The Great Gatsby
Military influence
Fitzgerald uses military influence to demonstrate Gatsby's moral character and valor. Although Gatsby joined the military to earn money to impress Daisy, he became a heroic army captain in a battle of the Argonne forest. By obliterating three German Battalions, Gatsby was quickly promoted to the rank of major and every allied nation sent him a medal for valor and honor. Gatsby's most prized medal is from Montenegro, and he carries it with him everywhere. Although he never says why he treasures that one medal so much, Nick Carraway speculates that he values it due to its origin. Montenegro had considerable hardships before and after World War II, but they still rewarded an American soldier and international hero. The medal bears the inscription of Orderi di Danilo, Montenegro Nicolas Rex on one side, and the other side reads, Major Jay Gatsby, For Valour Extraordinary. The medal reminds Gatsby of his past life and links him continually to Daisy, his one true love that he will never have. Daisy and the medal are priceless to Gatsby, and while both of them represent Gatsby's past life, both increase in value to him daily.
These two medals, courtesy of The Royal House of Serbia and Yugoslavia, are from 1913. The medal on the left, The Medal for the Liberated Kosovo, was created on October 31 to commemorate the end of the First Balkan War. The medal on the right, The Bravery Medal of 1913, was awarded for victorious acts during the Yugoslav war against Bulgaria. Although neither is the exact medal Gatsby retains, they give a good idea of what his would have looked like.
Other military references in The Great Gatsby:
People at Gatsby's party gossip that he was a German Spy (48)
Gatsby's description of the medal from Montenegro (70, 71)
Daisy flirts with soldiers in her town (80, 81)
Nick's involvement in the Ninth Machine-gun battalion (51, 52)
Page last updated on April 28, 1999.
Curator: Josh Evans