Cliques, Class and Society: Can i force my way in?

     Ultimately i think it is quite possible to force you way into a higher social class. The only thing is that I do not believe you will ever truly be of that social class because you would have grown up learning the morals and rules and everything else associated with your decision making, from the stand point of your social class of that time. Sure you can go to school and get an education and receive a higher paying job  and improve your quality of life, but you will still make decisions and act based on what you have learned growing up as a, lets say middle class person. There for I believe that the only true way to be of a certain class is to be born into that class. That's not to say you can't change the social class of your family. Allow me to elaborate, I think that if you are of middle class and you get an education and create a nice sized wealth for your self, that further down the road, assuming that your children and grandchildren are able to maintain and keep this new quality of life you have achieved that eventually your family will become high class, but you will not be able to change your own social class during the time that you live. When i interviewed Tom Buchanan, he was entitled to agree with me.

Interview: Tom Buchanan

(Thoughts on Cliques, Class and Society: Can i force my way in?)

" Will Aidan, i would have to completely agree with you. Myself being of "Old Money" and living in the East Egg for some years now, i can easily tell when someone is of "new money" and not just because they live in West Egg. It's all about the way they behave, there is certain things that give them away, such as how they talk and stand and walk. these are things that you learn as you are raised from birth, and you cant just change the way you do them all of a sudden after 20 or so years of doing it a certain way. That is why i also believe that sure, it is one thing to force your way into a social class or clique or a higher society but to actually belong to it and fit in is something completely different. Look at that fellow Gatsby for instance. He earned his fortune with a shady business that is well associate with his former social class. Now all of a sudden just because he has earned a little spending money he thinks he is of high class and just just waltz around doing as he pleases. Old sport indeed, that inconsiderate baboon actually thought that he could even get away with snatching my own wife right out from under me. Now look at where all this pretending and child's play has gotten him, an early grave that's where. all due to living as a higher class with the mind set and rules of the low class".

     Further more i would like to point out how similar my view point is, if not the same as F. Scott Fitzgerald, the man who wrote The Great Gatsby. He shares the life of Jay Gatsby, the man who forced his way into a better social class and showed that although he was playing the part truly down inside him he had not actually changed he was the same man he was as a kid the same man he had grown up and raised to be. He was not born into a higher class and so he never truly obtained it.

Theme of Social Class.

     In the Novel the Great Gatsby, social class is one of the main themes. But why would a writer choose to embed social class as the theme of a novel? I believe that it is do to the fact that social class is apart of everyone's daily lives, whether they realize it or not. This makes it easy for people to relate to the novel and become interested in it. Not only does this draw in an audience for the writer but it now allows him to go into depth of how he interprets social class to be. there is allot of value to be held here, because now the author can question our perceptions and judgments and open up new possibilities and view points broadening our understanding of social class. For instance, the photo above depicts two people out weighing four on a balance beam. No it's not because they are fat. It is to demonstrate how in society the problems and needs of the wealthier higher class, although there may be fewer of them, out weigh the needs of the common people. It illustrates the perception that the rich and wealthy are more important then everyone else.

     I personally believe that the concept of class/ cliques are man-made. I believe this because when you are born you are brought up and raised and taught by your parents, and what they teach you is highly based on there economic standing. if you come from a wealthy family you will be taught a wealthy life style, where as if you are brought up in a low-income family they will teach you that money doesn't grow on trees to to be very conserving of it. My main point of this being that your parents are teaching you about social class and where you fall into it. You're are not born with it instinctively in your mind knowing that when you grow up you will be of low-income or higher income or whether or not you will stress high class and manners or be an inconsiderate rude person. these are all man made skills that you will learn as you grown and adventure through the path of life. 

     

The Great Gatsby, The role of Social Classes.

      For my English class I read the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It was quite a compelling story of a man (Gatsby) with the American dream. Jay Gatsby, a character in the novel is trying to retain his true love. The problem is that she is of a much higher social class then himself and when he was off at war she got married to a man of equal social class who lives on the East Egg, one of the two main locals in this novel. There is East Egg and West Egg. East Egg represents "old money", where West Egg represents "nouveau riche". In the novel Jay Gatsby comes across some wealth due to the business ethnics of a friend. He soon starts pursuing the American Dream, in hopes to change his social class and win back his true love. He becomes a resident of the West Egg. This Fight over Daisy (Gatsby's true love) between Jay Gatsby and Tom (Daisy's current husband) is one of the ways F. Scott Fitzgerald has set up social tension within the novel, it is East Egg vs. West Egg, old money vs. new money. It reveals the huge difference between the two social classes. To simply be rich (nouveau riche) or to be rich and well educated (old money). through out the course of this event in the book it becomes quite apparent that although Gatsby is wealthy he cannot fake the behavior or education that is associated with old money.

   A part in the novel that i felt really revealed social class was when daisy was driving home with Gatsby and Jordan i believe after a verbal fight had broken out between Gatsby and Tom, and she hits a women who comes running out of a gas station. It wasn't the instant where this catastrophe occurs that revealed the power of social class to me but after wards. Daisy failed to stop and asses the situation, she performed a hit and run and the women died. The part that reveals the power of their social class is shortly after. Daisy and Tom quickly pack up and head off on a trip not telling anyone where they are going or when they will be back, shows how they use their wealth and social power to avoid the consequences of their actions. It gives of the impression that they feel that then can do what ever they want just because of their social standing and wealth associated with it.
 
 Near the end of the novel when Nick (the narrator of the story) meets Jay Gatsby's father, for the funeral of Jay Gatsby, I found it to be quite revealing of how much Jay Gatsby's social class had actually changed. His father is an old and simple man who lived a simple life and wasn't very wealthy at all, in fact the house that he currently resigns in was bought for him by Jay Gatsby. Gatsby's father shares with Nick the story of Jay as a child. he tells how he left home early pursuing a better life, which as far as wealth goes he successfully achieved. The story helps nick to realize that Jay had grown allot as a man but still maintained attributes he had when he was younger before he had changed his social standing that are essential to his personality and character as a person. at one point in the novel Nick says to Jay Gatsby, "They're a rotten crowd, you're worth the whole damn bunch put together" where he is referring to Daisy and Tom. This is saying that although Daisy and Tom are wealthy and of high social class, they highly lack in terms of character when compared to Jay.  

I fell that this picture depicts Jay Gatsby's personality because he was always nice and polite to everyone he met throughout the novel.

       This is a video on youtube i found that summarizes the novel The Great Gatsby and touches on social class used within the novel and thoroughly explores Jay Gatsby's passion and devotion towards the American Dream and defines the American Dream.

  I found that social class was not only portrayed through the relation and conflict of Daisy, Gatsby and Tom but also through the relation ship between Jordan Baker and Nick. Jordan is from the higher upper class of old money where as Nick comes from a high middle class. It shows in contrast the differences between the two classes. Jordan from old money thinks of herself as the best and always wants to be the best no matter what the cost, this turn her into a dishonest and selfish person where as Nick form the upper middle class is well aware that although he is fairly well off there are most certainly people above him as well as under him and because of this acknowledgement he is always considering social class and hierarchy when he meets new people. Over the course of the novel and as their relationship progresses, Nick begins to see Jordan as the dishonest and selfish person she has grown up to be and realizes that he does not want to end up being like her and Tom.

  During the beginning of the novel Gatsby always throws huge parties people of higher social class. These parties show how people desire the american dream because allot of his guests talk down towards Gatsby because of their envy towards him and his wealth and leisure to do as he wishes. they are also in pursue of the american dream and wish to be as well set as Gatsby has made himself. Yet these parties also show what i believe, which is that now matter how hard you try due to personality you can never fully change your social class. Gatsby walks around his parties unnoticed and to me he feels that he does not belong or fit in to these type of high class social events. this is another instances that strongly shows that he is originally from a lower social class.

 

How Social Class Works to me.

     This photo depicts the possibility of the American Dream and demonstrates the change of social class, but is it actually possible to truly achieve change in social class? I for one do not think so. Social classes are defined as economic or cultural arrangements of groups in society.(http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/social+class) 

How ever i believe social class to be more based upon ones personality. Your personality it what defines you as a person and has a great impact on the decisions you make in life. Personality is what enables social cliques, people with similar interests associating together. For example, at my school, "Almonte District High School", there are many different social cliques. You have the jocks who all hang out together because they all enjoy sports and dress similar. Then there is the smokers, they all hang out together because of their similarities in personality, they all tend to dress similar as well, but lack personal high gene and smoke because they enjoy it.

It is my personal opinion that because social class revolves around personality, you can not change your social class. no matter how rich you become or where you live, you will still be the same person. You will still enjoy the same activities and have the same interests. Social class doesn't resemble the rich and the poor, it merely shows the variety of people with different interests views and concepts in the world.