Symbols Used in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby Essay example

The Great Gatsby is based on a man named Jay Gatsby and his

Best services for writing your paper according to Trustpilot

Premium Partner
From $18.00 per page
4,8 / 5
4,80
Writers Experience
4,80
Delivery
4,90
Support
4,70
Price
Recommended Service
From $13.90 per page
4,6 / 5
4,70
Writers Experience
4,70
Delivery
4,60
Support
4,60
Price
From $20.00 per page
4,5 / 5
4,80
Writers Experience
4,50
Delivery
4,40
Support
4,10
Price
* All Partners were chosen among 50+ writing services by our Customer Satisfaction Team

idealistic infatuation to a girl named Daisy that he met while he was young.

Gatsby was not of a wealthy family and therefore Daisy would not marry him.

Gatsby devoted his life to getting what he needed to win Daisy. After the

war Gatsby became a bootlegger to attain what he needed to win Daisy. In

the Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses various colors, objects, and

gestures as symbols to portray the lack of moral and spiritual values of

people and the different aspects of society in the 1920’s. The colors

which are spread throughout the novel are green, white, gold, and others.

F. Scott Fitzgerald provides a social commentary on the 1920’s in this

novel. The Great Gatsby is an important American novel and not just a mere

historical document depicting life in the 1920’s. Like other writers of

the 20’s Fitzgerald was fascinated by the spectacle of what had become of

the American Dream and how it had become corrupted by greed

andmaterialistic possessions.

At the end of Chapter One, Nick catches Gatsby stretching his arms

out towards a green light. At the time it is not revealed to us that this

is the light at the end of Daisy’s dock.

he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and far

as I was from him I could have sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I

glanced seaward–and distinguished nothing except a single green light,

minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock. (Fitzgerald

26)

Throughout the novel Fitzgerald emphasizes the color green as a

promise of hope. Through Gatsby this promise is corrupted by the …

…. (Northman 24)

The moral values of the time, as Fitzgerald shows us, is greatly

declined in the novel. Gatsby, although he treats Nick as a good friend,

is only concerned with one thing. He wants something from Nick.

And what does Gatsby want of Carraway? “He wants to know,”

continued Jordan, “if you’ll invite Daisy to your house some afternoon and

then let him come over.” He wants Carraway, to put this bluntly, to help

him capture a friend’s wife- (Dyson 1401)

The story of Jay Gatsby is deep with meaning and with many

different interpretations. In The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald shows

us how society acted during the roaring 20’s. He provides us with views

into worlds of love, money, power, and the moral blindness of the time by

using symbols with everyday objects and occurrences.

You Might Also Like
x

Hi!
I'm Alejandro!

Would you like to get a custom essay? How about receiving a customized one?

Check it out