The Guest

The literary canon has always been interested in outsiders in wealthy spaces. Authors frequently use outsiders to critique society, note power dynamics, and analyze exclusive spaces—subtleties that insiders might not pick up on.

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel The Great Gatsby is a classic example of outsiders in wealthy spaces. Fitzgerald’s novel critiques the superficial opulence of American capitalism and the wealthy class’s obsession with keeping up appearances. In this novel, Jay Gatsby is a mysterious millionaire obsessed with rekindling his relationship with a wealthy married heiress named Daisy. Gatsby is mysterious because no one really knows where he got his money from. His “new money” status makes him an outsider in Daisy’s “old money” world. He hosts lavish parties to ingratiate himself with that group and lure Daisy to him. Like The Guest, The Great Gatsby also takes place in an upscale Long Island neighborhood, then as now an exclusive setting in which wealthy people can avoid mingling with the lower classes. The Great Gatsby is narrated by another outsider, Nick Carraway. Because of Carraway’s outsider status, wealthy people like Gatsby don’t care that Carraway knows their secrets, such as the affair Gatsby is having with Daisy. Just as Alex is ultimately destroyed by her quest to fit into a wealthy world that is not her own, so too is Gatsby ruined by his quest to belong to a society that will always ostracize him.

Passing by Nella Larsen, published in 1929, is also concerned with outsiders in exclusive spaces. Passing tells the story of two Black women who used to be friends, Clare and Irene. Both women are light-skinned enough to pass as white when they want or need to. In segregated, racist America, being able to pass as white gives Clare and Irene certain safeties. But Irene lives within the Black community; she only uses her ability to pass when she needs to for her safety. Clare, on the other hand, presents herself as white at all times, which places Clare in danger because her white husband is very racist. In choosing to be part of the white community, Clare sacrifices her relationship with the Black community. Thus, Clare is an outsider in both the white community and the Black community. Passing is an American classic that explores how race and gender can intersect to alienate people to a tragic degree.

This subgenre of literature gives readers exposure to worlds and communities they might not otherwise have access to. What’s more, the outsider’s perspective provides critical social and cultural commentary, challenging the status quo and societal inequality.