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2) female conformity practice essay

QUESTION
How does Fitzgerald portray the female characters as challenging or conforming to 1920s
society’s views of women?

BRAINSTORM

1. women exploring independence and ‘taking advantage’ of their patriarchal society

2. Daisy vs Myrtle - overt expression of sexuality punished AND class protection

(punished for challenging expectations)

3. general subversion of norms and changing expectations - smoking and drinking at

parties, etc.

female characters - Daisy, Myrtle, Jordan

Myrtle dies - severely punished for nonconformity and overt expression of sexuality

undignified death with emphasis placed on destruction of her feminine aspects -

left breast “swinging loose” and mouth “ripped”

female characters exploring the conflict between existing in a male-dominated

society and dreaming of independence i.e., taking advantage of the system to give
themselves the best possible change for happiness (patriarchal norms internalised)

Myrtle - power over Wilson “his wife’s man and not his own” yet still locked up by
him AND reliant on yet another relationship with a man (her affair with Tom) to
improve her situation - he buys her things and takes her away from the valley of
ashes

“a beautiful little fool” (pg. 18) - like Myrtle, who blindly trusts Tom even though
their first meeting is more than a little creepy (pg. 36)

women able to use their sexuality to get what they want

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 Myrtle full of “vitality … as if the nerves of her body were constantly
smouldering” - sexuality a power of force, not physical attractiveness

Daisy’s voice gives her a power over men as a representation of her feminine
sexuality eg. murmuring “only to make people lean toward her”(pg. 9) - her
voice was “a singing compulsion, a whispered ‘Listen,’ a promise that she had
done gay, exciting things” (pg. 10)

bias in narration - hear about female characters from Nick’s perspective

the novel both supports and challenges the assumptions of a patriarchal society

By using a range of characters who respond to the figure of the New Woman, the
novel shows how difficult it was to defy the norms of the time

women smoking and drinking, often in the company of men, enjoying the
sometimes raucous nightlife offered at nightclubs and private parties

new dances of the era, which seemed wild and overtly sexual to many, bespoke an
attitude of free self-expression and unrestrained enjoyment - “New Woman”

negative reaction from conservative members of society who felt that women’s
rejection of any aspect of their traditional role → destruction of the family and
the moral decline of society as a whole

Daisy’s life does not revolve exclusively around her maternal role - Pammy seems
like an afterthought to her

Myrtle open about her unhappiness in her marriage with Wilson (Myrtle more so
than Daisy eg. when Daisy pretends that nothing is wrong after the telephone scene
at the dinner party) - “tense gaiety” (pg. 16), “I can’t seem to remember, but I think
we talked about the Nordic race” (pg. 20) - Myrtle also more open about her affair
than Daisy

“I thought he knew something about breeding, but he wasn’t fit to lick my

shoe” (pg. 35)

“Who said I was crazy about him? … The only crazy I was was when I married
him” (pg. 35)

Daisy ends up killing Myrtle!

protected by class?

physical (and material) attraction between Tom and Myrtle vs emotional

attraction between Daisy and Gatsby (idealised) vs material, status-based
attraction between Daisy and Tom

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 Jordan enabled to be independent by her male attributes eg. successful golfing
career, “erect carriage … like a young cadet” and non-gender specific name

Jordan sexually liberated - satisfying the “demands of her hard, jaunty body,” Tom is
even prompted to comment that Jordan’s family “oughtn’t to let her run around the
country in this way” (pg. 19)

INTRODUCTION

According to F. Scott Fitzgerald himself, his 1925 novel ‘The Great Gatsby,’ which follows a
flamboyant racketeer’s attempt to recapture an upper-class girl, contains ‘no important female
character.’ But even though Fitzgerald only intended his female characters to serve as plot
devices, Daisy, Jordan and Myrtle have captured the imaginations of generations of readers,
who identify with their motivations and struggles, and this is equally important. In ‘The Great
Gatsby,’ Fitzgerald captures a time of great social change, where many, especially women,
were challenging and subverting societal norms and expectations.

The female characters in the novel strive to achieve independence within the confines of a
deeply patriarchal society where overt expression of unhappiness and sexuality are severely
punished. It is also true, however, that the general societal attitude to behaviours like
partying, dancing, drinking and being sexually active is slowly shifting to become more
accepting.

Firstly, characters like Daisy and Myrtle realise that they must rely on men to provide them
some level of happiness and independence, achieving success on the terms of their society.
While both Daisy and Myrtle are dissatisfied in their marriages and involved in affairs with
other men, Myrtle’s overt sexual expression and lower-class status lead to her tragic demise.
And finally, it is seen more generally that women are engaging in activities that would have
once been considered taboo and that attitudes are slowly shifting.

PARA 1 - INDEPENDENCE WITHIN CONFINES OF PATRIARCHAL SOCIETY

The female characters in the novel explore the conflict between existing in a male-dominated
society and dreaming of independence, and they are able to ‘take advantage of the system’ to
give themselves the best possible chance for happiness and achieve some level of
independence.

Myrtle and Daisy are both able to use their sexuality and relationships with men to improve
their quality of life, and Jordan’s masculine attributes enable her to be more independent.

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 Daisy seems to be acutely aware of the limitations and expectations imposed on her by her
society, and she is able to use her beauty and femininity to cultivate relationships with men
that maximise her happiness and independence. Daisy’s famous line that “the best thing a girl
can be” is “a beautiful little fool” (pg. 18) expresses her awareness of the limited options
available to women in 1920s society - the happiest woman is one who is able to benefit from
the patriarchy because of her beauty and who blindly trusts, blissfully unaware of the
direness and hopelessness of her situation. In addition, as a young girl, she “wanted her life
shaped” (pg. x) and recognised that marriage was the best way to achieve this. With this
awareness of the workings of her society, Daisy is able to entice and control men with her
looks and charm - for example, she speaks with a murmur “only to make people lean toward
her” (pg.9) and in her voice is “a singing compulsion, a whispered ‘Listen,’ a promise that
she had done gay, exciting things” (pg. 10). At the same time, however, she is viewed by the
men in her life as a mere possession to be fought over, and her identity is confined to her
relationships to men. As an example, Nick is invited over to have “dinner with the Tom
Buchanans” (pg. x), suggesting that Daisy’s identity is simply as Tom’s wife. Daisy, aware of
the male-dominated nature of her society, is able to exploit the emphasis placed on beauty
and charm for women, but is never fully able to gain independence outside of her
relationships with men.

Similarly, Myrtle is also able to use her sexuality, described as a power of force - a “vitality
… as if the nerves of her body were constantly smouldering” (pg. x) - to get what she wants.
She is interested in accumulating material possessions and climbing up the rungs of the social
ladder, and she is able to persuade Tom to buy her things, from a dog to an apartment, and
take her away from the valley of ashes. She also seems to embody Daisy’s vision of “a
beautiful little fool” (pg. 18), blindly trusting Tom and his ability to increase her social
standing from their very first meeting, when he “presse[s] against” her in a way that is
menacing enough for her to threaten to “call a policeman” and she is nevertheless “excited”
(pg. x) to get into a taxi with him.

Jordan, on the other hand, is an athlete with a successful golfing career and physical
characteristics described in masculine terms - she has an “erect carriage … like a young
cadet” (pg. x), and even a non-gender specific name. She uses her male attributes to achieve
success and independence in her patriarchal society.
In different ways, either by conforming to or challenging the expectations of femininity in
their male-dominated society, the female characters are portrayed by Fitzgerald as taking
advantage of the system to benefit themselves.

PARA 2 - DAISY VS MYRTLE

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 Fitzgerald characterises both Myrtle and Daisy as unhappy in their marriages and they,
therefore, pursue affairs with other men. Myrtle, however, is much more overt in her
expression of her dissatisfaction and sexuality. This, combined with the class divide between
the two characters, leads to a tragic end for Myrtle, while Daisy continued unaffected,
exposing the cracks and contradictions in 1920s society’s expectations for women.
While Myrtle is open about her unhappiness in her marriage with Wilson, Daisy has a
tendency to disguise her dissatisfaction and pretend that all is well. Myrtle makes her
frustration clear at the party in her and Tom’s apartment. When asked why she chose to
marry Wilson, Myrtle responds by saying she “thought he knew something about breeding,
but he wasn’t fit to lick [her] shoe” (pg. 35). This is further reinforced by Myrtle’s statement,
“Who said I was crazy about him? … The only crazy I was was when I married him” (pg.
35). It is clear to the people around her that she is unsatisfied with her marital relationship,
not only through the aforementioned statements, but also by the fact that she is so open about
her affair with Tom, inviting family, friends and neighbours alike to their shared apartment to
celebrate. In contrast, Daisy a) pretends that nothing is wrong in her marriage with Tom and
b) is extremely secretive about her affair with Gatsby. When Tom leaves the dinner party with
Nick to answer Myrtle’s telephone call, she and Tom argue in a “subdued, impassioned
murmur” (pg. x), and upon their return, Daisy speaks with “tense gaiety” (pg. x), trying to
restore the mood of the evening. Furthermore, when Tom accuses Daisy of gossiping with
Nick about their marriage, Daisy lies that she “can’t seem to remember” what they talked
about, with only a vague recollection of a discussion “about the Nordic race” (pg. 20). Daisy
and Gatsby manage to conceal their affair until the trip to New York, where they have
planned to reveal themselves to Tom.

Key here is that Myrtle dies, while Daisy lives on - in fact, Daisy was the one driving the car
that hit Myrtle. Myrtle’s death is undignified, with an emphasis placed on the destruction of
her feminine aspects - her left breast is left “swinging loose” and her mouth is “ripped” (pg.
x) - a severe punishment for her nonconformity. Not only does this signify that overt displays
of sexuality and marital unhappiness are not condoned in women in 1920s society, it also
suggests that there is some level of class protection - Daisy, an upper-class woman, is spared
the pain and humiliation that Myrtle must suffer through, even though they both engage in
the same adulterous behaviour. This distinction is also demonstrated through Fitzgerald’s use
of “girls” to describe female characters in the upper class and “women” when referring to
lower-class characters.

Through the contrast between the fates that Daisy and Myrtle, both unhappy, sexually
liberated and pursuing affairs, meet, Fitzgerald is able to convey the contradictory nature of
what 1920s society expected from women of different classes, as well as the scorn for overt
displays of sexuality from women.

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 PARA 3 - CHANGING EXPECTATIONS AND NORMS
More generally, Fitzgerald portrays the changing expectations and norms for women in the
1920s, but also the scorn that this garners from conservative thinkers - from the wild
behaviour of the guests at Gatsby’s parties and Jordan’s sexual liberation to Daisy’s apathy
toward her daughter Pammy and motherhood in general.
The women that Fitzgerald describes at Gatsby’s parties are involved in smoking, drinking
and dancing, all in the company of men, reflecting the changing role of women in 1920s
society. To illustrate, Nick sees “a great number of single girls dancing individualistically”
(pg. x) on the dance floor, able to enjoy themselves without men around them. There is also
overt flirtation, such as when Nick describes girls “putting their heads on men’s shoulders in
a puppyish, convivial way” and “swooning backward playfully into men’s arms” (pg. x). In
addition, women are seen drinking, including the jazz singer who has “drunk a quantity of
champagne” (pg. x) and is now drunkenly crooning out her last notes. Towards the end of the
party, women are seen openly “having fights with men said to be their husbands” (pg. x) - all
of this behaviour is now acceptable for women, especially those in higher society, but Nick’s
incredulity, demonstrated by the extent of his description of the girls’ behaviour at the party,
shows readers that this change is a recent development that people are still getting used to.
Although technically a mother to Pammy, Daisy’s life by no means revolves exclusively
around her maternal role - in fact, Pammy often seems like an afterthought to her. She spends
most of her time with her nurse, only briefly visiting her mother to be showered in
compliments such as “Bles-sed pre-cious!”(pg. x) before being led away once again by the
nurse. Even Daisy’s famous story about Pammy’s birth is only to impress Nick her own
cynicism and “membership in a rather distinguished secret society to which she and Tom
belonged” (pg. x). Daisy’s distant relationship with Pammy demonstrates the changing role of
women within the household, but here as well, Nick’s focus on the relationship of this
relationship, which he finds to be curious, demonstrates that this too is still not fully
normalised.
Finally, Jordan, is implied to be sexual liberated and active when, for example, Nick refers to
her satisfying the “demands of her hard, jaunty body” (pg. x). This is definitely a new
development in the area of women’s freedom, but she is still met with skepticism by, for
example, Tom, who is prompted to comment that Jordan’s family “oughtn’t to let her run
around the country in this way” (pg. 19).

The fact that female characters are depicted having raucous fun at Gatsby’s parties, not
having to stake their whole identity on being mothers and being sexually active demonstrates
the shifting view of women in 1920s society, but Nick’s incredulity and direct comments

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 from characters like Tom ground this, showing that these societal shifts are still very much a
work in progress.

CONCLUSION

1920s society, although more open-minded than ever before, was still a suffocating time to be
a woman - so many conflicting priorities and expectations, from being a maternal figure to a
sexual object for men. The female characters in ‘The Great Gatsby’ reflect this complexity in
their responses to living in an oppressive patriarchal society. Daisy and Myrtle’s attempts to
take advantage of the system by using their looks and charm to attract the attention of high-
status men only take them so far, and their unhappiness leads them to pursue affairs, which in
the case of Myrtle has tragic consequences. However, the growing acceptance for women in
the public sphere engaging in partying, sex and so on is a source of hope. Despite Fitzgerald’s
insistence that his novel is without complex female characters, characters like Daisy, Jordan
and Myrtle will never cease to intrigue, amuse and inspire.

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