Great Gatsby and Symbolic Interactionism

There are two basic types of relationships between the five main characters in The Great Gatsby. These figures include Myrtle, Gatsby, Daisy, Tom, and Nick. Tom and Daisy and George and Myrtle are two married couples. Gatsby had an affair with Daisy, Tom had an affair with Myrtle, and Nick had an affair with Jordan. The narrative centers on these connections and the five major characters, despite the presence of other interactions, such as friendship. As their confidant and the story's narrator, Nick Carraway links them all together. All of the characters have unusual or unstable connections with one another. Some of the characters never show concern for their partners in the relationships, which are self-centered. Also, status and wealth is playing a large role in determining the relationship. For instance, Gatsby had to lie to Daisy about his background to be worthy of her love while Myrtle is only having an affair for the sake of class and status.

This essay explores the five main characters and their relationship to one another as seen from the eyes of the narrator, Nick Carraway and analyses them using the symbolic Interactionism perspective. First, it looks at the two marriages and the three relationships and describes the characters’ behavior in these affairs. In a bid to analyze the characters from a symbolic interaction perspective, it will look at each of them individually and use the theory to make sense of the self and determine the motivations behind the characters’ behaviors and decisions.

Main Characters and Their Relationships

Tom Buchanan and Daisy Marriage

Tom and Daisy married three years before the novel. They both come from wealthy families and live in a lavish home in East Egg. As Jordan recalls, Daisy had almost changed her mind about marrying Tom when she received a letter from Gatsby, whom she was in a prior relationship. However, she eventually married Tom without even a second consideration to the possibility of being with Gatsby. Towards the start of their relationship however, daisy seemed much in love but was soon worn out by Tom’s infidelity that started not long after their honeymoon. Throughout the novel, Tom and daisy enter into affairs and continue drifting away. Although daisy has the decency to hide her affair with Gatsby, Tom does not. “A week after I left Santa Barbara Tom ran into a wagon on the Ventura road one night and ripped a front wheel off his car. The girl who was with him got into the papers too because her arm was broken—she was one of the chambermaids in the Santa Barbara Hotel,” (Fitzgerald, 2013 p.77). In Nick’s eyes, this couple is rich and restless and in the end as a close but bored couple, signifying their relationship is not stable. However, despite their marriage weathering affairs, they end up together the same way the novel started.

Myrtle and George Wilson Marriage

Having been married for 12 years before the start of the novel, one would expect that this couple is stable. Quite to the contrary, their marriage is not stable as Myrtle overestimated George’s wealth when they were getting married. “I married him because I thought he was a gentleman, she finally said. I thought he knew something about breeding but he wasn’t worthy to lick my shoe,” (Fitzgerald, 2013 p. 77). Although she loved him initially, she is currently unhappy living over a garage in Queens that her husband owns. Due to the rareness of divorce during this time, she thought that her only way out was having connection to a wealthy upper class man. To this regard, her affair with Tom that began a few months before the start of the novel came as her way out. However, Tom on the other hand was just using her as a mistress without any intentions of making a commitment to her. However, because her love for social status is strong, she does not realize that Tom is just using her. Unlike Tom and Daisy’s marriage that in the end remains stable because of their money, George and Myrtle end up dead.

Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan Relationship

The entire story revolves around this relationship, which started five years before the novel started. Gatsby fell in love with Daisy back in Louisville before he went to WWI. Daisy initially thought Gatsby was rich and worthy of her love, which we later find out, was not the case. To win her, Gatsby went into organized crime to become rich with the sole purpose of reuniting with Daisy. He in fact bought a house across the bay to her house to be closer to her. “Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay,” (Fitzgerald, 2013 p. 78). Also, the parties are an attempt to win Daisy back. The only problem is that Daisy is married and does not love him the same way she did. However, after they were re-introduced, they rekindled their relationship and started an affair. She confesses that she loves Gatsby but also had loved Tom.

In chapter 8, it is clear that Gatsby came to view Daisy as everything that represented his dreams and ambition. It is in this chapter that we learn how Gatsby came to value wealth because of being exposed to it when he first dated Daisy in Louisville. Since then, his quest has always been to make money and be with her. Daisy is represented as an ambition and dream, which one could relate to The American Dream.

Tom Buchanan and Myrtle Wilson

Tom and Myrtle began their affair a few months before the novel starts. However, it is clear that the two have different interests. Myrtle on the one hand sees the affair as her ticket out of her unhappy marriage while Tom on the other hand is just using her for pleasure and sees her as another mistress. Neither of the two knows what the other really wants because they are both driven by different motives. In one scene, Tom breaks her nose for mentioning Daisy. "Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!" shouted Mrs. Wilson. "I'll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai—— Making a short deft movement Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand,” (Fitzgerald, 2013 p. 37). Despite this incident, Myrtle still carries on with the affair, proving how desperate she was to climb the social ladder as well as how deluded she was concerning the affair.

Nick and Jordan’s Relationship

This is the only relationship that is straight forward, where both characters never had any prior relationship before the novel. Jordan is Daisy’s friend and staying at their house while Daisy and Nick are cousins. Their relationship is different from the rest as it is not a marriage and neither is it an affair outside marriage.

Character Analysis through Symbolic Interactionism

Symbolic Interactionism theory has several premises that are clearly evident in the novel’s story. Specifically, it emphasizes on symbols and language that people use to deduct meaning to their daily experiences. It purports that people change their behavior depending on the meaning they give to their social interactions. Individual spend a lot of time planning what to do next and adjust behavior according to ways that one feels others perceive him. This is so true for the case of the main characters in this story. At most times, it seems that these characters are adjusting their behaviors depending on how they want other people to perceive them. The interactions in their life are playing a significant role in their behavior.

Jay Gatsby

Being the main protagonist of the story, he has sought to form his own identity depending on the meaning he places on things around him such wealth and social interactions. To get an in-depth insight into how social Interactionism comes into play, it is important to analyze what the novel represents and what it symbolizes. Clearly, Gatsby’s dream is symbolic of the American Dream that the entire society sought to live up to. The American Dream represented individuality and social values and the idea that any person could achieve their desired goals in life. In contrast, The American Dream represented in the novel was associated to wealth and status, where having more and coming from a rich background garnered more respect. Gatsby’s dream was to live up to the American dream and Daisy Buchanan signified this type of life. Initially, before meeting Daisy Gatsby was poor and did not have a rich background. As a result, he changed his identity including his name and lifestyle once he became rich. His social interactions and dating daisy opened him up to a new kind of life that one could dream of.

To Gatsby, the defining situation was meeting daisy in Louisville. She represented the American Dream, which was initially meant to be pursuit of happiness, virtues and societal values. However, these values have been ruined by money and relaxed societal values. As a result, Gatsby tries to relive the past by trying to win Daisy over but it becomes impossible. His dream is not only ruined by money, but also the social status that drives him to enter crime.

Gatsby’s love for Daisy represents a pure heart or true love considering he went to great lengths trying to win her back. However, the social values have changed and everything seems to be a cost benefit where every person just seeks material gain. In terms of symbols, Gatsby creates his own meaning from the green light at Daisy’s dock, which he sees as his dream. Also, he has instilled daisy with an idealized perfection that she can neither live up to or had. To this regard, his dream is ruined by the unworthiness of Daisy, his object of desire, because of her materialistic nature.

Daisy Buchanan

Daisy Buchanan on the other hand is a materialistic individual who only cares for social status and wealth. He fell in love with Gatsby in Louisville when she thought he was of equal social class to her. Also, when she got a chance to marry another man of the same status and background, she did not hesitate even after receiving a letter from Gatsby before the wedding. Goffman sees the development of the self or individual identity as a result of cost benefit analysis. Her materialistic nature puts her under this category. Towards the end of the novel, she confesses to loving Gatsby. However, when she learns that his wealth was a result of criminal activity and that he was never from an aristocratic background, she opts to remain with Tom. Her behavior is also modified by her interactions, where she comes from a rich background and does not care whether she hurts others, which is evident in the final chapters.

The rich people of East Egg represent the old aristocracy, of old-money while people of West Egg represent new money. Those from East Egg including Tom seem to be arrogant and never caring about other people’s emotions, which Daisy now lives up to. This is evident when she hits and kills Myrtle with a car and lets Gatsby take the blame. She does not take responsibility and in the end Gatsby pays for her mistake with his life. Symbolic Interactionism is evident from this character as she behaves according to the social class of the aristocratic cold money that only cares for its interests as evidenced when Daisy and Tom leave East Egg and do not attend Gatsby’s funeral.

Tom

Tom, just like daisy represents old-money and characterizes this group as careless and hypocritical as well as arrogant. He expects other people to live up to moral codes and standards but does not do the same. He is careless and uses his money to get what he wants. From a symbolic Interactionism point of view, he only has meaning for money and his character only seems to change when he thinks he will lose Daisy to Gatsby. His arrogance and lack of consideration can be attributed to growing in money and never knowing a life of struggle.

Nick

Nick on the other hand is kind to others and tries to live a decent life. Of all the character, he is the only one whose character is not significantly altered by his social interactions. Coming to New York to learn bond business, he is quite, reflective, a good listener and never judges others. As a result of his kindness, many characters see him as a confidant. Later in the book however, he is conflicted where he is attracted to the New York life of fun and tries to behave like the others around him. However, he resolves this at the end of the novel when he stops seeing Jordan because he feels she does not care about others and is dishonest. This relationship is symbolic of the conflict and influence that New York had on him. However, unlike the other characters, he remains logic, which is the opposite of symbolic Interactionism perspectives.

Conclusion

The main characters of this book seem to be symbolic of the American Dream which idealized individuality, social values and pursuit of happiness. However, they seem to represent its decline, with some trying to hold on to the dream. Gatsby, the protagonist seeks to bring back the past and relive it. However, this is not possible as his object of adoration does not live up to the same standards. It is clear that the relationships in the novel are self-centered with the characters seeking to personal gain while others only seek pleasures of life without taking any responsibilities to their actions. Money and materialism seem to be the main motivating factors to behavior in the novel, with main characters such as Daisy and Gatsby going great lengths to have it and maintain a high social status.

Reference

Fitzgerald, F. S. (2013). The Great Gatsby. New York, N.Y: Simon and Schuster.