Tom’s Character in the Great Gatsby

Tom Buchanan’s moral character can be quesitoned due to his despicable

and patheic nature when it comes to his actions throughout the novel. Even though he was born into a wealthy family and thus inherited the wealth he has in the novel, no signs of moral teachings by his family were evident. The actions he took in the book were due to him being a conceited and ignorant man. His ignorance was a result of the easy access he had to power and wealth. He feels that because he has wealth and power in society, he is given the acquiescence to be as arrogant and immoral as he so chooses and society cannot do anything about it. Because of this he looks down upon people that he feels are lower in the social and financial ladder. An example of this is when Nick is talking to tom about his accomplice in adultery and Nick says “Doesn’t her(Myrtle Wilson) husband object?” and Tom replies with “Wilson? He thinks she goes to see her sister in New York. He’s so dumb he doesn’t know he’s alive” (Gatsby 26). This indicates that Tom is very cocky and ignorant. Tom’s immoral acts in the novel stem from his overconfidence and ignorance due to his wealth and power. This is further proved by the fact that when his first and only child was born, he left