In the novel of The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald illustrates an ordinary social life background in America by introducing main characters during the 1920s. The author provides some essential symbols and characteristics of characters, especially for Tom, based on the certain period of America. In the novel, Tom Buchanan plays the role of antagonist, who has a different personality than others, but a typical one in America during the 1920s. Throughout The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald sets Tom Buchanan’s personality with some important symbols: carelessness, racism, arrogance, and sexism towards Daisy.
In the novel, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald introduces Tom in the first chapter as the symbol of carelessness to describe his personality. The symbol of carelessness links to Tom’s background as well. Since he was a great fortune from his family, he did not have any economic difficulties and he did not even have any experience of working hard himself to get something that he desperately wants, because he could get anything he wants. Fitzgerald sets Tom as the character who enjoys partying, drinking, and money.
"I suppose the latest thing is to sit back and let Mr. Nobody from Nowhere make love to your wife. Well, if that's the idea you can count me out […] Nowadays people begin by sneering at family life and family institutions, and next they'll throw everything overboard and have intermarriage between black and white (229).” From these, Tom is described as an insensitive and thoughtless person. For example, tom abuses Myrtle and makes her to believe that he could fall in love with her if he wants by attracting her with his money. He does not care much about his relationship with others, even though he has his wife, Daisy.
At this point, he demonstrated his carelessness when he does not concern about how other people would think about him, and he married with Daisy to show his wealthy.
Tom Buchanan demonstrates himself to the readers with not only his carelessness personality, but also he acts as a racist in the novel. As he was born with great fortunes, he thinks he is better than other people, and he is proud of himself. The background of Tom also makes him to become a racist. For instance, since the East Egg and the West Egg are separated and the East Egg is the town where rich people live like Tom, he regard people depends their backgrounds. As Tom considers himself as a very rich and special person than anyone, he disrespects other people who live in West Egg. The evidence of racism for Tom is shown in the beginning of the novel when Tom says that “It’s up to us, who are the dominant race, to watch out or these other races will have control of things (17).” His quotation demonstrates that he and those of who live in the East Egg and the white people have the control of everything with money. This directly explains that Tom plays the role of racist.
Tom Buchanan is a great example for an evidence of the typical behavior of rich people in the 1920s in America. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald provides some themes of Tom Buchanan, and one of his themes is arrogance. From Tom’s social attitudes, he demonstrates his arrogance, which also include racism. For instance, He disrespect people who live in lower condition of the town and people that he considers as lower class than him. His personality also might effect from his family background. Since he did not have any concerns or difficulties, he does not feel guilty from what he is doing to others and he does not even know the value of money. His social attitudes are based on racism and sexism; he treats woman badly, especially Daisy and it also shows that he is arrogant and never consider other’s feeling.
The relationship between Tom and Daisy also highlights Tom’s personality of sexism. In this novel, their relationship status is unstable. Since both Tom and Daisy are from wealthy background, and they enjoy everything they want. The cohesion between Tom and Daisy is money. Tom attracts Daisy from his wealthy background, and they got married because Daisy is looking for happiness with money. However, since Tom is regarded as a crucial man who is careless and violent, Tom is showing how he controls Daisy easily. However, Daisy does not have any power to control Tom, since he is very rich and that is what she wants from him. At this moment, Tom seems like a sexist, who treats a woman harshly. Tom also lacks the faithfulness and kindness to other people. Both are in unstable relationship, since they are selfish and they are in love with their appearance of marriage.
Throughout the novel of The Great Gatsby, the author demonstrates the people’s lives in America during the 1920s were idealistic, especially for Tom Buchanan. The upper class people, such as Tom, are desperate of money and it controls their lifestyle. From the character Tom, the author displays how the life in the society with money was very important by introducing Tom as a careless person and arrogant person, a racist, and a sexist.
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