Women and Sympathy Objectives Know how women are presented in ‘The Great Gstsby’ Be able to explore a view in depth using relevant textual support Undertstand how to plan and structure a response to section A (Part b) of the exam

The Question What do you think about the view that there are no women in ‘The Great Gatsby’ with whom the reader can sympathise?

A Way In… Think about your character in the following ways: – Destination – Nick’s interpretation of the character – bias? – Their actions and motivation – How they are physically portrayed – The context of the novel – How they influence other characters

Pro-Myrtle She has dreams and aspirations – she doesn’t want to live on the edge of society forever “on the edge of the wasteland” Her husband is un-intelligent, meek “like he was a ghost” can’t give her what she needs In ch7 her husband locks her up and is violent She is stuck in a dismal life in the metaphorical fallout of the Jazz Age Has been stuck in this situation with a hapless, spineless husband for the past 10 years

Pro-Myrtle She sees Tom as her way out Her death is a sad and violent event – waste of life. She wants to be happy and fulfil her dreams. Victim of consumerism – she cannot be expected to live in the Valley of the Ashes dreaming her life away. She is a pawn in the careless games of the rich; talking the brunt of the consequences of their games.

Anti-Myrtle She comes across as very flirtatous ‘She carried her flesh sensuously’; ‘wet her lips’; ‘Looking at him flush in the eye’ It is hard to sympathise with her because she’s happy to be treated like a dog by Tom to get ahead in the world She is cheating on her husband who clearly loves her. She doesn’t want to stay poor so she uses Tom – power hungry.

Anti-Myrtle She is selfish – only cares about herself. Treats George badly “spoke to her husband in a soft, coarse voice.” Using Tom as an escape route – only cares about money and wealth She doesn’t have good motives and is willing to cheat to get what she wants

Pro-Daisy Submissive – doesn’t question or fight against Tom when she know he has another woman Men at the time wanted wives like this Trapped – victim of her class. Has to keep up appearances in a loveless marriage. Physically potrayed as sweet, pure, innocent “her white dress”, “rippling and fluttering”, “charming little laugh”

Pro-Daisy Car accident: she was in a a vulnerable state - had been drinking all afternoon She just wants to be happy / content Her husband is having an affair She is aware of what is happening but is powerless to do anything about it. Tom is the dominant one in the relationship

Anti-Daisy Nick’s descriptions of her are bias – she is romanticised She is lazy and has no motivation – symptomatic of her class Cheats on her husband She is fickle – loved Gatsby but couldn’t be bothered to wait Weak and dependent Stereotypical – fulfills a gender role but never seen with baby or cooking

Anti-Daisy Terrible influence on Gatsby – her careless actions result in his death She is childish and lazy – no motivation, never had to work hard to achieve anything, everything been given to her and she just accepts it. She is self-consumed – does not care about anyone else other than herself She cheats – says she loves two men.

Pro-Jordan She’s over-shadowed constantly by Daisy She is very judged – liar, cheat – Nick’s biased opinion. She has little choice contextually – female character – independent (un-married, against expectations of society) She is judged and then abandoned by Nick Her appearance makes her seem strong and independent

Pro-Jordan She is loyal and can be relied on In ch7 when Nick is fed up of everyone he says suddenly “that included Jordan too” In the novel she has been Nick’s love interest and he just takes everything out on her.

Anti-Jordan She likes to gossip “Don’t talk. I want to hear what happens” She listens to all the gossip and wants to know what’s going on, even if it’s about her friends. She can’t be trusted – she is dishonest and tries to fit in with society Nick sees her as careless – representative of the rich – cheats and doesn’t care about the consequences.

From what we have learnt today about the three women characters complete a response to the question. What do you think about the view that there are no women in ‘The Great Gatsby’ with whom the reader can sympathise?