The song I chose to relate to Gatsby may be considered unconventional, but in my opinion, fits quite well. The song is Afroman's "Because I Got High".
The characters in the novel don't whole-heartedly care about anything (or half-heartedly, really) except their gossip and drinking with people in their social circles. Tom and Daisy have a young child, and yet they still have time to have affairs, go to parties, have sleepovers with friends. No one is concerned when Tom punches Myrtle in the face--they're all too wasted and don't want to deal with the seriousness that comes with abuse. The group of people that the book centers around are extremely selfish and apathetic.
It doesn't seem like a single one of them works. They are able to remain so apathetic and uninvolved with things that most people would have to deal with. Afroman's lyrics demonstrate the lack of motivation to do things he doesn't really feel like in this verse:
"I was gonna go to work, but then I got high
I just got a new promotion, but I got high
Now I'm selling dope and I know why, (why man) 'cuz I got high
Because I got high
Because I got high"
Obviously the characters in The Great Gatsby aren't smoking hash or anything, but alcohol is definitely their "high" in the sense that marijuana is to Afroman and those in his discourse. It is such a huge component in their lives and just like wealth, it allows them to escape doing the things they don't want to do, like taking care of their children or having a job.
