Compare/contrast: the great gatsby

The Great Gatsby The Great Gatsby is a book filled with twists and turns of events from beginning to end. It involves a love/hate relationship triangle. The two characters I am comparing and contrasting are Tom Buchannan and Jay Gatsby. Both of these men yearn for a relationship with a lady named Daisy. These characters are similar because they each want to earn Daisy’s love; yet, they are drastically different. Both Tom Buchannan and Jay Gatsby are men who commit two different types of uniform foolishness. Tom deals with affairs of the heart, whereas Gatsby deals with business affairs. Each man loves Daisy dearly. Tom starts out, on their wedding day, showing disrespect for Daisy. Once Tom realizes there might be another man in the picture, he decides to show more love towards his wife. Gatsby met and fell in love with Daisy when they were in the South. She would not stay with Gatsby because she wanted more materialistic things in life. Both men are terrified of the thought of losing Daisy. Tom’s dignity could not possibly survive any loss; yet Gatsby’s thoughts of a well lived life with Daisy soon killed him. Tom Buchannan is a dirty, uncouth, ignorant, and opinionated man. He was born into a very wealthy and advanced family. Even though Tom grew up with plenty of money, he was never very courteous or generous. He is an overpowering and controlling individual. Tom is a rather large guy with his appearance being quiet intimidating. Daisy, Tom’s wife, refers to Tom as being beastly; however, Myrtle Wilson, Tom’s mistress, calls Tom “ hulking”. Tom uses his earned money to travel around to various places. Majority of the time, his traveling styles are a way to escape his nasty affairs. Tom does not necessarily have a purpose or direction for his life. Misery always seems to follow Tom, as he enjoys his wealth. On the other hand, Jay Gatsby grew up with practically nothing. Because of this, Gatsby is one to strive in being a people pleaser and a thoughtful host. Gatsby is more of a sophisticated, reserved, and established type of man. Even though Gatsby is the host of parties, he does not necessarily want to be recognized. He is not one to make precise judgments about people. When Gatsby was younger, he grew to dislike those whose only desired money. However, he decides to overlook those things to achieve his much wanted goals as an adult. Gatsby is entangled in various business schemes to earn his wealth. Gatsby is one to care little about himself because he is specifically determined to reach his goals and win back his one and only love. With all of the occurring events in the book, the love triangle is brought to a sudden halt. Gatsby takes the blame for the automobile accident that kills Tom’s mistress. Gatsby did not want the truth about Daisy driving being revealed. Tom takes revenge by telling everyone that Gatsby was the driver when the accident occurred. The husband of the victim takes the law into his own hands and kills Gatsby. Only a hand full of people attended Gatsby’s funeral. This shows that money cannot buy true happiness, friends, or love.