Initially, when I read "The Great Gatsby," an observation I made about women in the novel was how there are no "good" or likable female characters. The main points that are discussed in this CTT essay are how these women are threats to patriarchy, and how each of them are punished on an individual level based on how badly they threatened patriarchal society. For instance, Myrtle is most extremely punished for her crimes against patriarchy. She is unfaithful to a faithful husband and disrespects his role as the head of the family. Daisy is also punished, but not to the extent a Myrtle is, which may have something to do with her class, or the fact that her husband is unfaithful, and therefore, it is less shocking for Daisy to seek another relationship. She also kills someone, but she is not the one to be most severely punished for that crime. The degree of punishment is related to the degree of threat to patriarchy, and no other offenses. Daisy having murdered someone does not affect her degree of punishment. Instead of being punished for murder, Daisy is punished for infidelity. Because Daisy does not get killed, like Myrtle, the only difference is the level of crime against patriarchy. Jordan's punishment is simply Nick's rejection. Her crimes against the male system are making her own money and having a relationship out of wedlock. Knowing these details about the book gives me an understanding of why there are no likable female characters. What I want to know is if this underling message was intentional social commentary, or simply the author's fundamental beliefs, whether he intended to relay them or not?