The Great Gatsby: Illusion vs.

Reality

Alyssa Kunath

English III

Mr. Vollmecke

May 3, 2010
Thesis - In the novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald depicts how money had corrupted the reality of Gatsby,

Daisy, Myrtle, and Tom.

I. Jay Gatsby is one of the main characters that lives in this extravagant world of

make believe.

A. main goals

B. loves Daisy still

C. oblivious to his surroundings

II. Daisy Buchanan was the object of Gatsby’s love.

A. impatient

B. wishes she could go back in time

C. corruption

III. Tom is an arrogant, hypocritical bully.

A. inherited money

B. careless

IV. Myrtle is married to George Wilson.

A. George is passive

B. sees past Tom’s brutality

Conclusion - In the end, even the greatest characters in The Great Gatsby are fooled by illusion.

It put on the mask of reality and, often more than not, tore apart the lives and reputations of those

who believed in it.

Alyssa Kunath Kunath 1

English III

Mr. Vollmecke

May 3, 2010

The Great Gatsby Analysis

Things are not always as they seem. Many of the characters mistake fantasy for reality.

Money was the underlining cause of the illusionary world that majority of the characters were

trapped in. In the novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald depicts how money had corrupted the reality of

Gatsby, Daisy, Myrtle, and Tom.

Jay Gatsby is one of the main characters that lives in this extravagant world of make

believe. Gatsby’s main attempt is to get back everything that he had lost in the past. Gatsby and

Daisy Buchanan were an item before the war. Even though they were in love, Gatsby did not

have the financial ability to marry someone in Daisy’s class. At first, he was not as rich as he

claimed to be, he was “a penniless young man without a past” (156) who had a structured

lifestyle. The only way Jay could pay all of his luxuries was to become as a bootlegger. With his

money he had bought this house on the bay just to be across from Daisy. His main goal in life is

to be with Daisy, his dream girl, and the only way he can is to obtain enough wealth to be on the

same financial level as her. He believes that that was the barrier that kept them apart in the first

place. Gatsby does not understand that displays of wealth alone cannot get him into Daisy’s

world and does not realize that she is also not up to his own ideals. Even with an expensive

lifestyle, he still is not happy with his life because he “paid a high price for living too long with a
 Kunath 2

single dream” (169) to repeat the past with Daisy. There must have been moments when even

Daisy had fallen short of his dreams, though not through her own fault, but because his illusion

was more profound than his belief that he and Daisy shared a deep, mutual love that could be

recaptured. He believed that through his efforts and strength of will he could defeat reality with

his romantic dreams. His illusion became his reality.

Daisy Buchanan was the object of Gatsby’s love. She loved Gatsby and had made a

promise to him that she would wait for him until the war was over. Daisy decided she could not

wait and marries Tom Buchanan. Tom is immensely wealthy, and comes from a socially solid

family in Daisy’s mind. The only reason she marries Tom is because he has money and is able to

buy her all the material objects she could ever want. Security with money and luxurious

materialistic things help her get away from reality. While Daisy recognizes that society’s

pressures are forces to be reckoned with, she also longs for the innocent period of her “white

girlhood,” before she was forced/forced herself into her marriage to Tom. The Buchanans seem

to move every few years, which might be symbolic of the ruthlessness of the rich. “And I hope

she’ll be a fool – That’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool” (21)

regarding her daughter Pammy. This statement shows part of her corruption because she is

saying that it is better to be careless and beautiful instead of worrying about real things in life.

Tom is an arrogant, hypocritical bully. Instead of working hard for his money like some

of the others, he inherited it. He takes his money for granted; buying his lovers whatever they

want. Tom feels that poor people are inferior to him and can treat them however he wants. When

Myrtle was talking with Tom he, “broke her nose with his open hand” (41). Tom’s actions
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basically tell everyone that such violence means nothing to him throughout the novel. Acting like

a man of high class and good taste, he buys extravagant things such as polo ponies or a $350,000

string of pearls for Daisy. Although he is not physically abusive to his wife, Tom certainly

causes her some definite emotional damage. He does not care about her feelings or what she has

to say. Tom values expensive things that are both beautiful and tasteful.

Myrtle is married to George Wilson. He owns a run-down garage in the valley of ashes.

Desperate to lead a better life, she is attracted to Tom because he is controlling and authoritative

as to where George is passive. Although Tom is married, he is wealthy and enjoys the company

of other women. Myrtle uses this to her advantage and keeps Tom under her control.

Unfortunately he treats her just as a mere object of his desire. When she marries Wilson, she

knows he is below her, but she still marries him. Marrying Wilson is a mistake since he can't

provide for her expensive needs that only Tom can afford. She regrets ever marrying Wilson so

she runs off with Tom whenever the chance appears. She feels that Wilson is too lowly for her.

Although marrying Wilson is a serious mistake, she isn't able to learn from this experience. One

night when she is on her way to her sister's, she meets a handsome stranger whom she falls in

love with on first sight. The stranger is Tom and she only loves him because of his status

symbols. Myrtle's behavior reflects her decision making abilities and how she is vulnerable to

manipulation. Although Tom is brutal and violent, his wealth keeps her content.

In the end, even the greatest characters in The Great Gatsby are fooled by illusion. It put

on the mask of reality and, often more than not, tore apart the lives and reputations of those who

believed in it.
 Works Cited

Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. Seventy-fifth Anniversary Edition. New York:

Scribner, 1996.