Dishonesty in The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, The Great Gatsby, is full of dishonesty. The folks living in West Egg, with all their wealth and glam, are constantly lying, putting up fake fronts and hiding what they really want. This essay dives into those lies and looks at what they mean for everyone involved. We'll focus on Nick Carraway, the guy telling us the story and kinda the moral guy here. By seeing things through his eyes, we get a glimpse into all the twisted lies that make up the world of The Great Gatsby.

Nick's Take on Dishonesty

You know, Nick Carraway? He's like the one sensible voice in this whole mess of the 1920s madness. Being an honest guy himself, he's just naturally turned off by all the lying around him. He's quick to spot when someone's not being straight and isn't shy about pointing it out. Sure, he's got his own issues but he tries to stick to what's right.

Take Tom Buchanan for instance. Tom's rich and kinda full of himself. He's married to Daisy, who's Nick's cousin by the way. When Nick first meets him, there's something fishy about Tom right from the start. His lies are clear when you find out he's cheating with Myrtle Wilson, who's not exactly in his social circle if you catch my drift. Nick sees this sleaze up close and can't believe how little Tom cares about hurting his wife or anyone else for that matter. It gets even worse when Nick finds out Tom's been keeping secrets about Jay Gatsby too.

Then there's Jordan Baker. At first, Nick thinks she's cool—glamorous and carefree—but then he starts noticing she’s bending truths here and there to get her way. A car accident comes to mind where she tries pinning it on someone else rather than owning up to it herself! That really lets Nick down big time.

The Effects of Being Dishonest

The whole lying thing in The Great Gatsby? It’s got big consequences. It shows just how messed up things were during the Jazz Age—a time people were obsessed with wealth and status, willing to throw away honesty just to climb higher.

This theme also puts a spotlight on how skewed the American Dream can be compared to reality. Take Gatsby: He’s all about living this dream life but behind all that jazz and parties, there’s just another set of lies covering who he truly is.

Wrap-Up

So yeah, dishonesty runs deep in The Great Gatsby. Through Nick's eyes we see tons of deceit unfold—characters like Tom and Jordan show us the era's moral rot while Gatsby illustrates what happens when dreams become delusions.

The Great Gatsby basically says if you lose sight of truth for too long chasing after empty dreams? You end up paying a pretty steep price.

References

• Fitzgerald, F. Scott. (1925). The Great Gatsby. Scribner.
• SparkNotes Editors. (2023). SparkNotes on The Great Gatsby. SparkNotes LLC.
• Berman, Ronald (2001). The Great Gatsby and Modern Times: 1925-1945. University of Illinois Press.
• Mizener Arthur (1959). “The Far Side Of Paradise: A Biography Of F.Scott Fitzgerald". Houghton Mifflin Company.
• Tredell Nicolas (2007) "F.Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Books Guide" Palgrave Macmillan UK.