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Tom Buchanan Character Analysis

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Kalena Li
Daniel
AP English
1/31/17
Characterization of Tom Buchanan

Fitzgerald utilizes allusive diction while creating an assertive tone to not only reveal Tom Buchanan externally, but internally. Tom’s family described to be “enormously wealthy” indicates that his fortune is granted through inheritance and also because of his athleticism during “powerful ends” (6) in college football. His “great” and “big” (12) physical appearance doesn’t hide that he is a “brute of a man” with a “hulking” body, illustrating his powerful and violent manner. As Tom is conversing with Nick, his “rather hard mouth,” “supercilious manner,” and “two shining arrogant eyes” while speaking with “paternal contempt” (7) further emphasize his polite, yet condescending …show more content…
His abrupt behavior demonstrates his actions to be out of boasting rather than a genuine greeting. Furthermore, his attitude is magnified when he describes Wilson to be so “dumb [that] he doesn’t know he’s alive” (26). Tom’s blatant rude comments add to his fiendish persona emphasize his internal character as corrupt and materialistic. Tom tries to equate wealth with patronizing superiority: “Now, don’t think my opinion on these matters is final...just because I’m stronger and more of a man than you are” (7). His willingness to act in a curt manner towards Nick demonstrates him as man who is fond of power. Additionally, Tom emphasizes that he is superior when reading “The Rise of the Colored empires” (12). By choosing to include a book that focuses on the “dominant race” needing to be aware of “other races,” Fitzgerald makes clear that Tom is bigoted and attempts to qualify discriminatory atrocities. By describing the book as “fine” and “scientific,” he is in fact being ignorant, but wants to sound intelligent in the face of his peers. Even though Tom seems to be a prosperous man who has achieved social clout, Fitzgerald’s allusive diction and …show more content…
Gatsby’s constant dreams of a life with the most “grotesque and fantastic conceits” indicates his desperate need to become rich and live in a society laden with expectations. The connotation of “grotesque” perceives life to be unusual and almost ugly. His heart is described to be in a “constant, turbulent riot” emphasizes that once he achieves his goal of becoming a part of society, he will no longer feel like he’s a part of it. Gatsby’s emotions are conflicted which causes him to act irrationally. The “universe of ineffable gaudiness” that “spun itself out in his brain while the clock ticked on the washstand and the moon soaked with wet light his tangled clothes upon the floor” reveals Gatsby’s negative attitude towards time. As the “clock tick[s],” Fitzgerald establishes that as more time passes, the “ineffable gaudiness”in the vicious cycle has a strenuous effect on his emotional and physical self, making him rely on Daisy as an indication of his identity. Furthermore, Gatsby “added to the pattern of his fancies until drowsiness” illustrates his substantial desire to be with Daisy even when sleeping, demonstrating his imagination for a life with Daisy is as ceaseless as his desire for her. His life with an “unreality of reality” presents the “reveries that provided an outlet for his imagination” further

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