Old Money, New Money, and Everybody Else

In F. Scott Fitzgeralds "The Great Gatsby", people of all different social and economic classes are portrayed. The elitist would be the old money, those who were born into wealth and have developed connections over many years. Along with the old money, the new money are still high on the economic ladder. The new money are not heirs and heiresses, they worked for their money but often do not have the social ties that the old money does. Everybody else refers to the middle class, the working class, and the poor. These are the people who are not as privileged as those with riches. "The Great Gatsby" is set in New York, more specifically in East Egg, West Egg, and the city. We are first introduced to the old money on East Egg with Tom and Daisy. They enjoy all of the luxuries money and status can buy: lots of property, a grand house, etc. The new money reside on West Egg. The homes on West Egg are just as grand if not grander than they are on East Egg. After being introduced to the way the higher classes live, a new environment is described in the book. It is the area between The Eggs and New York City where Myrtle, Tom's mistress, and her husband reside. It is obvious that they do not enjoy the same luxuries as Tom and Daisy do. Back on The Eggs, the ever famous Gatsby throws grand and over the top parties in his grand and over the top mansion. These parties are a great depiction as to how the upperclass enjoyed the "Roaring Twenties", but  not everyone experienced the decade the same way. "Everybody else" lived humble lives working or struggling to find work. Even with the countless party scenes on The Eggs, I personally think that F. Scott Fitzgerald does a great job of helping the reader understand that the roaring twenties were not all that roaring for everybody.