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Difference Between Wealth And Wealth In The Great Gatsby

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Shriya Karmarkar
Ms. Thomas
MYP American Literature
12 October 2017
Wealth Meets Character Money can buy numerous commodities. From healthy food to life insurance, from job security to sports cars, money makes up for a giant part of one’s daily life. It even has the capacity to arouse emotions; money and power complement each other. With power comes a lack of equity, where social classes emerge. A social status of an individual or family can be determined by the power they hold in a particular region. Since money can rank an individual in society, nothing stops it from influencing people’s behaviors. Often, the social status or wealth affects the character of a person. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald portrays how the characters interact with the society depending on their wealth. The Great Gatsby, set in the 1920s, New York, displays the features of social stratification by complementing it with the development of setting and characterization of the different individuals. In The Great Gatsby, the upper class coins the term selfish. As dictators of this social hierarchy, the upper class supersedes the elite force. For instance, in the beginning, Nick Carraway questions why Jay Gatsby always shows kindness towards him. Jordan Baker later explains that Gatsby does so in order to confirm the possibility that “[Nick’ll] invite Daisy to [his] house some afternoon and then let [Gatsby]come over"(Fitzgerald Chapter 4). Thus, Gatsby only befriends Nick in order to reunite with his

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