Once Again for Zelda

Once Again to Zelda

A Study in Misogyny

The Great Gatsby by Scott F. Fitzgerald is credited with being one of the finest works of American literature ever written. Despite its fame, many people find the characters difficult to connect with and generally unlikeable. I myself fin the women of The Great Gatsby particularly distasteful for a variety of reasons. I would contend that the primary cause for my views on the characters is not due to my provincally chauvinistic attitude, rather Fitzgerald means to portray women as his story's antagonists as evidenced by their personalities, their effect on the world, and the effect on the author as well.

The Great Gatsby's protagonist is not difficult to locate, (It's in the title dear reader) but the antagonist is a bit harder to find. One could make the argument that the Malevolent Tom Buchanan is a perfect villain. Tom is both an adulterer and an amateur women's boxing champion. However, I believe that Fitzgerald designed the leading ladies to be the true opponents of the Great Gatsby and the American Dream. This is especially clear in his portrayal of the women's personalities.

Jordan Baker is the typical rich vamp of the 1920s. She is distant and severe, appearing to have no emotions other than boredom or contempt. Some might say that her cold persona is a weak argument for her being an antagonist. However, the purpose of Jordan's persona is to cover up her sociopathic tendencies. She is a compulsive liar, who must always cheat to get her way "Incurably dishonest" (63). She has no regard for anyone but herself, driving recklessly and using random men as a mere distraction. A boy toy from a station below that of her. She drags the moral Nick Caraway down with her, creating an illusion of intimacy only to reveal she was engaged to another man, leaving Nick "angry and half in love with her, and tremendously sorry." (186)

Myrtle Wilson is also one of the sources of sorrow in The Great Gatsby. The adulterous wife of the oblivious George Wilson, Myrtle has similarities with Jordan Baker in their total lack of human connection. Al of her actions are for some sort of gain of material wealth. She tortures her poor husband with his perceived shortcomings, refusing to love him for his lack of status and wealth, and blatantly prostituting herself to Tom Buchanan for trinkets. Her lust for wealth is what causes her to run thoughtlessly into the street causing her death, and by proxy, Gatsby's.

And then there's Daisy, the proverbial flower with the sharpest thorns. Daisy edifies all of the worst qualities of the era, the obsessive materialism and self-absorption that Fitzgerald felt had so pervasively infected the American dream. She is the "foul dust (that) floated in the wake of his dreams." Her singular thoughts of wealth and self-importance drove him to destroy the hopeful youth who had fallen in love with her becoming a lonely mask over the features of a man who could have done anything. Fitzgerald is commonly credited with being the most prominent chronicler of the jazz era, especially in this portrayal of the materialistic excess that erupted during the time, and its toll on American society. This is best represented in the ridiculously lavish parties Gatsby throws at his massively ostentatious mansion, all of which is simply to snare his long lost love Daisy Buchanan with the allure of his bright lights and blue gardens. But this superficial glamour comes at a price, just outside