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Comparative Essay – The great Gatsby and Romeo and Juliet

Behind every great man lies a great women. In some cases the women herself may not always be good or ideal according to society. Nevertheless it seems to add character to
the man,and also influences his actions and maybe even his morals. In Shakespearean literature,Shakespeare tends to use people to develop certain characters throughout the play. In
Romeo and Juliet, Juliet is the person with the most influence on Romeo. This influence allows him to develop as a character and also helps develop the play. This is also evident in Hamlet
And Ophelia. In the novel The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway’s realization of the equality of man altered through his origin sets him up as a morally sound standard, until confronted by
Jordan Baker. The “American Dream” will never be a failure if Jordan does not develop Nick into his
final character. In the novel Fifth Business, Jung’s theory suggests that the conscious part of
Dunny’s personality is brought out by Liesl. It is Liesl that allows Dunny to understand his
function as “Fifth Business.” The development of Dunny’s character in the novel begins when Dunny falls in love with Faustina. It is because of these female characters that both
protagonists learn to accept the emotional side of their lives, which are provided by these women, who possess
immoral values that allows Nick and Dunny to develop into the final stages of their characters,
essentially making them the same. Nick’s realization of the equality of man and morals change when he comes in contact
with Jordan Baker. Jordan possesses certain qualities that only benefit her. She likes to bend the
rules so that the positive result ends up in her favor. She has allowed herself to be wrapped in a
blanket of dishonesty that Nick would not be able to live, until he realizes that he can. It is
undetermined whether or not Nick chooses to ignore Jordan’s dishonesty or whether it goes by
naturally, because, in the early stages of the novel he does not seem affected by it. “No thanks,said Miss Baker to the four cocktails just from the pantry, I’m absolutely in training.
Her host looked at her incredulously. You are!…How you get anything done is beyond me.”(pg.. 27 ln16)
Now this was the first time Jordan and Nick came into contact with one another, and it is said that
the first impressions are extremely important. However, for a strong moral person like Nick, his
reaction is surprising when he simply states, “I enjoyed looking at her.”(pg. 27 ln 23)
This is a sign of his first stages of development, which will soon result into what the author
intended. The “American Dream” cannot be recognized as a failure if Jordan does not develop Nick into his final character. It is known that Nick, just like Dunny holds high moral values,
but it is slowly beginning to be affected by Jordan Baker. Jordan has had such low moral values for quite
some time, which is evident in chapter four. “Daisy said to Jordan Baker…While she was drunk
as a monkey, she told Jordan, Here dearis. Take’em back downstairs and give’en to whoever
they belong. Tell’em Daisy’s changed he mind!” (pg. 79 ln 5) “But the next day she married
Tom Buchanan without as so much as a shiver…” (pg. 79 ln 19) It was evident that Daisy and Jordan were both filled with immoral value before Daisy even got married. This later
begins to affect Nick as well when Nick later found out from Jordan that Gatsby was once in love with Tom’s wife Daisy. This shows how Nick begins to slip because he is now part of the
development of the plot. It comes down to the point where a self-respected-man like himself
begins to gossip. Nick inevitably stoops to a lower level. This may be bad in regards to his
character but is vital in the role of the novel. It is later that Nick realizes that he becomes twisted and that he finds no desire to associate himself with careless people like Tom, Daisy,
and Jordan, thus siding with Mr. Gatsby. He comes to an understanding at the end that he could not have come forth if it were not for Jordan Baker. Nick has finally reached the final stage of his character development.
The conscious part of Dunny’s personality is brought out by Liesl. Jung states that,”Ones self is composed of a group of several different kinds of psychic energy, each component
of which has a different function in balancing the total self.” Liesl has a small part in Fifth Business yet play a vital role in the novel. It could be argued that the end of the novel is a result of what she says to
Dunny. This would not be so if she did not play a vital role in the developing of Dunny’s character. “You underestimate yourself Ramsay. Are you not the writer of A Hundred Saints
For Travelers? And Forgotten Saints of the Tyrol? And Celtic Saints of Britain and Europe? When Eisengrim mentioned last night that you were in the audience…I wanted to meet you at
once. A distinguished hagiographer does not often come our way.”(pg. 212 ln 12) Dunny’s reaction was
much like Nick’s, but nevertheless, would be deeply affected. “Many people when they are flattered seek immediately to show that themselves as being very hard-headed, to conceal
the fact they have taken the bait. I am one of them.” (pg. 212 ln 31) At the end of the chapter
Dunny will find his morals and spiritual value in the clutches of Liesl. Liesl confronts Dunny with the truth about life and about his function as “Fifth Business”, and she also leads him to his conscious and recognition of his spiritual life. These
actions cause Dunny to fill his “spiritual and emotional void,” and as a result he brings Boy and Paul together to finish unfinished business, causing the book to unfold and end. These are one of the confirming reasons why Liesl plays such an important role in the novel because without her, Dunny
would have not developed into his final character and there would have no reason for the novel
to be written. Dunny leads a double life that seems to be outwardly ordinary and normal. What he symbolizes is the journey that one sometimes takes in order to find ones inner self. It
is Liesl that makes Dunny realize his flaws, and it is Liesl that gives him the initial push which ultimately helps
finally complete his journey. The difference between Jordan and Liesl’s approach are that Jordan does it naturally and Liesl just comes out in the open and splurges it out. As a result
Dunny was quickly pointed out to his problems, and given a little nudge in the right direction of his fate as his
character, and becomes “Fifth Business”. “I wanted to tell you that you are human, like other
people…You make yourself responsible for other peoples troubles.” (pg. 229 ln 11) “But every man has a devil, and a man of unusual quality, like yourself, Ramsay, has an unusual
devil. You must get to know your personal devil.” (pg. 230 ln 10) Thus making Liesl’s job complete because as a result of Liesl bringing forth these truth’s about life, it brought Dunny to the
last stage of his characters development. Even though Dunny’s character development bean with Faustina, this
also shows that Dunny plays a vital role in bringing forth the characters repressed guilt that brings Boy’s death as well as the end of the novel. Dunny’s character development begins when he falls in love with Faustina. Dunny is first shocked when he encounters Faustina and Liesl in the dressing room. “I saw Faustina naked
– she
was always changing her clothes – in the arms of Liesl, who held her close and kissed
her
passionately;” (pg. 224 ln1) Dunny was devastated by this and went almost into a shock
and rage
because he believed that he was in love with Faustina. It was this that began Dunny’s
character
development. He first begins to feel for what he has just seen, “I never knew such a
collapse of
the spirit even in the worst of the war. And this time there was no Little Madonna to
offer me
Courage or ease me into oblivion.” (pg. 224 ln 7) Dunny finds himself upset because his
morals
and values came crashing down when he saw Faustina and Liesl, but he quickly and bluntly
confronted by Liesl. “That is you privilege, watching life from the sidelines and knowing
were all
the players go wrong. Life is a spectator sport to you. Now you have taken a tumble and
found
yourself in the middle of the fight, and you are whimpering because it is rough.” (pg.
225 ln 25)
This quote helps strengthens Dunny and also gives him that initial push towards his way
on
developing his character into the vital role, otherwise the novel would not have ended
the way
that it did.
Throughout The Great Gatsby the characters values are exposed for the reader and
because of this, the readers are hence allowed a great insight into what a true nature of
the
character really is. At this point of the novel Jordan seems to be growing on Nick, and
Nick is
still not bothered by Jordan’s dishonesty. It is important to know that Jordan is not
dishonest in
the sense that she sleeps around and is immoral in regards to her sex-life. This is
important
because Nick begins to feel tender towards Jordan’s behaviour, but he comes to discover
that her
affections are a result to conceal her dishonesty. “At her first big golf tournament
there was a
row that nearly reached the newspapers – a suggestion that she had moved her ball from a
bad lie
in the semi-final round.” (pg. 65 ln 33) “Jordan Baker instinctively avoided clever,
shrewd men.”
(pg. 65 ln 3) Jordan avoided clever men because it made here secure and she could not
stand it
when she was at a disadvantage. Nonetheless, assumptions can be made that she was taught
this
at a very young age in order to keep or maintain her image. Unlike Dunny, Nick take a
little
longer to develop, and unfortunately realizes in an inopportune moment. This results in
Nick still
not being bothered by Jordan’s morals because he is approaching a state where he is
almost falling
in love with Jordan. “Dishonesty in a women is a thing you never blame deeply – I was
casually
sorry, and then I forgot.” (pg. 65 ln 12) Nick seems to be going through a gradual
process of
moral decay, because in the later stages of the novel, Daisy begins to have an affair
with Mr.
Gatsby behind her husbands back. Yet with such high morals Nick avoids telling Tom and
becomes part of the cause, when he helps organize meetings between Daisy and Mr. Gatsby,
and
he and Jordan are the only ones who know about the affair.
The women in Fifth Business and The Great Gatsby both shape Dunny Ramsay
and Nick Carraway into the same person. In the novel Fifth Business, the development of
Dunny’s character begins when Dunny falls in love with Faustina. It is Liesl that allows
Dunny to
understand his function as “Fifth Business.” Jung’s theory suggests that the conscious
part of
Dunny’s personality is brought out by Liesl. In the novel The Great Gatsby, the
“American
Dream” will never be a failure if Jordan does not develop Nick into his final character.
Nick
Carraway’s realization of the equality of man altered through his origin sets him up as a
morally
sound standard, until confronted by Jordan Baker. Men and Women seem to be in constant
battle
for certain right but in the end, it is obvious that society has a real difficult time
dealing with such
issues. It is the job of society to understand this, and come to a realization about
themselves.
“She lived by a light that arose from within; I could not comprehend it.”
Fifth Business(pg. 52)
Bibliography
Behind every great man lies a great women. In some cases the women herself may not
always be good or ideal according to society. Nevertheless it seems to add character to
the man,
and also influences his actions and maybe even his morals. In Shakespearean literature,
Shakespeare tends to use people to develop certain characters throughout the play. In
Romeo
and Juliet, Juliet is the person with the most influence on Romeo. This influence allows
him to
develop as a character and also helps develop the play. This is also evident in Hamlet
and
Ophelia. In the novel The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway’s realization of the equality of
man
altered through his origin sets him up as a morally sound standard, until confronted by
Jordan
Baker. The “American Dream” will never be a failure if Jordan does not develop Nick into
his
final character. In the novel Fifth Business, Jung’s theory suggests that the conscious
part of
Dunny’s personality is brought out by Liesl. It is Liesl that allows Dunny to understand
his
function as “Fifth Business.” The development of Dunny’s character in the novel begins
when
Dunny falls in love with Faustina. It is because of these female characters that both
protagonists
learn to accept the emotional side of their lives, which are provided by these women, who
possess
immoral values that allows Nick and Dunny to develop into the final stages of their
characters,
essentially making them the same.
Nick’s realization of the equality of man and morals change when he comes in contact
with Jordan Baker. Jordan possesses certain qualities that only benefit her. She likes to
bend the
rules so that the positive result ends up in her favor. She has allowed herself to be
wrapped in a
blanket of dishonesty that Nick would not be able to live, until he realizes that he can.
It is
undetermined whether or not Nick chooses to ignore Jordan’s dishonesty or whether it goes
by
naturally, because, in the early stages of the novel he does not seem affected by it. “No
thanks,
said Miss Baker to the four cocktails just from the pantry, I’m absolutely in training.
Her host
looked at her incredulously. You are!…How you get anything done is beyond me.”(pg.. 27
ln16)
Now this was the first time Jordan and Nick came into contact with one another, and it is
said that
the first impressions are extremely important. However, for a strong moral person like
Nick, his
reaction is surprising when he simply states, “I enjoyed looking at her.”(pg. 27 ln 23)
This is a
sign of his first stages of development, which will soon result into what the author
intended.
The “American Dream” cannot be recognized as a failure if Jordan does not develop Nick
into his final character. It is known that Nick, just like Dunny holds high moral values,
but it is
slowly beginning to be affected by Jordan Baker. Jordan has had such low moral values for
quite
some time, which is evident in chapter four. “Daisy said to Jordan Baker…While she was
drunk
as a monkey, she told Jordan, Here dearis. Take’em back downstairs and give’en to
whoever
they belong. Tell’em Daisy’s changed he mind!” (pg. 79 ln 5) “But the next day she
married
Tom Buchanan without as so much as a shiver…” (pg. 79 ln 19) It was evident that Daisy
and
Jordan were both filled with immoral value before Daisy even got married. This later
begins to
affect Nick as well when Nick later found out from Jordan that Gatsby was once in love
with
Tom’s wife Daisy. This shows how Nick begins to slip because he is now part of the
development of the plot. It comes down to the point where a self-respected-man like
himself
begins to gossip. Nick inevitably stoops to a lower level. This may be bad in regards to
his
character but is vital in the role of the novel. It is later that Nick realizes that he
becomes twisted
and that he finds no desire to associate himself with careless people like Tom, Daisy,
and Jordan,
thus siding with Mr. Gatsby. He comes to an understanding at the end that he could not
have
come forth if it were not for Jordan Baker. Nick has finally reached the final stage of
his
character development.
The conscious part of Dunny’s personality is brought out by Liesl. Jung states that,
“Ones
self is composed of a group of several different kinds of psychic energy, each component
of which
has a different function in balancing the total self.” Liesl has a small part in Fifth
Business yet play
a vital role in the novel. It could be argued that the end of the novel is a result of
what she says to
Dunny. This would not be so if she did not play a vital role in the developing of
Dunny’s
character. “You underestimate yourself Ramsay. Are you not the writer of A Hundred Saints
for
Travelers? And Forgotten Saints of the Tyrol? And Celtic Saints of Britain and Europe?
When
Eisengrim mentioned last night that you were in the audience…I wanted to meet you at
once. A
distinguished hagiographer does not often come our way.”(pg. 212 ln 12) Dunny’s reaction
was
much like Nick’s, but nevertheless, would be deeply affected. “Many people when they are
flattered seek immediately to show that themselves as being very hard-headed, to conceal
the fact
they have taken the bait. I am one of them.” (pg. 212 ln 31) At the end of the chapter
Dunny will
find his morals and spiritual value in the clutches of Liesl.
Liesl confronts Dunny with the truth about life and about his function as “Fifth
Business”,
and she also leads him to his conscious and recognition of his spiritual life. These
actions cause
Dunny to fill his “spiritual and emotional void,” and as a result he brings Boy and Paul
together to
finish unfinished business, causing the book to unfold and end. These are one of the
confirming
reasons why Liesl plays such an important role in the novel because without her, Dunny
would
have not developed into his final character and there would have no reason for the novel
to be
written. Dunny leads a double life that seems to be outwardly ordinary and normal. What
he
symbolizes is the journey that one sometimes takes in order to find ones inner self. It
is Liesl that
makes Dunny realize his flaws, and it is Liesl that gives him the initial push which
ultimately helps
finally complete his journey. The difference between Jordan and Liesl’s approach are that
Jordan
does it naturally and Liesl just comes out in the open and splurges it out. As a result
Dunny was
quickly pointed out to his problems, and given a little nudge in the right direction of
his fate as his
character, and becomes “Fifth Business”. “I wanted to tell you that you are human, like
other
people…You make yourself responsible for other peoples troubles.” (pg. 229 ln 11) “But
every
man has a devil, and a man of unusual quality, like yourself, Ramsay, has an unusual
devil. You
must get to know your personal devil.” (pg. 230 ln 10) Thus making Liesl’s job complete
because
as a result of Liesl bringing forth these truth’s about life, it brought Dunny to the
last stage of his
characters development. Even though Dunny’s character development bean with Faustina,
this
also shows that Dunny plays a vital role in bringing forth the characters repressed guilt
that brings
Boy’s death as well as the end of the novel.
Dunny’s character development begins when he falls in love with Faustina. Dunny is first
shocked when he encounters Faustina and Liesl in the dressing room. “I saw Faustina naked
– she
was always changing her clothes – in the arms of Liesl, who held her close and kissed
her
passionately;” (pg. 224 ln1) Dunny was devastated by this and went almost into a shock
and rage
because he believed that he was in love with Faustina. It was this that began Dunny’s
character
development. He first begins to feel for what he has just seen, “I never knew such a
collapse of
the spirit even in the worst of the war. And this time there was no Little Madonna to
offer me
Courage or ease me into oblivion.” (pg. 224 ln 7) Dunny finds himself upset because his
morals
and values came crashing down when he saw Faustina and Liesl, but he quickly and bluntly
confronted by Liesl. “That is you privilege, watching life from the sidelines and knowing
were all
the players go wrong. Life is a spectator sport to you. Now you have taken a tumble and
found
yourself in the middle of the fight, and you are whimpering because it is rough.” (pg.
225 ln 25)
This quote helps strengthens Dunny and also gives him that initial push towards his way
on
developing his character into the vital role, otherwise the novel would not have ended
the way
that it did.
Throughout The Great Gatsby the characters values are exposed for the reader and
because of this, the readers are hence allowed a great insight into what a true nature of
the
character really is. At this point of the novel Jordan seems to be growing on Nick, and
Nick is
still not bothered by Jordan’s dishonesty. It is important to know that Jordan is not
dishonest in
the sense that she sleeps around and is immoral in regards to her sex-life. This is
important
because Nick begins to feel tender towards Jordan’s behaviour, but he comes to discover
that her
affections are a result to conceal her dishonesty. “At her first big golf tournament
there was a
row that nearly reached the newspapers – a suggestion that she had moved her ball from a
bad lie
in the semi-final round.” (pg. 65 ln 33) “Jordan Baker instinctively avoided clever,
shrewd men.”
(pg. 65 ln 3) Jordan avoided clever men because it made here secure and she could not
stand it
when she was at a disadvantage. Nonetheless, assumptions can be made that she was taught
this
at a very young age in order to keep or maintain her image. Unlike Dunny, Nick take a
little
longer to develop, and unfortunately realizes in an inopportune moment. This results in
Nick still
not being bothered by Jordan’s morals because he is approaching a state where he is
almost falling
in love with Jordan. “Dishonesty in a women is a thing you never blame deeply – I was
casually
sorry, and then I forgot.” (pg. 65 ln 12) Nick seems to be going through a gradual
process of
moral decay, because in the later stages of the novel, Daisy begins to have an affair
with Mr.
Gatsby behind her husbands back. Yet with such high morals Nick avoids telling Tom and
becomes part of the cause, when he helps organize meetings between Daisy and Mr. Gatsby,
and
he and Jordan are the only ones who know about the affair.
The women in Fifth Business and The Great Gatsby both shape Dunny Ramsay
and Nick Carraway into the same person. In the novel Fifth Business, the development of
Dunny’s character begins when Dunny falls in love with Faustina. It is Liesl that allows
Dunny to
understand his function as “Fifth Business.” Jung’s theory suggests that the conscious
part of
Dunny’s personality is brought out by Liesl. In the novel The Great Gatsby, the
“American
Dream” will never be a failure if Jordan does not develop Nick into his final character.
Nick
Carraway’s realization of the equality of man altered through his origin sets him up as a
morally
sound standard, until confronted by Jordan Baker. Men and Women seem to be in constant
battle
for certain right but in the end, it is obvious that society has a real difficult time
dealing with such
issues. It is the job of society to understand this, and come to a realization about
themselves.
“She lived by a light that arose from within; I could not comprehend it.”
Fifth Business(pg. 52)

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