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3 MYTHS

The Great Gatsby is probably F. Scott Fitzgerald greatest novel a book that
offers interesting views of the nouveau riche in the 1920s.The Great Gatsby is an
American classic and a wonderfully evocative work. The protagonist is, of course, Jay
Gatsby. However, Im going to talk about Daisy Buchanan, probably the most enigmatic
character in the book. But whats so great about this Daisy, anyway? Well, three myths:
siren song, the frivolous rich girl and Daisy the child.
To start, shes got an interesting and questionable voice. Lets see how Nick
describes it: I looked back at my cousin, who began to ask me questions in her low,
thrilling voice. It was the kind of voice that the ear follows up and down, as if each speech
is an arrangement of notes that
will never be played again. Her
face was sad and lovely with
bright things in it, bright eyes and
a bright passionate mouth, but
there was an excitement in her
voice that men who had cared for
her found difficult to forget: a
singing compulsion, a whispered
Listen. So, theres a singing
compulsion and an arrangement
of notes that makes men wild.
Furthermore, when it comes to
Daisy, almost everything seems to
be white: Daisys car-back before
she was married-, her white
neck, white girlhood, the kings
daughter high in a white palace,
her white dress. Also, Nick said
early in the book about Daisy and
Jordans dresses: their dresses
were rippling and fluttering as if
they had just been blown back in
after a short flight around the house. So, is Nick describing Daisy as being a bird? If yes,
then thinking about her seductive voice and her as being a bird, makes me also think about
the sirens from the Greek mythology. But who are they and whats the connection between
Daisy and the sirens? Well, these mythical creatures were all daughters of the river god,
Achelous, and lived on a rocky island. Legend has it that Demeter, the goddess of harvest
and fertility, turned the sirens into the half-woman half-bird creatures when they failed to
save Demeters daughter, Persephone. Since then, they sang melodies so beautiful that
sailors passing by couldnt resist getting closer to them. Following the sound of music,

sailors would steer their boats towards them or jump in the water to get closer. The same
happened to Daisy, when she couldnt marry the man she loved. I believe that this analogy
wasnt used to describe Daisy as being frivolous and cynical, but to show that she had
been a girl who wanted to be loved before the environment changed her.(also, Gatsby died
in a pool-would it be a coincidence?)
The second myth is that Daisy is the frivolous rich girl. This was also my first
impression. She seems to be the kind of girl that neither Gatsby nor Nick would ever have
a chance with. But Tom does, and Daisy may have fallen in love with him. Lets take a
look at what Jordan said about their relationship: If he left the room for a minute shed
look around uneasily, and say: Wheres Tom gone? and wear the most abstracted
expression until she saw him coming in the door. She used to sit on the sand with his head
in her lap by the hour, rubbing her fingers over his eyes and looking at him with
unfathomable delight. Well, to me, it doesnt sound like a girl who always wanted to have
a luxurious life. It sounds like a normal 20 years old girl, head-over-heels in love with her
husband. What I can see from this quote is that Daisy has a deep capacity for love, but
maybe she married the wrong guy (like any other girl of her social class, she was expected
to marry the rich guy).
The third myth is Daisy the child. At first, we tend to believe that Daisy, like a
kid, lets anyone to make the decisions for her. In fact, Daisy is a more complex character.
She had to make hard decisions and she lived her life in the best way she knew how to live
it. When she had to choose between Tom and Gatsby, the first time she chose Tom
because she didnt want to live in the past and to over idealize her relationship with
Gatsby. The second time, she chose to live only with Tom because she found out that
Gatsby was involved in illegal activities and because Tom could have taken care not only
for Daisy, but also for her daughter.

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