Theme Of Women In The Great Gatsby

The novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is about societal difference between men and women the 1920s. Throughout the novel this theme is played through our main characters: Tom, Myrtle, and Daisy. Fitzgerald uses the possessive relationships between these characters to enlighten the reader about women’s social ranking. He demonstrates how men were able to control women by making them feel inferior. The author describes the importance of social class for women in the 1920’s through the possessive and ultimately destructive relationship of Tom and Myrtle.

Society’s expectations of women now and in the past cause a huge controversy and conflict amongst women. The main three female characters of the novel The Great Gatsby have many conflicts with society and what is expected of them as a female in the 1920s. They are expected to be the server of man and to not be their own person, but this was a conflict with them. Although Myrtle, Daisy, and Jordan show case their conflict with society, they negotiate that conflict with their personality and their mannerisms.

Since society has existed, women have been known as different from men. For the longest time, women have been known as the “weaker sex” when compared to the male. There purpose, especially in the olden days is to obey and please the men. However nowadays there seems to be a more equality between the two genders. But even today discrimination between male and female takes place all over the world. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, you can see a lot of discrimination between the two sexes. The story takes place in the 1930’s and it has a bad view on women, they just got the right to vote for presidents, mayors, and senators. However most men thought that the women should only stay home and raise children, that they should not be involved in politics, and their ideas were not valuable. Women were treated as “house slaves” at times when all what they did all day, every day, was work around the house trying to improve the living for their husband and kids.

In "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, he shows women, treated and presented as worse than men, and are rather disregarded and neglected by the male characters. Even Fitzgerald describes and creates the traits of the women in the book in a negative manner.

Throughout literature women are often displayed as idealized characters. Women in the eyes of society are plagued with the stereotype of being kind, nurturing, and tender individuals while men are established as ambitious, assertive, and tough. However, when the time comes for women to possess the qualities of men and men of women, a turnaround of events can occur. Women were the individuals that then shape the males into their ending personna. Shakespeare's Macbeth, George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby demonstrated the reversal of gender roles through portraying women as the instigator of the male character’s ultimate demise.

Feminism, the advocacy of women's rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, there is an often ignored view of the women’s perspective. It brings attention to how women have no expectations to go far in life, or have a reason for live beyond being used to reproduce. The most absurd thing is that the women in the story don’t have any interest to break out of the stereotype, and try to make a life for themselves. Throughout the story, Daisy Buchanan, Jordan Baker, and Myrtle Wilson are treated as possessions rather than humans.

Jordan’s composure and self-sufficiency express her determined “absence of all desire” and she controls her sexuality and emotions well and will not give way to impulse (Fitzgerald 10). She is sexually attractive to Nick, but morally suspect and achieves sexual freedom by means of lying (Štrba 44-45).

Women empowerment is one of the biggest standing issues in society today. Women being mistreated or viewed differently from men has been a problem for as long as anyone can remember. In both The Great Gatsby and My Antonia the women were viewed differently in both social classes. Being rich and poor both had its advantages and its disadvantages. Due to women's social classes, different actions were viewed differently, and the outcomes were exceedingly different. Women in social classes were both viewed, treated and ended up dissimilar from each other. Both Antonia and Daisy faced different challenges throughout the book, clearly seeing the contrasting outcomes.

The meaning of literature novels are connected to the context of the time and can enlighten readers of it. This is true of the novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, first published in 1926 depicted a materialistic and consumerist society where social and moral values were slowly decaying. It shown through the eyes of the narrator, Nick Carraway who illustrates the world and the people around him and their values; starting with Daisy and Tom Buchanan and the infamous Jay Gatsby. The text closely depicts the history of the 1920s and sends a message to the readers that thw 1920s were a time of declined moral values, such as the low value of life, the harsh treatment of women, and the prevalent infidelity inside marriages.

Since society has existed, women have been known as different from men. For the longest time, women have been known as the “weaker sex” when compared to the male. There purpose, especially in the older days is to obey and please the men. However nowdays there seems to be a more equality between the two genders. But even today discrimination between male and female takes place all over the world. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, you can see a lot of discrimination between the two sexes. The story takes place in the 1930’s and it have a primitive view of women, they just got the right to vote for presidents, mayors, and senators. However most men thought that the women should only stay home and raise children, that they should not be involved in politics, and their ideas were not valuable.

Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby demonstrates that American life in the years following WW1 was comprised of the objectification of women by men. WW1 created a new era of desensitized soldiers who abandoned chivalry; women were viewed and treated as trophies. Fitzgerald proves this by exploring themes of possessiveness and dishonesty through his characters, Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby.

The media as well as society has molded young men into having the mentality of believe there is a correct and incorrect image of one's self. They must be slim and close to the appearance of a model, if not identical. Although this still applies to today, and is common for women they aren't the only ones who strive for the "perfect image". Men are also constantly being attacked for their body image, status, and societies expectations, all portraying the corresponding concept of the way men are expected to act/feel. Not only is the body being criticized but also the way men choose to be open or closed about their emotions with others.

By the same token, the relationship between the sexes is something rather sad. The men are dominant and are the head of the household. They are the ones in business, and the ones working for a living (if they can afford to do so.) However, the women still seem to get in the way of men. In fact, they seem to either lead to their demise or lead to their depression. In the book, The Great Gatsby, all seems to be well at first; the men are doing their deeds while the women party. However, things soon turn awry. Daisy’s flirting and resolution to be with Jay is what kills him in the end. Believing that Gatsby was driving and that Myrtle’s lover was Gatsby, Mr. Wilson seeks his revenge and he shoots Gatsby in Gatsby’s pool. “He was crazy enough

The Great Gatsby, and it gives us an insight into the gender roles of past WW1 America. Throughout the novel, women are portrayed in a very negative light. The author’s presentation of women is unflattering and unsympathetic. The women are not described with depth. When given their description, Fitzgerald appeals to their voice, “ she had a voice full of money”, their looks “her face was lovely with bright things in it, bright eyes, and a bright passionate mouth”, and the way in which they behave, “ ’They’re such beautiful shirts’ she sobbed”, rather than their feelings or emotions, for example, Daisy is incapable of genuine affection, however she is aimlessly flirtatious.

Looking at F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby through a feminist perspective, it’s apparent the text supports and challenges the assumptions of a patriarchal society. Interrogating this text with a critical feminist viewpoint reveals the men and women appear to be victims of social and cultural norms of the 1920s, which were firmly entrenched. However, some of the characters attempt to redefine these, especially the women in order to renegotiate the gender norms. Jordan resists social pressure to conform to feminine expectations and, despite Daisy and Myrtle living more traditionally, they are both willing to have affairs. The female characters approach feminism in a multitude of ways, representing different layers of narrative voices through a time of a feminist movement.