Comparing Color Symbolism In The Great Gatsby And The Scarlet Letter

The Great Gatsby, a famous work by author F. Scott Fitzgerald was a jazz age novel written in 1925 following the move of Nick Carraway in search of his American dream. Living in the outskirts of New York, Carraway finds himself entangled in the love affair of Jay Gatsby, a mysterious millionaire and his cousin Daisy Buchanan. Portrayed as an eager character attracted to Gatsby’s extravagant lifestyle, Fitzgerald incorporated themes such as the world of the wealthy, the pursuit of the American dream, impossible love and tragedy. The most notable of all literary devices that are incorporated into the Great Gatsby, however; is the use of color symbolism throughout the entirety of the novel. The Scarlet Letter, another highly acknowledged fictitious

Hawthorne incorporates thematic strains such as sin, guilt, the nature of evil, and the role of society. Similarly to The Great Gatsby, Hawthorne uses color symbolism in his novel The Scarlet Letter. It can be argued that while both texts The Great Gatsby and The Scarlet Letter share superficial similarities such as their use of color symbolism to create a social commentary on the mentality of people in their society, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses the commentary to relate to his own life contextually in 20th century America and create the themes of the American dream, wealth, impossible love, and tragedy, while Hawthorne, respectfully, utilizes his commentary on society to highlight themes such as sin, identity, judgement within Puritan society, and

While Hawthorne uses red and gold to symbolize the passion of protagonist