Ancillary Topic
Music as an element in The Great Gatsby
Music is clearly a reappearing element in the story. Because the Jazz Age was marked by the idea of individuality and self-expression, it is apparent that it would play an important role in The Great Gatsby. The characters in the story are prime examples of the immorality brought to life during the 1920s, and music was said to have influenced the actions of people during this time. Music of the Jazz Age was criticized in part because it caused people to dance intimately and in a non-traditional manner. In the story, when Gatsby throws his extravagant parties, an orchestra is always on hand to provide music for his guests.
The orchestra is described as "a whole pit full of oboes and trombones and saxophones and viols and cornets and piccolos and low and high drums" (44), clearly instruments that made their debut during this decade and became common during the Jazz Age. In addition, a singer is present at the party to sing in a jazz style.
As the music plays, Gatsby's guests begin to react to it and dance freely. As mentioned before, music influenced people's actions, and at the gathering, the party guests were "holding each other tortuously, fashionably and keeping in the corners-- and a great number of single girls dancing individualistically..." (51).
One of the scenes that illustrates the influence of music on society occurs when the orchestra leader conducts Vladimir Tostoff's Jazz History of the World. After the music is played, "girls were swooning backward playfully into men's arms...." (55) Although Tostoff and the song are both imaginary, Fitzgerald meant to show how Jazz was developing as a rival to the more traditional and classic music of previous times.
Page last updated April 28, 1999.
Curator: Melissa Tran