The Great Gatsby Selfish Analysis

Throughout the novel, Gatsby is superficially characterized as an altruistic individual with the intent of masquerading his reinvented self’s malicious character. Furthermore, on a deeper level, one can trace instances of self-centeredness that Gatsby exudes as he intends to inch himself closer towards Daisy. Additionally, the amalgamation of this selfish nature of his and his crippling moral compass reveals a manipulative aspect of his persona. Gatsby’s pursuit of Daisy can be characterized as both selfish and incessantly manipulative. Gatsby’s undeviating belief that Daisy must confess her love to him and only him leads to the deduction that he only cares about himself; his utter disregard for Tom Buchanan corroborates this assumption because
Carraway observes in Gatsby a smile “with a quality of eternal reassurance” (Fitzgerald 48) evoking sentiments of trust and attachment within him. The fact that Gatsby personally invited Carraway to his party suggests that his intent was to intentionally make Carraway feel comfortable in his presence so that he can use him in the future to get closer to Daisy; moreover, Carraway’s familial ties to Daisy made him the perfect tool to utilize in Gatsby’s pursuit of Daisy. Furthermore, one can witness the suggestion that Gatsby wanted to use Carraway when he asks him to arrange a meeting between himself and Daisy – their proximity would allow Daisy to serendipitously witness Gatsby’s lavish home and exorbitant sums of wealth, which is after all, what Daisy truly desired – one who could provide her with materialistic prosperity and comfort. Consequently, Gatsby was able to establish the seed of dominion in Daisy’s soul. At the onset of the novel, Carraway believed that Gatsby embodied everything that he felt an “unaffected scorn” for (Fitzgerald