Just as I recently posted about the men I've met here on the East Coast, I would now like to set aside a blog post for the women I've come across as well.
Let me begin with Daisy Buchanan, Tom's wife and my cousin. Well, I suppose that if you wish for me to be specific, I will confirm that she is my second cousin, once removed. As I did in my last post, I have to now set aside my usually non-judgmental nature in order to truthfully address my feelings toward Daisy. I've come to see that she is very dramatic, what with her frequent exclamations typically being over-the-top and inappropriate. She has the capability for sarcasm, and often plays the fool, especially with respect to Tom's affair. In fact, she tries to remain superficially placid about it, though it is evident to almost all of us that it troubles her. She grew up in Louisville, where she was courted by many excited officers from the local Camp Taylor, though eventually she exclusively visited with my neighbor Gatsby. She would not marry him, however, because he was penniless, but she simply could not wait for him; once he left for the war, she married Tom. To this day Gatsby remains madly enamored - obsessed, even - with Daisy.
Now on to the lovely Jordan Baker. I admit that this summer I have developed a bit of an infatuation for her, and she for me. She has a very hard and jaunty body; in fact, I think she embodies pretty closely those women that are increasingly being referred to as "flappers." She is a golfer, and a competitive one at that, so much so that she cheated in her first tournament in order to emerge with victory. Actually, I've come to see that she is habitually dishonest. She just cannot stand being at a disadvantage, which is why I suspect that she has been "dealing in subterfuges" from a very young age in order to satisfy her desire for superiority (58).
Finally, I would like to say a few words concerning Myrtle Wilson. It's no secret that she is Tom's mistress; the two have even gone as far as acquiring an apartment in New York City in order to possess a haven for their adulterous escapades. Myrtle was portly, though only slightly, but she "carried her surplus flesh sensuously as some women can" (25). And though I did not find her face to be very pretty, she possessed a certain vitality about her. She is married to George Wilson, who owns an auto garage in the valley of ashes. I have come to understand that she lost any love for George long ago, but nevertheless I must say that I disapprove of her immoral affair with Tom.
(Source: "The Great Gatsby" novel, http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/gatsby/characters.html)
