The Great Gatsby

Moral Decline in the Great Gatsby

Following the horror of World War One, a new era came about. The 1920"s were a time of rebirth and excitement, often characterized as a period of American prosperity and optimism. However, people became wealthier due to the economic boom times, many lost sight of the moral and ethical behavior generally prevalent before the war. The same is true of the characters in The Great Gatsby. In F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald incorporates the motifs of violence, car accidents, and the recurring symbol of the Valley of Ashes in order to show the general selfishness and carelessness of the wealthy and the overall moral decline of the people in the 1920's.

Fitzgerald includes the motif of violence throughout the novel to exemplify the corrupt behavior of the characters. Violence is seen in the first few chapters, the first time being when Tom and Myrtle throw a small party. As the group gets drunk, everyone becomes more loud and rowdy, especially Myrtle. Sometime during the night, she and Tom stand together having a heated discussion about whether Myrtle had the right to speak of Daisy, when all of a sudden "Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand"(41). Tom had no right to hit Myrtle, regardless of anything that she said. At the party Tom's lack of restraint is seen. First of all he does not even feel guilty for cheating on Daisy with Myrtle, and he obviously has no respect for Myrtle because he hit her when she chanted Daisy's name. He uses his physical strength to intimidate and dominate others, and to prove his power over them. Coincidently, the symbol of the Valley of Ashes was mentioned in the novel before the act of violence occurred. The Valley of Ashes symbolizes the moral decay hidden by the glittering East and West Egg. It serves as a median between West Egg and New York, and portrays the ugliness in the hearts of those who live in the Eggs, even though that ugliness cannot be see in the appearance of either Egg. Later in the novel Mr. Wilson, Myrtle's husband, finds out that she has been cheating on him. He and Myrtle begin yelling and he chases her around their beat-up home, located in the Valley of Ashes. She is very upset and yells "'Beat me!' (...) 'Throw me down and beat me, you dirty little coward'" (144)! This proves that Myrtle is accustom to being treated badly if she taunts Mr. Wilson and dares him to hurt her. He does not beat her or ever plan to, because he has morals and respect for other people. She sees how Tom treats her and that is how she expects to be treated. Mr. Wilson at first does not display the attitude that the East and West Eggers possess. He does not come from old or new money. Unlike Mr. Wilson the rich care only of lush parties and fancy things. They think that the rules do not apply to them and that there are no consequences for their actions. Towards the end of the novel tragedy strikes and Gatsby is killed by Mr. Wilson. One of Gatsby's servants says to Nick," I heard the shots; (...) I hadn't thought anything much about them (169)". The fact that someone heard gunshots and "thought nothing of it" displays the careless nature that the people in the novel had, showing the moral decline of many individuals and how corrupt society really was. After hearing this awful news, Nick "started with Gatsby toward the house, [...] the gardener saw Wilson's body a little way off in the grass, and the holocaust was complete(170)". George Wilson kills Gatsby because he believed Gatsby was Myrtle's lover and he felt it was his duty to avenge his wife's death. Even after it was Daisy who killed her, Tom lies to Wilson and makes him believe it was Gatsby who killed Myrtle after all. This shows how backwards Tom really is and how unfair it is for Wilson and Gatsby. Tom receives the love of two women who were longed for by Gatsby and Wilson and whom he did not deserve. The upper class is selfish, careless, and corrupt. They live in a world devoid of beauty, meaning, and value.

Fitzgerald uses car accidents in The Great Gatsby