Question

Compare and contrast the major female characters in the novel: Daisy, Jordan, and Myrtle. How does each act towards men? What are their motivations/goals/interests/values? How are they treated by men (including the narrator/author)?

Answer 1

Answer and explanation:

Daisy, Jordan, and Myrtle are characters in "The Great Gatsby", a novel by author F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Daisy is Gatsby's love interest. Daisy was once a romantic. She was a popular girl who fell in love with Gatsby, a poor young officer who ended up leaving for war. After marrying Tom, Daisy became skeptical about men, although part of her romanticism remains. She loved Tom when they got married, but after being cheated on by him several times - even while giving birth to their daughter -, Daisy has changed her perspective on love. She now sees men as a necessary evil, something to complete her own emptiness. Tom is the husband she has to have, the man to protect her, to support her, to afford her luxuries. Gatsby is the lover she also has to have, to make her feel valued, seen, admired. She feels she can love them both for the different things they have to offer. And she knows how to seduce others too. Nick, the narrator, is Daisy's cousin, but even he is in complete awe of her.

Jordan is the most independent one. She is not emotionally unavailable but, unlike the other two women, she is as ready to open up as she is to shut down. She and the narrator, Nick, begin a sort of shallow relationship in which she is the admired and he is the admirer. At least at the beginning for, after some time, Nick realizes the superficiality and hypocrisy of all the other characters, including Jordan. She is morally flexible, ignoring sins, crimes and faults as long as she is having fun and enjoying life. She is treated with respect by both Gatsby and Tom - Tom even feels protective towards her. But she knows how to take care of herself. Her self-esteem and social ability are more than enough to keep her safe in a world full of phonies.

Myrtle is Wilson's wife and Tom's lover. Tom represents everything she wishes to possess - wealth, beauty, strength, freedom. While Wilson owns a garage/gas station in the Valley of Ashes, Tom keeps an apartment for Myrtle in New York, where they party wildly. Not much is shown about the way Wilson treats Myrtle until later in the book. When he figures out she is seeing someone else, he gets so angry at her that he feels sick. It is then that we see his controlling side; he decides he will take her away with him. Tom is also abusive toward Myrtle. He does spoil her a little, giving her a bit of luxury. But he has no scruples beating her when she mentions his wife's name. Still, that isn't enough to drive her away from him. She is used to abusive men - only Tom offers more perks than Wilson. Nick, the narrator, doesn't think much of Myrtle. She is attractive, that's for sure. But he sees her as Tom's lover from the beginning.