Character

          During World War 1, women gained a lot of respect in the eyes of the law. There was a 25% increase of working women, due to the absence of men. They also gained the right to vote. Women also gained the right to file for divorce. Even with these newly-born women’s rights, the country still perceived women as being the lesser image compared to men. The character Tom Buchanan is constantly portrayed as being the alpha-male, and being the boss over his wife – Daisy Buchanan. This was common in the early nineteen hundreds, and Tom is the primary example of this.

            

          Early on in the novel, Nick describes each character. During Nick’s portrayal of Tom’s life, he notes that the pinnacle of his existence was attained within his early years. Nick states that “…among various physical accomplishments, had been one of the most powerful ends that ever played football at New Haven – a national figure in a way”. (Fitzgerald, page 6). This is an extreme example of gender inequality because of the fact that a national figure was described as a male, and not a female. This implies that national figures can only be men and that women are perceived as being incapable of power or inspiration. In modern day society, this is an ongoing problem, to be more specific, professional sports on television are primarily sports played by men, meaning viewers prefer to watch men play sports rather than women. According to BBC’s Facebook page, during the 2012 Olympics, only 5.4% of the sports covered on the page were women’s sports, meaning females take a back seat to men even in the present day. Also, Jordan Baker was a professional golfer and a very talented athlete. Yet, she is not viewed by Nick or any character as being a national figure, and her athletic accomplishments were named but once or twice throughout the entire novel.

Later on in the novel, Nick was describing Tom’s character again, and said something rather descriptive of his personality. “Tom had some woman in New York, which was less surprising than that he had been depressed by a book.” (Fitzgerald, page 20). This description of Tom leads readers to believe that he dismisses women with ease, and objectifies them to the extent of belittling. According to Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, in the 1920s, 28% of American men were adulterous at some point after wedding. This outrageous number enforces that men concluded that women were just objects and had no conscience towards moral rights when it comes to loyalty.

A little later on in the book, Tom and his mistress, Myrtle, along with others go into New York to spend the day together. Nearing the end of the evening (and after a couple drinks), Myrtle starts chanting Tom’s wife’s name – Daisy, for the sole reason to aggravate him. His reaction to this is rather impulsive. “Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand.” (Fitzgerald, page 37). Although men and women were technically equal by law at this point in time (by voting standards), Tom continues to abuse his so-called manly demeanor in order to impose his beliefs in a violent way. Tom’s character is a prime example of how even though men and women are technically equal; this is not the case in reality. According to the ‘Encyclopedia of Crime and Law Enforcement’, wife battery was deemed illegal in 1920. Five to 15 percent of arrests for domestic violence in 1920 were women, meaning the vast majority of perpetrators were men. Even knowing that battery was illegal, Tom still beats his mistress without giving it a second thought.

1. Tsapelas, Irene, Helel E. Fisher, and Arthur Aron. "Infidelity: When, Where, Why." The Dark Side of Close Relationships (n.d.): 175-96.Http://lifespanlearn.org/documents/FisherInfidelity.pdf. Web. 8 July 2014.

2.Cheryl, Hanna. "Domestic Violence." Encyclopedia.com. HighBeam Research, 01 Jan. 2002. Web. 8 July 2014. <http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Domestic_violence.aspx>.