Access to Power in the Great Gatsby Essay Sample

Access to power such as money and social status negatively impacts humanity because those with more power are protected from consequences and view themselves as superior to those with less power thus allowing them to act selfishly without regard for others. After a day of quarreling and a fatal accident involving Daisy, Gatsby, and Myrtle, Nick approaches Gatsby to ask what led to Myrtle’s death. It is revealed by Gatsby that Daisy was the one driving the car that killed Myrtle. In his attempt to explain the brutality of Myrtle’s death, Gatsby interrupts him by saying, “‘Don’t tell me, old sport.’ He winced. ‘Anyhow -- Daisy stepped on it…’” begging Nick to spare him the details (144).   Gatsby’s wealth allows him the luxury of disregarding the severity of Myrtle’s death and being able to look past it by asking Nick to stop sharing the details. He quickly moves past the gory details by changing the conversation to be centered around Daisy. This not only reflects Gatsby’s character but Daisy’s too. She had the ability to swerve out of Myrtle’s way, possibly at the expense of her and Gatsby’s life. Daisy not stopping after hitting Myrtle shows that she views herself as superior to the people of the Valley of Ashes and shows no remorse for injuring others due to her selfishness. She finds herself crawling back into her wealthy, “American Dream” life and leaves the accident in the past. After the accident, George Wilson reflects on a conversation he had with Myrtle before her death. He surmised that Myrtle was having an affair but didn’t know who it was with and accused her of cheating by yelling, “‘God knows what you’ve been doing, everything you’ve been doing. You may fool me, but you can’t fool God!’” (159). The billboard of Dr. T.J. Eckleberg’s eyes made Wilson feel as if the Valley of Ashes was being watched by God and God could see everything that unfolded.  He felt the pressure to act accordingly and punish those who didn't. The pressure he feels by his access to God makes punishment feel like an obligation to Wilson and becomes the justification for shooting Gatsby for allegedly killing Myrtle. Years after the death of both Gatsby and Wilson, Nick finds himself in a conversation with Tom on the streets. Nick is unwilling to hear Tom out because he assumes that Tom is the core reason for Gatsby’s death. Without revealing too many details of his conversation with Wilson, Tom argues, “‘What if I did tell him?  That fellow had it coming to him…’” (178). The security of Tom’s social status allows him to be unphased about Gatsby and respond callously to his death. Tom is able to act without suffering the consequences or being held accountable, allowing him to act however he pleases without regard for others. Characters such as Tom, Daisy, George Wilson, and Gatsby demonstrate the impact that accesses to power has on our humanity through a series of tragic events and a lack of remorse.