Greed and Money

A detailed Summary of Greed and Money


People say that money is the root of all evil. In the short story "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz," by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Braddock Washington acquires a frightening sense of power along with his fortunes. He represents an exact image of how money causes people to become greedy, selfish, and cruel.

No one human being is perfect and sometimes we are caught up or overwhelmed in our emotions. Some individuals will sacrifice anything for money and power. In the story, Braddock Washington is described to be the richest man in the world. He inherited a diamond mountain from his father, Fitz-Norman Washington. Later he enlisted his brother to help direct his slaves, but with selfishly wicked motivation, "he was compelled, due to a series of unfortunate complications, to murder his brother, whose unfortunate habit of drinking himself into an indiscreet stupor had several times endangered their safety" (194). He went as far to kill his own flesh and blood to save his money and power.

Braddock Washington inherited his fathers selfish traits along with his money. His son, Percy, explains that there are "half a dozen anti-aircraft guns" arranged a


Braddock lived his whole life revolving it around money but ironically it led to his death. It is possible that Braddock may have been more abusive with his power than others, but too much money will bring the worst out of anyone especially when they are afraid of loosing it. With out the diamond mountain his life would have been spared and he would have been a good man. The fact is people can easily take things for granted but the only key to preventing this is to know when to stop. And that is anyone's guess.

It is true that money buys power but there is always a limit and especially since it can be used so irresponsibly in the hands of a greedy person. When Braddock underestimated the power of his revengeful enemy, he deviously attempted to weasel his way out of this situation with money. He stoops as low to bribe God. Then he asked in exchange, "Let the heavens open swallowing these men and their aeroplanes - and then close again. Let him have his slaves one more, restored to life and well" (212). God refused with a menacing sound of thunder, an instant darkening in the sky and "for a time the whole of nature round about partook of this darkness" (213

Some common words found in the essay are:
John Unger, Braddock Washington, Fitz-Norman Washington, Money People, diamond mountain, braddock washington, own personal, money power,

Approximate Word count = 784
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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