Answer:
The answer is letter A. Old money is scornful of new money; in America, class rivalry can breed stereotypes.
Explanation:
The famous novel "The Great Gatsby", by F. Scott Fitzgerald, has as two of its themes the degradation of the American dream and the superficiality of the upper class. That is precisely what is portrayed in this excerpt.
In this interaction, we have Nick, the narrator, and Tom. Tom is a wealthy man from a wealthy family. He represents "old money". Even though he lacks moral and values, he believes he is superior to the "newly rich people"; after all, he did not have to work hard for his own money - it is something he has always taken for granted. He is a gentleman in the sense that can live off of his inheritance. The newly rich are not his equal, they do not have his family, his history, his merit, in Tom's opinion. He has chosen to believe that they are criminals, bootleggers, for no one could become that rich overnight unless their family was already rich.
In this case, Tom is, unfortunately, right. Gatsby is indeed a bootlegger, fitting the stereotype created by the upper class. He represents the degradation of the American dream. Instead of working hard and remaining honest, Gatsby chose the easier, faster path to wealth. The American promise to the people is that everyone has a chance to get a job, to provide for themselves and their families, to access education and so on. It is not a promise to grow rich instantly by being a criminal.
