Over the years, the Buchanan’s continued to live their lavish, carefree lifestyle free of hardships. Tom came into considerable luck and inherited the estate of a rich uncle whom he never knew, nevertheless Tom and Daisy gladly accepted these assets. They put the money to good use by building a large palace on the south end of East Egg. The erecting of this mansion was due to the fact that Daisy could no longer stomach the idea of living across from a ‘villainous louse’, which was the new title she gave her former lover Gatsby.
In all truth, Daisy wanted to eliminate all memory of Gatsby and fabricated an elaborate lie about the incident at Wilson’s garage. She had her gullible husband believe that Gatsby engaged her in an intense argument in the car, and that he was so infuriated, he swerved to hit Myrtle out of spite towards Daisy. Of course, this infuriated Tom and he had all the once beautiful windows of Gatsby’s estate shattered and even impounded his prized yellow car. Ironically, this only brought the imprudent couple together as Daisy strained to forget about Gatsby’s existence.
For two years the couple experienced the extreme luxuries that the world had to offer. They dined at the trendiest restaurants in Europe; they kept company with people who had so many titles that their first names were not even known and oddly, they experienced feelings for one another comparable to love. Tom and Daisy enjoyed one another’s company and were at the height of the social ladder. Unfortunately, on a rainy day in rural England Tom and Daisy were driving and Tom nearly hit a farmer crossing the road. Tom shouted rude obscenities at the terrified farmer and told Daisy that he was thankful he did not hit anyone of importance.
Daisy on the other hand, was especially disturbed and for two weeks did not leave their condo in London. The Buchanan’ eventually returned to East Egg and resided at their southern mansion for the next eight years. Pammy who had learned to cherish the cultured and haughty lifestyle of Europe came to resent her mother because she believed the reason they left was because of her ‘sudden illness’. After a few years, the Buchanan’s settled back into the familiar affluent positions they held in East Egg. Tom rekindled his fondness of his weekly polo matches and worked on maintaining his Herculean physique.
Pammy flourished into a stunning young lady, with the aid of Jordan who dressed her in only white. In contrast to her daughter, Daisy who was once a beautiful dazzling flower began to whither away almost as if someone was plucking away her petals. Laughter had left her once bright and lovely face and she took to wearing pale earth tones and shades of grey. Every night when everyone in the household was asleep, Daisy was kept awake by reoccurring thoughts of the incident at Wilson’s garage. She often sat at her window and gazed North to her old home where the green light at the end of the dock mesmerized her.
To Daisy, the green light was symbolic of Gatsby, who was haunting her and calling out for her to tell the truth and let him and Myrtle rest. Daisy had become overcome with guilt and became a recluse refusing the company of anyone but her preferred maid. Tom found himself alone and rather embarrassed of his wife’s conduct. The summer was a time of important social gatherings, and he was left with no companion. To save face, he called upon the company of Jordan Baker to attend social functions with him. Initially, the relationship was strictly one of business, but it soon after blossomed into a furtive romance.
Tom felt comfortable with Jordan, the two were essentially made for one another; they both carried an air of arrogance and lacked a sense of morality. Ironically, Tom bought Jordan an immensely glamorous 5-room condo in New York, right across from his old apartment with Myrtle. He moved Pammy there to live with her accepted surrogate mother Jordan. Tom and Jordan made many public appearances together as a couple. Daisy through her maid learned of their new affiliation and confronted Tom on one of his few visits home.
Tom became exasperated and accused Daisy of being selfish and told her that she had no right to comment on his relationship with Jordan since she is never there for him. Daisy continued to disagree and before Tom left for the last time for New York he attacked her with his massive hand breaking her fragile nose. For a few days, Daisy lay alone not even accepting the care of her maid, contemplating her tragic existence. One night, as she lay awake on her divan, she felt the calling of the green light; she went out onto the balcony and gazed at its purity, longing to be with it.
Then, a sudden lunacy possessed her and she adorned one of her beloved white dresses, ornamented herself with jewellery, painted a respectable face and went to the shore. She lay down in the shallow pool of cleanliness surrounding herself with its perceived clarity and began to swim to her best ability. As she struggled against the current she relived the tragedy of Myrtle’s death and her disloyalty to Gatsby, which ultimately caused his destruction. As she sank deeper into the water, she lost site of her aspiration and let her lungs fill with water as she rid herself of responsibility, innocence and life.
