In the first part of The Great Gatsby we learn about the relationships between the “Valley of Ashes” and “East Egg”, there are many differences between the two and also many lessons to be learned about how the rich treat the poor, entitlement, and how the different lifestyles lived back when times began to change and women started to become strong and take charge of their lives and not just being housewives and not speaking up for themselves. The major differences that stuck out at me are the color differences of the two places, the objects the rich owned and the poverty and hopelessness of the poor, and the entitlement of the rich, over the poor and the way they were treated. East Egg is an area where the rich aristocracy lived in the story, there were fiery floral gardens, lush green lawns, and huge beautiful elegant Georgian colonial mansions everywhere you looked, with large French windows with gold trimming, half acre gardens, with boats and women in long gorgeous dresses.
One quote that really stuck out to me as an example of entitlement and overlooking the poor was when the narrator said “Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone just remember not all people have had the advantages you have”. This quote stuck out to me because it just seemed like something you would say when you want things in your society to change and | just didn’t see that happening anytime soon, not everyone wants change and most people tended to alienate people who tried to change things or supported things that were not correct in this society. The Valley of Ashes is a place where hopes and dreams are just that hopes and dreams, it is very hard to overcome the circumstances of the desolate area of the poor and hardworking lower class people. The Valley of ashes is a place of dark colors, poor people, the homeless, and the grotesque ashes from all of the mills and industrial work plants in the area.
One quote that stuck out the most to me that explained the circumstances that the people were living in was, “A fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens, where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and finally, with a transcending effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air.” This quotes really stuck out to me and got me thinking about how places like this really do exist and people really do work hard to get out of their situation and they can’t that people really do work their whole life and just barely make ends meet. The differences in these two societies are not very far off of the way things are in the current time.
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Things back in the time period of this story was when things began to change for women, they cut their hair and, bought shorter dresses, started to party and began to demand to be allowed to do thing that men had been able to do for years. The main differences between East Egg and The Valley of Ashes are the way people dress, the things they own and places they live, and the way the people treat one another. The way the snotty rich “kids” treat the hardworking and respectful people of the valley is a lot like the way the “popular” kids treat people in school and online. Most people who have money tend to look down on those who have to work just to barley get by. Most people don’t have the extra money to spend on that name-brand jacket or the nice car, sometimes in order to eat and pay the bills you just have to wear the none name brand stuff and be treated differently not everyone has gone through the same struggles as the next person.
These two different ways of life have been very eye opening to the way things are and how people are treated, it has also made me relies that at some points in my life I have been just asjudgmental to some people as the rich are in this story and it doesn’t make me feel very good to think back on those times. East Egg is a great representation of the “popular” kid and The Valley is a great example of “the nerds or losers”. These first two chapters have been very eye opening to me, and I will remember next time | go tojudge someone that not everyone has had the opportunity or lifestyle that l have been able to take for granted.
