I felt skeptical about the questions as I took the quiz. There were inquiries asking about my dental health and grammar knowledge, and while I understood that it would be sort of difficult for a quiz to fairly determine one's social class, it seemed that the questions were very general. I felt that I could predict what class each question was referring to, and that whatever selection I made would point me in a specific direction.
In analyzing the facets of social class in The Great Gatsby, the other texts I've analyzed have both related to and differed from the characters in the book. In the Money Always Talks article, it suggests two large ideas: the wealthy are capable of separating themselves from the public and the wealthy evoke "oxymoronic" responses from the public. Jay Gatsby, the famed man of money in Gastby lives in West Egg in the state of New York. His home is separated from New York by a body of water, and one is capable of seeing the city from his pier. The distance shows that Gatsby lives separately from mainstream society because his wealth has bought him a fair amount of privacy.
His privacy renders grand parties. Referring to the Money Always Talks article, the author says that "they [the rich] stir up envy, and they invite respect". This idea is relevant to the Great Gatsby as well, because Jay has such a large house that just about every night at his house is a celebration. The flat characters of the book speak in hushed, respectable tones about the lovely atmosphere of his parties, but they also gossip about his past. No one really knows where Jay is from, so numerous stories arise from all of the guests.
In reading the Shadowy Lines That Still Divide article, the large idea that presented itself to me was that meritocracy lies at the heart of America. In Gatsby, there is not much exposure of any social class but the upper class, and it is easy to see that meritocracy runs true in the story. Nick Carraway, the narrator and observant eyes of Gatsby is from a line of prestige. He explains that his forefather fought in the Civil and Great wars, and that he graduated from college to continue working for his father's hardware business. Families that come from a line of wealth and prestigious values are capable of seeking endless opportunities. The article explains that parents with money can "cultivate their children in the habits that meritocracy rewards". Throughout the book, characters like Gatsby and Tom Buchanan take pride in what they've "accomplished", thought most of their success is a result of their lineage.
Ciara, I agree with you that even though Gatsby and Tom may attribute their wealth to working hard, most of their success is a result of coming from a wealthy family. I feel that many of the opportunities they were presented with were available because of their family's wealthy and position. The place in our generation where I see the most influence of meristocracy, is in education. It is much easier for a student who's parents have attended college and are fairly well off, to afford and get into a good college. Social class plays a very large part in our society.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ally. She makes a good point by saying that Tom and Jay inherited their wealth from their families, but also worked hard to get some. It is also true for college students to be more likely to get accepted into a college if their parents had attended the college or if their family has donated money to the college. It kind of seems that in todays day and age if you don't know someone or have someone in your back pocket it is somewhat hard to move up in social class. I also agree with Ally, because social class does play a huge role in our society today.
ReplyDeleteGoing off of what you said about Tom and Gatsby being successful due to their lineage, I would say that it seems a lot of upper class citizens are in the same situation. Nowadays, it seems fewer and fewer people make it big by themselves (unless they're like the guy who made Flappy Bird and was basically a millionaire overnight). I believe those who become millionaires by themselves are able to because of the resources and opportunities they have access to.
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