The Personalities of Love

     Although Anson Hunter seems to have everything he could possibly want, the reader finds that his life is ultimately restricted by the emphasis he has placed on social status and the feeling of superiority and control associated with such status. As a result, he struggles to enjoy even the most basic of human desires: love. Fitzgerald demonstrates this when he writes,

"He dominated and attracted her, and at the same time filled her with anxiety. Confused by his mixture of solidity and self-indulgence, of sentiment and cynicism - incongruities which her gentle mind was unable to resolve - Paula grew to think of him as two alternating personalities" (Fitzgerald, 160).

     Anson's oscillation between his two "personalities" is indicative of his inability to completely open up to Paula. His withdrawn personality can be attributed to class and superiority as they fill Anson with a belief that he is invulnerable and in complete control; however, love strips its victims of all protective mechanisms, making them utterly and completely defenseless. Arguably, this vulnerability Anson feels challenges his control, thereby discounting two things that have protected and aided him throughout life (i.e. social standing and superiority). Therefore, he feels the need to remain guarded in his relationship with Paula in order to keep his emotions from spiraling out of control. His personality shifts between that of a cold, inaccessible alcoholic to a warm and charming individual. In maintaining two very different personalities, Anson, in his mind, is able to discretionary power over his vulnerability. Moreover, his incapability to set his control aside and plunge into love costs him Paula's affection and instead leaves him completely alone.

     Are personal securities such as superiority and class distinction worth a life without love?