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In The Great Gatsby, how does Myrtle behave in New York?
Quick answer:
In New York, Myrtle behaves extravagantly and adopts a more glamorous persona. She changes into luxurious clothing, buys superficial items, and insists on the best of everything, including a puppy from Tom. Myrtle enjoys spending Tom's money, drinking illegal whiskey, and boasting about her lifestyle. Her inflated sense of self-importance and reckless behavior ultimately lead to conflict, revealing Tom's abusive nature when he strikes her.
Myrtle’s transformation begins on the train, where she changes into a tight flowered dress. At the station, she buys magazines about superficial subjects such as gossip and movies. Just in catching a cab, she lets four cars go by before she chooses the newest, most luxurious one she sees. She also petulantly insists that Tom buy her a puppy.
While at the apartment, although she complains to the other female guests about her husband, she also enjoys drinking the amply available illegal whiskey. Her sister tells Nick some of the fantasies Myrtle has shared with her, such as that Tom cannot get a divorce because Daisy is Catholic; she also claims that Tom is Myrtle’s “first sweetie” since getting married. Myrtle tells a story about meeting Tom and deciding to get involved with him because “you can’t live forever.”
Unfortunately, with the alcohol, Myrtle’s good judgment seems to abandon her,...
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and she begins taunting Tom by mentioning his wife’s name. This episode is central because Tom’s true character is revealed: he strikes Myrtle with his hand, and breaks her nose. She then becomes a “despairing figure on the couch, bleeding fluently . . .”
Myrtle acts very differently when she in New York. She enjoys spending Tom's money, as we see when she asks for a puppy and when she stops to buy a magazine, some "cold cream" and perfume. Moreover, she boasts about the high cost of hiring a woman to come to the apartment to look at her feet.
Myrtle also likes to portray herself in a more glamorous light. One her arrival in New York, for instance, she changes into a "cream-colored chiffon" dress and is described by Nick as sweeping around the room when she moves.
Finally, Myrtle develops an inflates sense of self-importance: she moves as though she has a "dozen chefs" waiting her in the kitchen and claims that she has to keep on at "people" all the time, like the ice boy.
How does Myrtle react to Tom's arrival in The Great Gatsby?
In chapter 2, Tom stops by George Wilson's shop in order to tell Myrtle to follow him into the city. When Tom enters George's garage, he looks around until he spots Myrtle, who is sensuously carrying herself and admiring Tom. Nick mentions that Myrtle looks right past her husband like he is a ghost and begins licking her lips. Myrtle then stares directly at Tom when she shakes his hand and cannot take her eyes off him. Myrtle even refuses to turn her head when she tells her husband to grab some chairs so that their guests can have a seat. After George leaves their proximity, Tom tells Myrtle to take the next train into the city to meet up with him. Myrtle immediately agrees to follow Tom into the city and eventually spends the remainder of the day in a New York City apartment with Tom and his friends. Overall, Myrtle is completely infatuated with Tom when he first arrives at her husband's garage. She cannot take her eyes off Tom and ignores George during Tom's short visit. She also sensuously licks her lips and makes direct eye contact with Tom when she initially sees him.