What are the "old euphemisms" in The Great Gatsby?

Question

In chapter 6 of *The Great Gatsby*, Nick describes Daisy's reaction to the people of West Egg: > But the rest offended her—and inarguably, because it wasn’t a gesture but an emotion. She was appalled by West Egg, this unprecedented “place.” that Broadway had begotten upon a Long Island fishing village—**appalled by its raw vigor that chafed under the old euphemisms** and by the too obtrusive fate that herded its inhabitants along a short-cut from nothing to nothing. She saw something awful in the very simplicity she failed to understand. I'm interested in the part in bold, which says that Daisy was "appalled by its raw vigor that chafed under the old euphemisms". What are the "old euphemisms" being referred to? I've wondered about this for years. A euphemism is where you use one word as a substitute for a more offensive word. But I don't think Fitzgerald is referring to literal euphemism here. I have one theory: perhaps he means that rich people have upper-class families have a way of masking their hedonistic tendencies. The new-money people of West Egg, on the other hand, are more ostentatious about their hedonism. Is this what Fitzgerald is talking about?

Answer 1

The bad behavior of the rich is treated as euphemisms for impact in The Great Gatsby.

In The Great Gatsby, we have the old money of East Egg and the new money of West Egg. People like Tom and Daisy represent that East Egg way of life. There are incredibly rich and have been able to get away with living a certain way that benefits themselves and others that live like them. There is a great line toward the end of the novel: "They were careless people, Tom and Daisy – they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together and let other people clean up the mess they had made." Even the universe seems to back up their easy existence. Tom never has to face the consequences of having a mistress. Myrtle is killed by Daisy (but Daisy never gets blamed because Gatsby covers things up for her). Myrtle's husband kills Gatsby (which solves another "problem" for Tom) thinking Gatsby killed Myrtle. Tom and Daisy move from East Egg.

This is the way they live -- they mess up and it turns into cocktail party banter, thus relieving them of ever facing punishment for their crimes. Even look at Jordan Baker. She's a famous female golfer but she cheated to get there.