Daisy Fay Buchanan is quite a sight indeed, between her charismatic attitude, her remarkable beauty, and her even more stunning display of wealth. Has she always been such an admirable woman? Short answer: Yes indeed!
From an early age, before Daisy was ever engaged to the esteemed ex-athlete Tom Buchanan, she grew up as the symbol of success in Louisville, Kentucky. Barely a young lady, she practically had suitors around the block with a constantly busy phoneline with how charming she was.
“The largest of the banners and the largest of the lawns belonged to Daisy Fay’s house. She was just eighteen, two years older than me, and by far the most popular of all the young girls in Louisville. She dressed in white, and had a little white roadster, and all day long the telephone rang in her house and excited young officers from Camp Taylor demanded the privilege of monopolizing her that night.” – J.B.
(Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Chapter 4)
Not only did she have the attention of every man a young lady could ever dream of, but after the Prohibition Act was proposed in the Senate in 1917, it seems Miss Fay wanted to live the life of a celebrity before the country’s supply of liquid courage was outlawed.
Our anonymous informant recounts a tale of Daisy’s younger days, after her engagement to Mr. Buchanan. The day before her wedding, it seems that the alcoholic truth serum stirred up some conflicting feelings in our bride-to-be.
“Tell ’em all Daisy’s change’ her mine. Say: ‘Daisy’s change’ her mine!” – Daisy Fay Buchanan
“I was scared, I can tell you; I’d never seen a girl like that before… She began to cry—she cried and cried. I rushed out and found her mother’s maid, and we locked the door and got her into a cold bath.” – J.B.
(Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Chapter 4)
But apparently, this moment of clarity wasn’t enough to sway the longing heart, as the day after this breakdown, she became Mrs. Buchanan, and spent the remaining months of the hot summer on a honeymoon cruise across the sea.
Daisy’s traveling days didn’t stop here, our informant reveals, as for months afterwards she was a certified sightseer, on the arm of her new husband.
“The next April Daisy had her little girl, and they went to France for a year. I saw them one spring in Cannes, and later in Deauville, and then they came back to Chicago to settle down. Daisy was popular in Chicago, as you know.” – J.B.
(Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Chapter 4)
Now a seemingly permanent resident of the exclusive East Egg, it seems our dear Daisy has settled down, with a happy family and a beautiful daughter. But we all wonder, has she finally set down roots for good..?
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. eBook #64317. Project Gutenberg, January 17, 2021, online.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64317/64317-h/64317-h.htm
2 Comments
Add Yours →I love the bits of the original novel being included as quotes within the story. While reading I found myself thinking about the fact that only Jordan knows some of these details and its really interesting when compared to the way she seems to float through the Buchanan’s home when it suits her. In BLF Daisy sees Jordan as her one true best friend, but in the Chosen and the Beautiful, Jordan doesn’t seem to think they’re as close. This has made me wonder how much of the closeness of their friendship is defined by Nick’s view of it from the outside.
I love the creative approach in your blog. The anonymous informant being Jordan is extremely interesting. It opens up so many questions: did she and Daisy have a falling out? Is she the one behind the gossip sheet?
I can also see this being a gossip sheet that the characters would be reading within the novel, especially Daisy and Myrtle, and the way you’ve written this I could see it tying into the plot of the novel easily.