The Sun is a Symbol

The world revolves around reward. Not the sun, but reward. Behind every change in mindset, every individual stroke of effort, every desired objective, it's all a result of the underlying crave for reward. It's a biological trait- we do things or don't do things to either obtain a profit or avoid a consequence. Psychologist- sorry, behaviorist- B.F. Skinner backs me up on this; he even takes it so far as to say that operant conditioning* is what shapes our individual minds. 

When I say reward, I'm talking about anything as simple as getting a euphoric feeling or approval from someone to something as tangible as money. 

The biggest and most obvious reward the world has come to be built upon is money. People get this weird idea that some rectangular green paper will magically buy them happiness, and the more that they get, then more happiness they will earn. Then people like Tom Buchanan or Jay Gatsby go around flaunting their wealth to earn the approval of certain people because that approval makes them feel like more of a legit person: someone worthy of acknowledgement. I guess maybe it's not quite money that does this, but the desire for attention- the desire to be perceived as someone others can respect more so than themselves. So money is the mask of the reward of approval.

To me, Daisy Buchanan gets more criticism than she deserves. She did what anyone in her position would do. She's young, from a rich family that expects her to maintain her social status; all she knows is wealth wealth wealth. She was raised surrounded by it, and instilled in her mind from her beginning that to be happy she needs wealth and respect. Her parents probably didn't really love each other, so why should she marry someone she loves if he owns nothing but the clothes on his back? What good would that bring her? The reward of that is out-balanced by the consequences- she would be forever looked down upon, shunned by her family and society. Of course she wouldn't choose Gatsby over Tom, even later when Gatsby does gain wealth. Another thing to note is the fear of change- is she really expected to abandon her whole life and everything she knows to be with Gatsby? It's too late! It's so overwhelming! That's why she cried when she saw all those shirts Gatsby threw on her. She cares too much about her image, just like every other person in society, and doesn't think the reward of being with Gatsby will be equivalent to the reward she gets by staying with Tom, whether it's even true or not.

*operant conditioning is a learning process through which the strength of a behavior is modified by reward or punishment.