Essay On The Color Green In The Great Gatsby

Drew Cabral The American Experience Mr. Connolly May 1, 2024 Boats Against the Current: The Facade of the American Dream During the midst of the early twentieth century, millions of impoverished victims aspired to become something great, perhaps even something unattainable. Shooting for the stars created an unrealistic and idealistic facade of the American dream, resulting in these escapists to feel even more hopeless and desperate. The American dream fantasy that was displayed throughout the nation was superficial and not as it seemed. Furthermore, these dreamers focused on only the rare success stories of the self-made millionaires, disregarding the practical reality of their unattainable imagination. This belief arose during the “Roaring

The color green is often associated with money, hope, and prosperity. Fitzgerald employs green elements throughout the story, typically when writing about Gatsby, to emphasize his desire for his American dream. The green light on the Buchanan’s dock also likely symbolizes capitalism, the fuel behind the American dream, which is the driving force behind Gatsby’s goal of capturing Daisy. Lastly, a green light suggests forward movement, in this case literally as a beacon to guide sailors to port, but also metaphorically as an enchanted object to help motivate and take positive steps towards his American dream. Continually, Gatsby’s false imagination of Daisy leads him to set unreachable expectations for his first interaction with her: “There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy tumbled short of his dreams—not through her own fault, but because of the colossal vitality of his illusion. It had gone beyond her, beyond everything. [...] it couldn’t be over-dreamed—that voice was a deathless song” (95-96). Gatsby spent the last five years waiting for this reunion, and then

On that day, an impoverished clam-digger and salmon-fisher would soon become one of the richest men in the East. Fitzgerald again utilizes the torn green jersey as a symbol of hope and optimism for Jay Gatsby as his new self-identity begins. Furthermore, Gatsby neglected his past, convinced he was a “son of God" and was bound for a better future: “The truth was that Jay Gatsby of West Egg, Long Island, sprang from his Platonic conception of himself. He was a son of God [...] and he must be about His Father’s business, the service of a vast, vulgar, and meretricious beauty” (98). Throughout the novel, Fitzgerald connects Gatsby to a Jesus-like figure, destined for greatness. Gatsby asserts that he is a “son of God” and is elevated in society. This delusion is what started his idea of the American dream. His egotistical mindset and ignorance influences his chances of successfully getting with Daisy, and being a Jesus-like figure, he sets himself up for tragedy with overconfidence, perhaps being his hamartia. Jay Gatsby is often portrayed as a Romantic figure trying to thrive in a natural world. His delusional dream is unsuitable and unsustainable for the harsh, toxic environment that surrounds him. Both him and his surroundings are placed to blame because his overambition cannot be tolerated in the seemingly utopian society of the gilded East and West Egg. Gatsby couldn’t decipher when to