The Great Gatsby Author Analysis

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The great Gatsby essay response F. Scott Fitzgerald uses the way his characters act, speak and convey emotions as a way to more effectively portray the themes and ideas of his novel “The Great Gatsby.” This essay will discuss how Fitzgerald uses Tom Buchanan’s traits and actions to depict some of the key themes in “The Great Gatsby.” Fitzgerald uses Tom Buchanan to reflect on the way the majority of people felt about values and ethics throughout the 1920’s. It is very interesting how Mr Buchanan acts when he approaches Mr Gatsby regarding his affair with Daisy. He talks as if he would never even dream of doing anything unlawful and he talks like he always plays by the rules. It is very evident that he is a man with extreme double standards and holds different expectations for everyone around him opposed to his expectations for himself. He brings Daisy and Gatsby into disrepute when he confronts them regarding their affair in front of everyone else. His double standard here is very evident because he is happy to unfairly accuse them when he is currently in the midst of having his own affair with his mistress, Myrtle Wilson. He is a very hypocritical man and is not afraid to do anything necessary to remain in control of the situation. Mr Buchanan is also used by Fitzgerald to play the “Brute” character that is present in just about all classic novels (e.g. Roo in “The Summer of The Seventeenth Doll.”) Fitzgerald makes it very clear to us that Tom is “A hulking man” by how the other characters in the book refer to him. One could note that Daisy Buchanan (Tom’s wife) several times claims Tom to be “A hulk”, “A brute”, etc. Tom is also shown by Fitzgerald to be a very abusive, short tempered man. Some undeniable evidence of this is when he backhands Myrtle Wilson (his mistress) across the face, breaking her nose in the process. Fitzgerald also reveals bruises on
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