Short-Tempered Tom

The Great Gatsby
p. 25-36

In this section of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, the reader becomes more aware of the real Tom Buchanan. Both subtly and directly, Fitzgerald reveals Tom's short temper and capricious nature. For example, upon stopping at the gas station and seeing his old friend, Fitzgerald describes Tom as slapping Wilson "jovially on the shoulder" (Fitzgerald, 25). However, within just five lines, Tom's seemingly easy-going mood changes to one of extreme annoyance simply because Wilson bothered him about a car Tom had promised to sell. "'No, he doesn't,' said Tom coldly. 'And if you feel that way about it, maybe I'd better sell it somwhere else after all'" (Fitzgerald, 25). What a quick change of mood! Frankly, Tom is annoying as ever. I wonder if his short temper will get him into trouble later on in the story; I can definitely see it as his downfall.
This analysis was further confirmed when Tom broke Myrtle's nose at the apartment: "Making short of a deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand" (Fitzgerald, 37). I do not know if hitting a woman was frowned upon in the early 1900s to the extent that it is today, but this scene still seems rather barbaric. He seems like complete tool, and Daisy can do so much better.