Jealousy

Jealousy plays a main role in The Great Gatsby. Almost every character in the story experiences a feeling of jealousy towards another character. Some of them include Gatsby, Tom, Myrtle, Wilson, and even Daisy. They all commit scandals out of their jealousy and anger towards each other.

Gatsby is extremely jealous of Tom because he is married to Daisy, the woman he has been in love with for many years. He wants Daisy to leave her husband Tom for him so that he can live the lifestyle with Daisy that Tom and her have. Tom Buchanan is another very jealous character in the story, he is jealous of Gatsby once he finds out he is having a secret relationship with his wife Daisy. This makes him very upset because not only is he sneaking around with his wife, but he is not very fond of Gatsby to begin with.

The women of Gatsby are very jealous as well. Myrtle is jealous of Daisy because of the wealthy Tom Buchanan. She loves the lavish lifestyle Tom is able to offer her even though she knows she is nothing but his mistress, she wants to have a normal life with Tom as his wife and live as an upper class woman just as Tom's wife Daisy does. Daisy however, is jealous of Myrtle because she is wise to her relationship with her husband. She does not know who she is but she knows that their is another woman in Tom's life and this upsets her.

Sources: sparknotes.com

Mafia/gangsters

The American gangsters were feared and revered and often controlled liquor sales, gambling, and prostitution. They wore silk suits and diamond rings which became popular over time. Although most gangster were murderers and robbers some were actually involved in political, economical and social conditions during this time.

Lots of gangsters owned speakeasies which brought in a surplus amount of money for them. If you don't know what a speakeasy is then it's a bar or secret club where you can buy and drink illegal alcohol. Since prohibition was going on during this time lots of people went to speakeasies for alcohol since they couldn't buy it from stores anymore.

One of the most famous gangsters was Al Capone who became infamous over time. Capone first started in the business by managing Torrio's speakeasies for him since he needed help. Capone eventually got up to being Torrio's number two man and became a partner in all of his dealings. Capone became the boss when Torrio was shot and fled Chicago. Through all of his illegal dealings Capone made about 100 million dollars a year.

sources-http://www.chicagohs.org/history/capone.html, http://www.legendsofamerica.com/20th-gangsters.html

Film Versions

The story The Great Gatsby is a very popular book and a great story of love and tragedy. Due to the book's success many film versions were made out of it. One of the most popular includes one from 1949 which critics and many others said that it was well casted and very accurate according to the famous book. It brought the story and the lifestyle of that era alive and was a great film. "Nick Carraway is less prominent than the author might have intended. But the essence of the novel is there." (IMDb.com)

For the first time in 1926 a silent version film version of the book was made. "Although a lost film, the trailer survived and is one of the 50 films in the 3-disk boxed DVD set called "More Treasures from American Film Archives." (IMDb.com) This version of the film is no longer made or available.

The most recognized of all these films was the one made in 1974, it won two oscars and five other awards. There were some complaints about the characters and how they were not portrayed as well as they could have been, but over all it was a well liked film by the public. "Nick Carraway, although there is something of an awkward feel with his character if only because he is the narrator in the film, telling the story through his own eyes, while in the film he is an external character and the vast majority of his internal thoughts are necessarily erased." (IMDb.com)

sources: IMDb.com