There are many different kinds of safety present in this novel: the financial security that comes of being wealthy; the physical safety of having someone to protect you; and the deep psychological security that stems from being privileged, well-regarded, and well-loved. Of the main characters, Daisy is the only one with all three, having been protected by Gatsby, provided for financially by Tom, and loved by both of them. This is exactly the kind of security that makes Daisy’s voice a “deathless song.” She’s impervious to death because others are shielding her from it.

In chapter 9, when Nick and Jordan meet for the last time, Jordan reminds him of something he once said: “a bad driver [is] only safe until she [meets] another bad driver.” This statement might have been inspired by Daisy and the hit-and-run but refers here to Nick and Jordan, who are both “bad drivers” emotionally speaking, incapable of maintaining control over their own feelings. In this way, safety, which has previously been discussed in terms of one’s wealth and privilege, here becomes a question of one’s ability to be safe or avoid accidents, whether literal or metaphorical. Neither Nick nor Jordan can avoid accidents. No one in this novel can.