Thursday 8 December 2011

Can money buy you love or happiness?


The Great Gatsby main theme in the novel is money, love and happiness. By exploring these themes and how the characters portray them can help justify if money can buy love and/or happiness. When we are introduced to Gatsby we understand that from some hard work, family and inheritance from Dan Cody, he is rich. We may assume that he has the perfect life due to his grand mansion and money, however he has no wife or kids and is alone. We learn that Gatsby and Daisy used to have a 'thing' for one another when Gatsby was in the military, he lied to her by convincing her he has a wealthy background, this then led to them falling in love. This could mean that Daisy is after one thing in life to be married to a wealthy man, to have an easy life. However after Gatsby left to war not long after Daisy met Tom Buchanan, a man from an aristocratic family, who promised her wealth and happiness.
By exploring Tom and Daisy in more detail we learn that although they do have money, they don't actually seem happy. This is defined in Tom having an affair with Myrtle which conveys the feelings that Tom clearly is not happy or in love with Daisy as he has had to find another women to occupy himself with. Daisy too is aware of the affair as she says about her daughter she hopes she grows up to be a beautiful fool. This simply means that ignorance is sometime bliss, she needs to stay with Tom to have a comfortable lifestyle and maybe in some case to do with money be happy.
This two characters show that although they have money neither are actually in love or happy with themselves or partner.
Myrtle is also aware that Tom has a wife but this doesn't seem to stop her having an affair with a married man, even though herself is too married. Myrtle stays with Tom, believing that he may leave Daisy and in fact offer her a life filled with wealth, a high class society lifestyle and happiness. Although we could debate whether Myrtle is in this relationship for the riches life.
All these character seem to not have someone they truly love; Gatsby is in love and tries to win over Daisy although he does not have her, but its clear that not one of these characters are happy or in love with someone that express their love too.

Overall i think its clear that the main characters in this book represents the fact that money cant buy you everything in life, and it might actually me the less fortunate ones who have a happy family.

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