The Great Gatsby: Relationships

Relationships

In the novel, The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, there is an importance of relationships. They can be between lovers, friends, and families. The novel shows these, but also the wrong types of relationships such as people having affairs. People form relationships so they are not alone and they try to stick together through the hard times and the good times. In every relationship there are differing situations that affect the outcome and success of the relationship.

One major relationship in this novel is between Tom and Daisy. Even though they are married, they do not have the best relationship. Daisy was in love with Gatsby five years ago, but while he was away she met Tom and got married. She is shallow and materialistic and since Tom comes from a rich family, Daisy is attracted to him. Tom has an affair with Myrtle and does not seem to care that it is known. This became apparent when Myrtle calls Tom during dinner and when Nick asks Jordan about it she replies, "I thought everybody knew...Tom's got some women in New York" (19). Daisy does not let it bother her for a while, but she soon gets fed up and allows herself to fall back in love with Gatsby. Tom and Daisy somehow stick together through it all and prove that their relationship is strong enough to make it through the rough times. They could have easily gotten divorced while the affairs were going on, but they felt a responsibility to each other and realized they were in love.

Another relationship is the love affair between Tom and Myrtle. They are both married and have no reason to cheat on their spouses. They do not have a true connection and are basically using each other. There is not a clear reason why this relationship was formed or why it lasted as long as it did. They do not realize how wrong they are in having a relationship because they feel free to go out in public, when Nick was talking about how Tom has a mistress he states, "the fact that he had one was insisted upon wherever he was known"(28). The two of them are the only people that do not realize that it is wrong to flaunt their affair, even "his acquaintances resented the fact that he turned up in popular restaurants with her" (28). They are only hurting their spouses so this is not a good, healthy relationship.

The relationship between Daisy and Gatsby is also an affair. Five years ago they