Who Was Responsible For Gatsby's Death

After he found out Gatsby's identity he decided to comfort him about it when they went out to the city. But before they reach the city, Tom, Nick, and Jordan stop by the George Wilson shop to get gas in Gatsby's car. George has started to go crazy because he found out Myrtle has been having an affair but doesn’t know with whom. Tom starts to realize his life is falling apart because he is losing both his wife and side piece and needs to fix it as soon as possible. When they arrive at the apartment Tom starts going off saying Jay Gatbsy isn’t his real name and calling him a bootlegger.

This ended up being Gatsby through Toms purposeful misguiding. Tom directly caused Gatsby's murder by telling George it was he who hit his wife knowing he was not in a stable mindset and not truly knowing if it was him or daisy who was driving the car. Tom had a motive and after seeing he was losing control of both the primary women in his life and suspecting the affair between Gatspy and Daisy he knew he had to do something. Though Tom did not physically kill Gatsby, he talked to George knowing and wanting something bad to happen. Looking at the bigger picture though, gatsby's constant chasing of the American dream put him in the position he was in and led to his ultimate

In the renowned narrative Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby is murdered by George Wilson. However, despite Mr. Wilson pulling the trigger that led to Gatsby's demise, no one should place all of the blame on him only. Gatsby's death can be attributed to a chain of several events. His murder can also be traced back to Tom and Daisy Buchanan, Myrtle Wilson, and even Gatsby The critical incidences that led to Gatsby's demise were Tom's and Myrtle's affair, Gatsby's affair and obsession with Daisy, Myrtle's murder, and Mr. Wilson's eventual shooting of Gatsby. These incidences all have different causes and effects.

The Great Gatsby is a 1920’s novel narrated by Nick Carraway, following his time in New York City and Long Island. In the novel, Nick’s neighbor, Jay Gatsby is murdered by George Wilson. Gerorge acts in revenge for the death of Myrtle, his wife. Myrtle Wilson is a mistress of Tom’s who had affairs hidden from their partners. Although Mr. Wilson committed the crime, Gatsby and Tom Buchanan are responsible for Jay Gatsby’s death.

Tom even tried to defend his reason for telling George by saying, “He was crazy enough to kill me if I hadn’t told him who owned the car” (Fitzgerald 178). He could have distracted George enough and called the police, saying that George was out of control and was going to murder someone. However, the real reason for telling George was because he did not like Gatsby. He even admits that he does not feel guilty or care that he was responsible for Gatsby’s death. He asks Nick, “What if I did tell him?

Gatsby initially made up his background, claiming he received money from his parents' inheritance after they passed away, lived in San Francisco, and attended Oxford. First, there were allegations that Gatsby was a bootlegger, a German soldier, and other things. .However, Tom later learned the real story of how he came to be so wealthy. “ I found out what your drug stores were… sold grain alcohol over the counter… I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him” (Fitzgerald 133). A bootlegger is someone who makes, distributes or sells goods illegally during the prohibition, some may argue that these hobbies are bad but it’s what made Gatsby the richest man in West Egg, New

“He had come a long way…and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him. Gatsby believed in … the orgastic future that year by year recede[d] before [him]” (180). In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gatsby truly believed he could fall in love, rise to social grandeur, and achieve all his dreams. Yet his tragic end was the same fate as of the American Gangster.

Though all of these factors contributed to Gatsby’s death, Gatsby is mainly at fault for his own

" "I told him the truth," he said. "He came to the door while we were getting ready to leave, and when I sent down word that we weren’t in he tried to force his way up-stairs. He was crazy enough to kill me if I hadn’t told him who owned the car. His hand was on a revolver in his pocket every minute he was in the house ——" " (Fitzgerald 178). Tom had set Gatsby up.

Gatsby is shot by George because George was told by Tom that Gatsby killed Myrtle. This isn’t true and was ultimately Tom's fault. Myrtle thought it was Tom in the car and since they were having an affair she thought he would stop. " The God damned coward! He didn't even stop his car."

Gatsby has been lying to everyone around him about his background from a very young age. Tom decides to do an investigation and finds out “[Gatsby] and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores… and sold grain alcohol over the counter” (Fitzgerald 133). Gatsby’s wealth is from a bootlegging business, which Wolfsheim, a famous con man, dragged him into. Gatsby became a criminal in order to keep up with his popularity because of his fake persona. He has told countless individuals his family had passed away and he inherited all their wealth, but his father, Henry Gatz, shows up at his funeral (Fitzgerald 65-167).

Due to Gatsby wanting a better life, he tries to improve his financial situation through any means necessary, even if that entails shady business. On the first page of chapter IV, young ladies say, “He’s a bootlegger” (61). The rumors these women are spreading

As Gatsby is notorious for being a mysterious man, Nick questions his personal life and Gatsby reveals that he is “the son of some wealthy people in the Middle West---all dead now” (Fitzgerald 65). In response, Nick wonders what exact part of the Middle West and Gatsby replies that his ancestors were from San Francisco. It is clear that San Francisco is a part of the West Coast, thus showing dishonesty because he is building a false persona of himself and is creating mistrust within the people he lies to. Likewise, Gatsby is corrupted as he partakes in illegal activities such as bootlegging during Prohibition. As Tom catches Gatsby’s criminal scheme, it reveals that he makes his income through “a lot of side-street drug-stores here in [New York and]

(68) Gatsby’s behavior reveals that our behavior isn’t always independent of shame, and that two often conflict with one other. Toward the end of the novel, Tom exposes Gatsby’s secret, revealing "I found out what your 'drug-stores' were." He turned to us and spoke rapidly. " He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter” (123). While the reader is hinted to the Gatsby’s far-from perfect record many times in the course of the book, this is the first time it is explicitly stated.

The novel “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald was set in the 1920s during the aftermath of world war one. It is a reflection on the era’s prosperity, social change, and the concept of the American Dream. The novel portrays the negative side of the American Dream, as the characters in the novel are corrupted by their wealth and success. The impact of the American Dream on the characters within the novel are heavily impacted throughout the novel.