Color Symbolism In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Eli Jensen

3/23/23

Ap lit

In "The Great Gatsby," colors play a massive role in representing different themes and symbols throughout the novel. The colors white, yellow, green, and grey all hold significant meanings in the story, representing ideas such as purity, materialism, the American Dream, and moral decay. These colors are used to convey deeper messages about the characters and foreshadow who they truly are. highlighting the societal norms, old versus new money and values of the era. Through the use of color symbolism, Fitzgerald explores the complex relationships between vapitalism, wealth, power, and morality in the roaring twenties.

The color white is a symbol of purity and innocence, which is used to contrast the corruption

One such character is Daisy Buchanan, who is often seen wearing yellow clothing and surrounded by yellow decor. This is emphasized when Gatsby describes the first time he saw Daisy, saying, "She was dressed in white, and had a little white roadster...but I didn't hear the car. It shot suddenly from among the trees and bushes like a silver arrow...and then the chauffeur...blurred into yellow" (79). This description shows how Daisy is surrounded by a world of material possessions, represented by the yellow of the chauffeur's uniform. Another character associated with the color yellow is Tom Buchanan, who represents the old money aristocracy. He wears a yellow polo shirt during a pivotal scene in the novel, where he confronts Gatsby about his affair with Daisy. This yellow shirt symbolizes his superiority and arrogance, as well as his belief that wealth and status are the only things that matter. As Nick Carraway observes, "The juxtaposition of these two remarks was startling. '" (112). Tom's dismissive attitude towards Gatsby highlights the materialistic and shallow nature of his character, which is also represented by the color yellow. the color yellow is a powerful symbol of materialism and the pursuit of a higher social class in "The Great Gatsby." It

Grey is often used to describe the characters and settings that are associated with the wealthy elite, such as Tom and Daisy Buchanan, who are described as having "hard, clean edges" and "cold, uninterested eyes" (7). The Buchanan's luxurious mansion, with its "gleaming white" exterior and "towering" columns, is also described as having a "grey-green" aura that suggests a lack of vitality and warmth (11). Furthermore, the character of George is often associated with the color grey. He is described as "spiritless" and "anemic," with "ashes of tragedy" in his eyes (25). His garage, where he spends much of his time, is also described as "grey and dismal" (26). George is a tragic figure who represents the consequences of the pursuit of wealth and social status. He is ultimately destroyed by the corrupt and immoral behavior of the wealthy elite. The color grey is also used to describe the Valley of Ashes, which is a symbol of the moral decay and spiritual emptiness of the wealthy class. The narrator describes it as "a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens, where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke" (23). The color grey is used to describe the landscape, emphasizing its bleakness and hopelessness. The ash-grey men who work in the valley are also described as "already crumbling" and "dimly" moving through the