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Homes In The Great Gatsby

1294 Words6 Pages

In literature and in real life, a person’s home can reveal fundamental truths about them. In The Great Gatsby however, the homes of the characters go far beyond that. They are not only the main settings of the novel but reflect the characters’ status in society as well as their desires, goals, and personalities. Through descriptions of the houses in the novel, the author can reveal things about the characters without needing to over describe the characters themselves, as well as foreshadow events in the plot. The house vary like the characters, representing their different classes and social statuses. The houses of Nick, Tom and Daisy, Gatsby, and the Wilsons not only represent themselves, but Fitzgerald's overall themes of the novel. They …show more content…

“The only building in sight was a small block of yellow brick sitting on the edge of the waste land, a sort of compact Main Street ministering to it and contiguous to absolutely nothing” (28). The apartment is simple, because the Wilson’s are simple people, living apart from the drama of the two eggs. The closeness of the Wilson’s home to their business represents George’s dedication to his work, while Myrtle sees it a as constant burden from which to escape. They live in the valley of ashes, a place ruined by the pollution and excesses of the rich, just as the Wilson’s lives will be ruined by the rich. Their home lies under the watchful painted eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg. They are God-fearing people-and the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg represents the eyes of God. The eyes sit in judgment over the destruction the rich created in the valley of ashes where the Wilsons live, which has been rendered gray and lifeless by industrial pollution, and the destruction the upper class characters will do to the Wilsons themselves. Similarly, the drab grayness of the valley of ashes represents the gray morality they live in. The valley and ashes and their residents bear the burdens of the rich and reflect the social theme of decay and corruption in the 1920s that the pursuit of wealth and pleasure brings. A world away from their dreary apartment in the valley of ashes, is “a long white cake of apartment houses” where Tom and Myrtle have their affair (32). It is a reference to a wedding cake, and indeed the house and the affair represent romance, excitement, and sophistication Myrtle like a bride on her wedding day. Likewise, they play at being a married couple by getting a dog, hosting parties, and ordering around their

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1258 Words | 6 Pages

1. The Valley of Ashes is the farm land or almost like a wasteland filled with ashes that separates the wealth of the East and West Egg Village. 2. “The eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are blue and gigantic — their irises are one yard high. They look out of no face, but, instead, from a pair of enormous yellow spectacles which pass over a nonexistent nose” (Fitzgerald 23).

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102 Words | 1 Pages

Moreover, Fitzgerald continues the farming analogy by bringing in vivid descriptions of the valley “where the ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens.” The ideas defined are burn in to the reader’s conscious with the explicit disgust evoking analogy. The ashes are found just like the large fields of wheat that were formally found all around. The site is surely a recognizable one for most, but instead the astonishing view of the wheat waving around is replaced with the windy dusty fields. The burrows are mounted with the plague causing agents familiar to those acquainted with the

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999 Words | 4 Pages

Gatsby's house and possessions are both extraordinary and show how much wealth Gatsby has. For example, on page 7 it says, "It was a factual imitation of some Hôtel de Ville in Normandy, with a tower on one side." This example shows how luxurious and high status his mansion is because it looks like a fancy hotel from Europe. Additionally, on page 99 it says, "He took out a pile of shirts and began throwing them, one by one before us, shirts of sheer linen and thick silk. "

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1216 Words | 5 Pages

Nick says Gatsby’s house was a “factual imitation of some Hotel de Ville in Normandy”(5). Gatsby copies classical French architecture for his own home because he knows it would be pleasing to others who liked the grandeur. However, Gatsby never really wanted the lavish house, and was satisfied with keeping his personal bedroom “the simplest room of all”(). Because he came from a lower class, Gatsby’s true nature is to live with very little. His house is designed to appeal to society and create a link to their favor.

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1353 Words | 6 Pages

The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, tells a story about social structures and how impossible it is to achieve the American Dream. The story takes place in the villages of East Egg, West Egg, and New York City in the 1920s. It depicts the rigid class system of the time and how hard it was to move up in status. Narrated by Nick Carraway, one of the main characters in the book, who witnesses the withering of the American Dream for Jay Gatsby and the shallowness of the upper class. Each character in the book has a unique personality, characterized by descriptions of where they lived.

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1076 Words | 5 Pages

Jay Gatsby is the character around which The Great Gatsby is written. He represents a whole hoard of people who recognize the opportunity to move from the rural life to high society. At a early age, he had a high opinion of himself which led him to depart from his impoverished family and starts the journey to a new life. Fitzgerald effetely proves that its possible to detach from the hopelessly poor, “His parents were shiftless and unsuccessful farm people — his imagination had never really accepted them as his parents at all” Gatsby sought out something that his parents could never

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1169 Words | 5 Pages

Gatsby travels back to the first time he saw Daisy at her grand home and goes into vivid detail of her house, “There was a ripe mystery about it, a hint of bedrooms upstairs more beautiful and cool than the other bedrooms of gay and radiant activities taking place through its corridors and of romances that were not musty and laid away already in lavender but fresh and breathing and redolent of this year’s shining motor cars and of dancers whose flowers were scarcely withered”. Gatsby goes into the nitty-gritty details of Daisy’s home, calling it ‘beautiful’, ‘gay and radiant’ and ‘breathing’ in order to demonstrate how symbolic the home is to him. This is the first taste of the upper class that Gatsby has ever experienced and serves as the true epitome of wealth to Gatsby. He falls in love with the newness of her home and the activities of the rich. Because of Gatsby’s love for the home, when he sees Daisy become consumed by her own luxuries, he feels betrayed; “She vanished into her rich house, into her rich full life, leaving Gatsby-nothing”.

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870 Words | 4 Pages

Even though “The Great Gatsby” was written nearly a century ago, many of the themes it has can still be seen in today’s society. During the time the book was written, the economy was in a condition of prosperity because the war ended which lead to technological advances and large profits for businesses. As a result, the dynamics of society changed also. The main focus of the media were on people with fame and wealth. This shows the interests and values of what most people had in the U.S. back then.

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2065 Words | 9 Pages

Throughout the novel, Gatsby displays his riches through his mansion, expensive car, and many other things. Nick even describes how extravagant Gatsby’s house is, saying, “The one on my right was a colossal affair by any standard—it was a factual imitation of some Hôtel de Ville in Normandy, with a tower on one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy, and a marble swimming pool, and more than forty acres of lawn and garden” (Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby 5). As Nick describes, Gatsby’s house is very large and modern, which shows his affluence. Before he became rich and privileged, Gatsby was James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy who dreamed of becoming wealthy. This dream led Gatsby to do crazy things in order to make money, but it worked out for him in the end.

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658 Words | 3 Pages

T.J. Eckleburg illustrates the 1920’s and Gatsby’s mansion beautifully as he compares Gatsby’s mansion to a house of cards, one blow from caving in. He stated “that if one brick was removed the whole library was liable to collapse.” (50). Ultimately, the inevitable collapse occurs, as Gatsby loses Daisy and dies. The culture of the wealthy Americans represented in The Great Gatsby (and 1920’s) was defined mainly by consumerism and excessive material wealth.

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751 Words | 4 Pages

In many literary works, the wealthy are generally depicted as pretentious or cruel and authors tend to portray their personalities through various methods. In his work The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses literary techniques to distinctly characterize the wealthy. Doing so helps him communicate the work’s theme on the soulless nature of the affluent. Fitzgerald conveys his message by incorporating juxtaposition, effective diction, and suiting moods with his characters.

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528 Words | 3 Pages

During election seasons, someone who didn't know any better would think that the only DC real estate that is ever available or worth getting into is at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Talk to sports fans in the area and they will tell you that the hot new DC real estate is the new Nationals Park in the Southeast section of the city. But the overall reality is that there's a whole lot more to DC real estate than simply historic and cultural centers and tourist destinations. Whether you're visiting the Washington, DC area or you already live in the metro DC area, chances are good that you have a sense that DC real estate has a lot to offer. You can't ride the Metro without seeing dozens of advertisements announcing the construction of new condominium

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924 Words | 4 Pages

The valley of ashes also symbolizes the difficulties of the poor, like George Wilson, who live among the dirty ashes and lose their vitality as a result. THE EYES OF DOCTOR T. J. ECKLEBURG Another dominant symbol within this novel is the billboard eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg which is in the middle of the valley of ashes, right next to Wilson’s garage staring at the waste that careless capitalism has

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1208 Words | 5 Pages

The Great Gatsby is a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and narrated by a man named Nick Carraway. This novel was written with the intent of showing the readers how morally corrupt the 1920s were. Throughout the novel, characters abandon their moral values for a materialistic lifestyle. The novel depicts a great picture of the roles men and women played in the 1920s. Even with the changing roles of men and women, they continued to rely heavily on whom they were married to and what social class they belonged to.

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773 Words | 4 Pages

Fitzgerald uses myriad symbols such as a valley of ashes, a billboard, and a green light across the bay from Gatsby’s mansion, to convey his themes and influence the plot. A valley of ashes is used to convey the theme of the inequality of wealth that was so widespread in the 1920s. Tom Buchanan, Daisy’s husband, and Nick Carroway go on a drive to visit Tom’s mistress. Myrtle lives in an apartment above her husband’s workshop, in the coal and ash covered mining town on the outskirts of New York City. Fitzgerald, in narrator Nick

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