The role of minor characters in the novel, The Great Gatsby

A work of literature would not be complete without the pair; major characters and minor characters. While major characters lead the story, minor characters supports it and also add to the key elements of the story. This is particularly evident in the novel, The Great Gatsby, by F.Scott Fitzgerald. This novel is narrated by Nick Carraway, and throughout the novel, he is introduced to many other minor characters namely Myrtle, Jordan Baker, and George Wilson. The author has strategically placed these minor characters as instruments in the plot to add variety to the story, support the development of the main character, and also to accentuate the overall theme of the novel -.

In The Great Gatsby, minor characters are essential to the progression of the plot because it is through minor characters where foils to the main characters are aroused. This can be seen through Myrtle’s character and George Wilson’s awareness of her relationship with another man. After the incident of Myrtle’s death, George believed that her lover was also her murderer. “It was the man in that car. She ran out to speak to him and he wouldn’t stop.” This misconception of his was a significant piece of the novel’s plot as it led to the murder of the protagonist in the novel, Jay Gatsby. In other words, George Wilson was the one responsible for Gatsby’s death and this is shown in the quote; “It was after we started with Gatsby toward the house that the gardener saw Wilson’s body a little way off in the grass, and the holocaust was complete.” Myrtle’s role in the plot along with George’s decision to commit murder as a form of revenge for Myrtle’s death played a major role in the progression of the plot. Gatsby’s death was a vital event in the novel for it signified the struggle and depression that one endures even with wealth and power. This is suggested through the irony that is present when Gatsby – one of the richest man at that time – was murdered by George Wilson who was just an owner of a workshop in the valley of ashes. Here, the importance of the presence of the minor character, George Wilson, is presented as he functions as a foil to Gatsby’s life.

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Minor characters do not only present foils to the main characters, they also hold great role in conveying the attributes of the main characters. In The Great Gatsby, Myrtle Wilson plays a significant role even as a minor character because Fitzgerald uses her to help expose Tom as a hypocritical man. This is shown through Tom’s relationship with Myrtle Wilson despite his marriage to Daisy. Besides revealing Tom as an unfaithful husband, Myrtle’s character also shines light on Tom’s egotistical trait, which can be seen when he disapproves of Daisy and Gatsby’s relationship although he has an intimate relationship with Myrtle. Furthermore, Myrtle also presents readers with the brutal side of Tom. “Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand.” This shows how Tom treats Myrtle only as an object or a mere possession in his life, and thus suggests his egotistical and hypocritical nature. Other than Myrtle, Jordan also contributed to the portrayal of a main character, Daisy Buchannan, who Jordan was once a close friend to back in Louisville. Fitzgerald used Jordan and Nick’s conversation as a medium to convey to readers the past shared by the forbidden lovers of the novel, Daisy and Gatsby. In one of their conversations, Jordan described her first encounter with Gatsby; “…she(Daisy) was sitting in it with a lieutenant(Gatsby) I(Jordan) had never seen before. They were so engrossed in each other that she didn’t see me until I was five feet away.” This illustration revealed to readers the intimate relationship that Daisy and Gatsby once had, which also shined light on the distant hope that may still await Gatsby. Overall, minor characters such as Jordan and Myrtle can be seen as instruments used by Fitzgerald to slowly reveal to readers the traits that lie within the main characters of the novel.

There may be several traits in a main character that require a minor character to exaggerate upon, however, there is a self-evident trait shared by all the main characters in this novel – corruption. The Great Gatsby is a novel that idealizes the American dream and the characters are portrayed to pursue such dream in corruption. This theme of corrupted morality and greed for wealth does not only revolve around the main characters but the minor characters as well, especially Myrtle Wilson. As she is married to George Wilson, a poor man who owns a workshop in the valley of ashes, Myrtle is illustrated to have a greed for wealth through her relationship with Tom Buchannan. Myrtle’s greed controlled her love interest and this can be seen when she complained about her marriage; “I knew right away I made a mistake. He borrowed somebody’s best suit to get married in, and never even told me about it”. This quote shows the extent of the poverty that Myrtle got herself into and reveals to readers her materialistic character for she regards her marriage as a “mistake”. This idea is also further emphasized by the way Myrtle acts in society despite her low status. “Up-stairs, in the solemn echoing drive she let four taxicabs drive away before she selected a new one, lavender-colored with gray upholstery”. Here, she is depicted as a selective, materialistic, and proud woman. She believes that she deserves the best of the best even when it comes to taxis. Hence, Myrtle’s character in this novel has a great contribution to revealing to readers a major theme of the novel, corruption. Besides Myrtle, another minor character that also adds to the emphasis of the theme of corruption is Jordan Baker. She is very materialistic and this is suggested by her presence in all of the elite social events. This tells readers the crowd in which she enjoys beings around and the luxurious lifestyle that she likes to have. She is also corrupted in a sense that she would lie to maintain her status. “At her (Jordan) 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”. This quote illustrates Jordan’s capability of manipulating those around her to feed her greed for success. This eventually led to Nick’s referral of her as “incurably dishonest”. Evidently, both of these minor characters play a major role in conveying to readers the Fitzgerald’s message of the corruption and lack of societal morals during that time in America.

Overall, Fitzgerald cleverly uses minor characters as instruments that enhance the novel as a whole. In this novel, three important minor characters include George Wilson, Myrtle Wilson and Jordan Baker. They are the ones that contribute to the progression of the plot by presenting foils to the main character. These characters also help reveal attributes of several main characters to the readers and this is essential as it gives readers with a more complete idea of the main characters. Lastly but not least, the minor characters are essential in this novel for they enhance the theme of corruption and immorality. Through the use of minor characters, Fitzgerald successfully illustrates the corrupted society and the loss of societal morality during the people’s pursuit of the American dream.

Teacher Reviews

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Lucy Foss

26th of Jun 2013

There are some thoughtful assertions in this essay demonstrating good understanding of the novel and the role of minor characters. It is well structured, generally using clear topic sentences and evidence from the text to support points. There are a few points which would improve the essay: 1) It needs to be recognised that the characters are all presented to us through Nick's (biased) narration and therefore we must consider what he might want the reader to think. 2) Some key aspects of the minor characters were not addressed: the deaths of both Myrtle and George for example and how they might compare with the presentation of Gatsby's death. 3) Quotations need to be brief and embedded into the essay. 4) Much more attention needs to be paid to detailed analysis of language. 5) When referencing the American Dream, some relevant contextual information would be useful. Overall, three stars ***

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