Chapter Two Analysis (Part Two)

Part One focusses on the Valley of Ashes and the eyes of Dr T.J. Eckleburg. This post looks at the rest of the chapter.

In this chapter we are introduced to Myrtle and George Wilson, a married couple living in the Valley of Ashes. Nick's description of George Wilson is minimal; he notes that he is a "blonde, spiritless man, anaemic, and faintly handsome." Considering Nick's usual vivid and detailed descriptions, this brief one suggests how insignificant the poor, working-class Wilson is to the rich. Of course, at the end of the novel Wilson proves to be pivotal to the storyline, when it is heavily implied* that he shot Gatsby and then himself in the aftermath of Myrtle's death. Wilson throughout the novel is a victim of the rich, both directly (Tom steals his wife, and Daisy kills her) and indirectly (he lives in the ruins of the rich and is little more than a shadow to them; a man who fixes their cars but is not welcome in their social circles.) He is the human embodiment of the Valley of Ashes, representing the same desolation and unhappiness.

Myrtle, on the other hand, does not fade into the background as her husband does; she is far less accepting of her social standing and seems determined to be something more. Nick notes that she "carrie[s] her flesh sensually" and has an "immediately perceptible vitality", and although she is not beautiful, she is "smouldering." This suggests that whilst, in terms of physical appearance, Myrtle may not be up to the standard of the rich and the beautiful, inside she is lively, sensual and promiscuous just like the upper class women. However, she is not just like the upper class women; she is married to a mechanic and living in the Valley of Ashes. The only access she has to the upper class lifestyle is as Tom's possession, and even he is somewhat ashamed of her, seeing her as trashy and cheap compared to his refined wife Daisy.

In many ways, Myrtle is a parallel of Daisy who simply made the mistake of marrying into poverty instead of riches. Both are 'possessions' of Tom and share the same materialistic and shallow attitudes; Daisy enters a seemingly loveless marriage with Tom due to his financial and social prospects, and Myrtle allows Tom to use and abuse her in order to feel part of the rich lifestyle. Myrtle appears disgusted over Wilson's lack of wealth, claiming: "I married [Wilson] because I thought he was a gentleman...but he wasn't fit to lick my shoe" and admits being distraught because Wilson "borrowed somebody's best suit to get married in". She says she "knew right away [she] had made a mistake." The fact Myrtle stops 'loving' Wilson because she realises he is not the upper-class man she dreamed of marrying is reminiscent of Daisy and Gatsby's romance, in which Daisy abandons him for a wealthier man; Tom. In many ways Daisy and Myrtle are essentially the same character; except Daisy's desire for 'old money' is fulfilled, and Myrtle is not so lucky.

In this chapter there is a short scene in which Tom purchases a dog for Myrtle. Despite only being a short moment in the story, it is heavily symbolic of the relationship between Tom and Myrtle. Nick notices that the dog is not a pedigree; observing that "undoubtedly there was an Airedale concerned in it somewhere, though it's feet were startlingly white" - this alludes to Tom's involvement with both Daisy, a 'pedigree', and Myrtle, a 'mongrel'. The master and pet dynamic between Myrtle and the dog mirrors that of Tom and Myrtle; it is about ownership, and Tom, being a rich man, has bought and now 'owns' Myrtle.

The salesman tells Myrtle the dog is a boy, but Tom says "decisively" that the dog is "a bitch." The fact he undermines the dog salesman, disagreeing with him on the dog's sex as well as saying "that's no police dog", highlights Tom's confrontational and arrogant nature, as he seems determined to belittle the salesman for no good reason. And despite 'bitch' being the correct term for a female dog, the way Tom says it is vulgar and aggressive, hinting at his crass and misogynistic attitude towards women.

Tom's derogatory and hateful attitude towards females becomes much more apparent at the end of chapter two, when he breaks Myrtle's nose by hitting her. Tom hits her to assert his dominance and show that he is in charge of Myrtle; because he is above her in terms of social class, and because she is a woman. He is punishing her for saying Daisy's name, as Daisy is his aristocratic, upper-class wife and Myrtle is no more than his 'trashy' mistress, unworthy of speaking his wife's name. Instead of accepting this, Myrtle challenges Tom, and 'taints' his wife's name by saying it over and over again, causing him to hit her both to shut her up, and put her in her place. This moment speaks volumes about both Tom and Myrtle's characters; Myrtle as a lower-class women determined to challenge her social standing, and Tom as a hateful and domineering bully.


At the end of this chapter the readers also get a glimpse of Nick's unreliability as a narrator. Although this is partly due to the fact Nick was so drunk "everything that happened has a dim, hazy cast over it", it appears Nick deliberately leaves out some information, highlighted by the ellipses:

"All right," I agreed. "I'll be glad to."
...I was standing beside his bed and he was sitting up between the sheets, clad in his underwear, with a great portfolio in his hands.

Something has clearly been omitted from the narrative here; one moment Nick is in the elevator with Mr McKee, and the next he is standing beside his bed, whilst the other man is dressed in no more than underwear. This is highly suspicious and one of the strongest arguments for Nick's homosexuality - there is an excellent article on this here.
This omission of information raises suspicion in readers who begin to question whether Nick is withholding information or even altering it. Why would Nick leave out something and confuse the readers? Is he hiding something? Moments like this sow the seeds of doubt in readers' minds and raise questions about Nick's reliability and honesty as a narrator.

* Although it seems obvious, it is never actually definite that Wilson shot Gatsby; it is left somewhat ambiguous.