The Importance of Wealth

After reading a number of summaries and reviews of Jonathan Dee's The Privileges I anticipated a narrative about a simple lifestyle led by the Morey family with some underlying themes thrown in, but after completing the second third of the novel I gained an eye for making connections and noting the symbolism Dee, a teacher of graduate-level writing at Columbia University, deftly uses.  Dee's use of symbolism really appeals to me as it adds a complexity factor I did not predict before I began reading. I found myself intrigued at Dee's use of symbolism during the charity event on the Intrepid for all of the workers at Perini.  Surroumded by his peers, nearly all men of wealth, I believe Adam began to question the necessity of money to have happiness and the actions taken by him in order to gain prosperity.  Dee first references Adam's "relationship to drinking" which I interpreted as a symbol of Adam's feelings regarding wealth (94).  Relationships involving drinking of course typically do not yield a positive connotation, therefore, I see Adam as viewing his ambition for wealth similar to a drinking problem, something negative.  Dee later uses the adjective "complicated" to describe the relationship Adam has with alcohol (94).  Complicated relationships often entail doubt, so by doubting his drinking habits Dee also reveals Adam's questioning of his business decisions and practices and even doubts regarding wealth as a foundation for happiness.  As the event continued I noted the continuation of Adam's questioning of the necessity for wealth and as a result he acted.  Adam observed "Another Wall Street Tyke" at the gathering raising conflicts with other brokers to the extent of stealing an expensive watch off of one of Adam's coworkers (93).  Adam approached the kid about the matter without any intentions of busting him for stealing the watch.  He did take the "gold Patek Philippe" watch back from the young gun but in order to teach a lesson to the younger investor comparable to Adam soon after graduating from college (97).   A watch of that caliber never runs cheap and "gold" always appears synonomous with riches, therefore, I interpreted the watch as Dee's symbol for wealth.  Despite the hefty price of the watch, Adam, with little emotion, "threw it over the side," a gesture I believe intended to prove a point to the young broker: more matters than money (97).  Dee places so much attention on this moment at the event to emphasize one's ability to change priorities and search for meaning in things beyond money regardless of how wrapped up in achieving wealth one may live.  The author's subtle use of symbolism teaches a lesson to those with questionable priorities  like wealth.  With the added complexity of an abundance of symbolism Dee appeals to my future decision making and logic, as a result encouraging me and others to rethink what truly has the most importance in life.