly as much as he should. Gatsby meets a man named Nick who moves in next to him and becomes the narrator of Gatsby’s great story. Nick helps the reader understand what is happening and conveys the judgmental tone and social stratified theme through his detailed descriptions of Gatsby’s character using diction, detail and syntax.…

    • 726 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The three texts present a similar point that the true appearance of the upper class is only revealed through a character’s words and actions with their appearance deceiving society from recognising their true identity and as a result “worshippers of wealth, status and beauty have collected around false idols” . In “The Great Gatsby”, “The Importance of Being Earnest” and “The rape of lock” the upper classes are often portrayed positively on the surface and it is only when you look past this that the shallowness, superficiality and arrogance become apparent. The three authors all realise the power of aesthetics across all three of their eras with a sense that the authors, like Nick Carraway, themselves are “both enchanted and repelled” by the…

    • 183 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In The Great Gatsby there is a wide range of social and economic classes ranging from wealthy to poor and everything in between. Examples of wealth include Gatsby himself,…

    • 1033 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Gatsby lived in disillusionment about the kind of person he was he wanted to have the wealth and grace of the old money to impress Daisy. “An Oxford man!" He was incredulous. "Like hell he is! He wears a pink suit." "Nevertheless he’s an Oxford man" (Fitzgerald 122). Although Gatsby sees himself as part of the wealthy he lacks the class that the rich see themselves as having, because he cannot buy class. The West and east egg are examples of the difference between the old and new money. “My god i believe the man’s coming’” said Tom. “doesn't he know she doesn't want him”(Fitzgerald 179). Gatsby created a god like persona for himself but although he does have the money to blend into the wealthy East eggers he lacks the knowledge about the snobbish attitudes of the rich.Tom and Daisy grew up with the lifestyles of the rich, they viewed themself as decent people although that was not the case. “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy-they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back to their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made...”(fitzgerald, 179) Tom and Daisy went around life having the ability to throw money at all there problems which in consequence turned them into carless shallow…

    • 1249 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Even Nick, the narrator and arguably the main character, shows a bias towards Gatsby’s nature while entertaining his self proclaimed honest recounting of events. Nick, among countless other nameless and faceless members of Gatsby’s uninvited entourage treat the rich differently. When it comes to West Egg and East Egg, those less blessed with seemingly endless riches tend to gaze upon the rich with wonder without understanding. The rich, in their eyes, seem untouchable, almost godlike. They can do anything, while avoiding consequences and spending inexhaustible wealth on innumerable belongings. That becomes the goal for the poorer- to become rich. To become happy. To become larger than life like those above them. When a goal such as that is finally reached, an inevitable letdown becomes reality. As Fitzgerald writes, “It is invariably saddening to look through new eyes at things upon which you have expended your own powers of adjustment” (Fitzgerald…

    • 859 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the time period of the novel The Great Gatsby by Scott F. Fitzgerald the U.S was in the midst of the famous Jazz Age in which the economy was expanding vastly, but also, shifting social attitudes. The lower class dreamed of living the American Dream that their eyes could see, but were oblivious to the true lives behind the elegant parties, and opulent components that made up the upper class. The rich were covered by a vast blanket of illusion that the poor desperately wanted to be warmed with. Class in The Great Gatsby is a double edged sword. On one side are hard working people trying to inch closer to the American Dream, but on the other side, wealthy men and women who believe they are living…

    • 2335 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Today people show how much money they have in different ways that don't include just plain saying that they have money. They hang out with certain people and go to certain places. Some people want to change their social class. For example a poor farmer’s daughter may want to associate with the upper class rather than the lower class where she came from but to do this she would have to change “social class.” This is what Gatsby did. He was born poor and worked his way to money. He wanted this change in social class and he went for it. Some people think this is no big deal to change social class because you surround yourself with who you want to be like. I think that it is stupid to change social class. There is no point. Everyone should accept everyone no matter the social class. If they don't do this and accept you as you then why would you want to associate with them?…

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Even though he is the narrator of the book he does not have too big of a role in the storyline. Fitzgerald chose a great way to tell the story by using Nick as an observer of the story and also taking place in it at times. Nick gives the readers a better view on the story. However, while Nick is a spectator, his role is needed. Nick begins his story with an important point; that he has no bias in the favor of Gatsby when he says, “Gatsby turned out all right at the end, and it was what preyed on Gatsby...” Later in the book he admits that he believes every man to be worthy of some virtue and that Gatsby’s is honesty. Fitzgerald starts the book by giving us Nick's thoughts on the summer that the story tells. About a half of page long explains how Nick's experience with Gatsby and Daisy has ended his curiosity in the "abortive sorrows and short winded elations of men." (Page…

    • 1222 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fizgerald, status plays a major role for Gatsby as it paints a social barrier between him and the East eggers and highlights his ambition to climb the hierarchy of societal status to try to obtain Daisy. The societies of East and West Egg are deeply divided by the difference between the “nouveau riche” and the older moneyed families. Gatsby is aware of the existence of a class structure in America, because a true meritocracy would put him in touch with some of the finest people, but, as things stand, he is held at arm's length. For the "old money" people, the fact that Gatsby has only just recently acquired his money is enough reason to dislike him. In their way of thinking, he can't possibly have the…

    • 527 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    As a mysterious novel based on the Roaring Twenties, The Great Gatsby’s intriguing view on society helps people come to terms over how society has or has not changed throughout the decades. During this era, people in the upper class were split into “old money”, people who were part of a rich family, and “new money”, people who have self-made riches. In the novel, Jay Gatsby symbolized “new money” while Tom and Daisy Buchanan symbolized “old money”. This would be a crucial factor in the outcome of the book. Believing that their “old money” will save them from their repetitive mistakes and infidelities, Daisy and Tom Buchanan’s constant carelessness may lead to people despising them symbolizing how society in the 1920s was not as glamorous as…

    • 1481 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Great Gatsby

    • 499 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Nick being influenced into this “love circle” was his only way of saying to Gatsby that he might be better for his cousin Daisy. Nick admires Gatsby’s romanticism. Nick being a realist, wants to be as daring as Gatsby. "Whenever you feel like criticizing any one," he told me, "just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had." Nick said this saying that rich people are only here as a luxury. They only show off. Gatsby had many luxuries, but he was different and stood out to Nick, only making himself reeled into this drama.…

    • 499 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays