In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author implies that wealth plays a much smaller role in the decisions of the individuals who earned their wealth. He demonstrates this through Jay Gatsby's thoughts about his new wealth and Tom Buchanan's beliefs about his former generational wealth. Jay Gatsby's thoughts on his newfound wealth illustrate that wealth plays a much smaller role in the decisions of the individuals who earned their wealth. During Gatsby's economic uprising, Daisy Buchanan was constantly on his mind and his image of her continued to grow in his reputation, but her wealth had little influence on his opinions and decisions, as later shown in the day after Myrtle's crush when Gatsby says, "I'll just wait here and see if he tries to bother her about this unpleasantness this afternoon. She's locked herself in her room, and if he tries any brutality, it will turn off and turn on the light” (Fitzgerald 144) In writing this, Fitzgerald gives us insight into the thought process of Gatsby had become rich through the alleged smuggling and after acquiring this money, thoughts. of Gatsby remained constant, revolving around Daisy, regardless of his new wealth Gatsby being the same man as before he acquired his wealth, he decided to stay in the yard of the Buchanan house to ensure that. Tom wouldn't hurt Daisy, because Daisy was actually the one who ran over Myrtle and Gatsby wanted to be sure that Daisy would be hurt. safe shown when Gatsby says, "See if he tries to bother her." In this small sample of the dialogue between Gatsby and Nick, we can see that Gatsby, still in love with Daisy, has decided to stay in their court to protect her by maintaining his years-old thought process and borderline obsessions.... ... middle of paper ... ... allows us to see how Tom is so influenced by his unearned wealth, leading to an inflated perception of his own importance. Tom had grown up not appreciating his wealth and realized the powers it held, which meant to him that he could have business because he was this rich man. Yet Tom later realizes how Myrtle and the business he spawned out of arrogance stemming from his wealth were falling apart. Myrtle had a different life than her own with Tom and with her need for power, "the shock had made him physically ill." This shock shows how much of a shock Myrtle's not depending on him was to him and so much so that it made him physically ill, showing that when an individual does not earn his wealth, that wealth plays a much greater role important in his decisions than those who earned their wealth. Works Cited Fitzgerald, Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Scribner, 2004.