In 1925, F. Scott Fitzgerald published The Great Gatsby, a novel set in The Roaring Twenties, portraying a flamboyant and immortal society of the ‘20s where the economy booms, and prohibition leads to organized crimes. Readers follow the journey about a young man named Jay Gatsby, an extravagant mysterious neighbor of the narrator, Nick Carraway. As the novel evolves, Nick narrates his discoveries of Gatsby’s past and his love for Daisy, Nick’s married cousin to readers. Throughout the novel, Fitzgerald develops the theme of the conflict which results from keeping secrets instead of telling the truth using the three characters – Tom Buchanan, Nick Carraway, and Jay Gatsby (James Gats).
The first individual that Fitzgerald utilizes as an example of being deceitful is Tom Buchanan. Readers see an indication of his untruthfulness from the beginning of the narration when Nick is spoken to by Jordan Baker about Tom having an affair with another woman, “Why–…Tom’s got another woman in New York” (Fitzgerald, 19). This information is later established as Nick and Tom journey to New York but stop by the Valley of Ashes due to Tom’s insistence, “We’re getting off here…I want you to meet my girl” (Fitzgerald, 28). During the party in New York readers learn that to keep Myrtle as his mistress Tom elaborates a lie about Daisy’s religion from Catherine, “It’s really his wife that’s keeping them apart. She’s a Catholic and they don’t believe in divorce” (Fitzgerald, 38). Even though Daisy may suspect or has been informed by others, Tom does not tell Daisy about his affair or the reason behind it. When Gatsby confronts him about his affair with Daisy however, he says, “The trouble is sometimes she gets foolish ideas in her head and doesn’t kno…
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…are shown that Gatsby is prepared to do everything in his power to acquire Daisy’s adoration again, even let her get away with murder and will blindly go to jail for her. This however only leads him to his ultimate doom, as he is killed by Myrtle’s husband, Wilson. He may be a liar, but readers empathize with him as his only fault for being dishonest is his love for Daisy and being so blind to see that she is not worthy of that adoration.
Therefore, one is able to tell a fib by the liar’s expression, speech, or movement, but not the consequences of the secrets they keep. Fitzgerald develops the premise of lies, deceit, and secrets through Tom Buchanan, Nick Carraway, and Jay Gatsby (James Gats) and reshapes the downfall of the Roaring Twenties in an artful manner by enticing us on the journey of the vivacity of The Great Gatsby and his young foolish love narrative.
