Editor's Choice
In The Great Gatsby, why does Myrtle marry George Wilson?
Quick answer:
Myrtle marries George Wilson because she initially believes he is a gentleman with breeding, as she reveals in chapter two of The Great Gatsby. However, she quickly becomes disillusioned upon discovering his lack of wealth and status, which she believed he possessed. This disillusionment contributes to her disdain for George and justifies her affair with Tom Buchanan.
In Chapter Two of The Great Gatsby, Nick accompanies Tom Buchanan through the Valley of Ashes where Tom arranges a rendez-vous with his mistress Myrtle Wilson, who is married to George Wilson, an ashen man, blonde and spiritless in contrast to the "perceptible vitality" of Myrtle. Later, in the New York hotel room where Mrytle changes her dress and feigns social position and wealth, she overhears Nick ask if she does not like Mr. Wilson. Mrytle unleashes a violent and obscene remark.
As the conversation continues, it becomes apparent that Mrytle is not the only one who puts on airs. Her sister Catherine speaks of going to Monte Carlo with twelve hundred dollars and how she almost married a "little kyke" who was "below" her. After this remark, Mrytle nods her head in agreement,
"At least you didn't marry him....Well, I married him...And that's the difference between your case...
Unlock
This Answer NowStart your 48-hour free trial and get ahead in class. Boost your grades with access to expert answers and top-tier study guides. Thousands of students are already mastering their assignments—don't miss out. Cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
and mine."
Catherine asks her why she married George Wilson:
"I married him because I thought he was a gentleman...I thought he knew something about breeding but he wasn't fit to lick my shoe."
After they were married, Mrytle learned that George had even borrowed the suit he wore in their wedding; the man that she had hoped had money had none. This episode in Fitzgerald's narrative exemplifies the perversion of the American Dream to one of the desire for materialism as a false value.
What reason did Myrtle give for marrying George Wilson in The Great Gatsby?
In chapter two, Nick attends a party at Tom Buchanan's apartment in the city, where he regularly carries on his affair with Myrtle Wilson. Toward the end of the party, Mrs. McKee mentions that she almost made the mistake of marrying a man below her social class and Myrtle Wilson responds by lamenting her marriage and unfortunate situation. When Myrtle's sister Catherine asks her why she decided to marry George Wilson, Myrtle responds by saying,
I married him because I thought he was a gentleman. . . . I thought he knew something about breeding, but he wasn’t fit to lick my shoe. (Fitzgerald, 38)
Essentially, Myrtle Wilson believed that George was a wealthy man and felt that she could attain an upper-class status by marrying him. Myrtle goes on to mention that she discovered George was broke when a man showed up one day to take back the suit he let George borrow for the wedding. Myrtle goes on to say that as soon as she discovered George had borrowed his suit, she cried for the remainder of the night.
Overall, Myrtle claims that she married George Wilson because she believed he was a wealthy gentleman. Her primary goal was to marry a rich man and live a luxurious life, which portrays her as a shallow, materialistic woman. Now, instead of marrying a wealthy man and enjoying the finer things in life, Myrtle lives above a garage in the valley of ashes.