ipl-logo

How Does Fitzgerald Use Symbols In The Great Gatsby

840 Words4 Pages

Symbols in books and novels can help add support to a book or display more insight into the stories being told. Symbols can be placed by authors to further a plot, or in most cases, to develop a theme. The novel The Great Gatsby, which was written by the author F. Scott Fitzgerald, contains many themes that can be supported by the usage of symbols. One theme that stands out the most for being aided by symbols is the theme of love. Love is portrayed multiple different ways in the novel and it can always be supported by symbolism in some way. This theme of love is supported by symbols throughout the entire book including the green light on the dock, Gatsby’s pristine house, and the eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg. Throughout the entire novel of The Great Gatsby, the reader follows the journey of Jay Gatsby and his quest to reunite with his long-lost love Daisy. This love Gatsby has for Daisy is symbolized in different ways throughout the entire book, but his love is distinguished the most by one object in particular: The green light at the end of the dock. One night after Nick returns home from Daisy’s house, Nick sees an abnormal scene: a man standing at the end of his neighbor’s dock. The man had just been standing …show more content…

After Gatsby won over Daisy, his entire persona and how he viewed things changed. He loved Daisy so much, that if she did not like something, Gatsby got rid of it. Gatsby now “...revalued everything in his house according to the measure of response it drew from her well-loved eyes...” (91 Fitzgerald). Gatsby’s quick changes and pristine house for Daisy symbolizes love in the way that Gatsby will do anything to make her happy; including changing everything he worked so hard for. The love Gatsby displays shows an extreme amount of loyalty and shows that he is willing to do anything for this woman. Another symbol which adds to the theme of love is the eyes of Doctor T.J.

Show More
Related
636 Words | 3 Pages

Symbolism can easily be unnoticed or too complex for the average reader because they often hold a deeper meaning and require deeper thought. In the novel, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald shines symbolism throughout. Characters throughout The Great Gatsby buy love and affection through money. This becomes apparent when Nick moves to the rich district of West Egg and meets a guy named Gatsby. Upon getting to know Gatsby he learns that Gatsby has built his whole life around building a so-called fancy lifestyle all to impress a girl named Daisy.

Read More
649 Words | 3 Pages

The Great Gatsby Symbolism Essay Jay Gatsby’s mansion was inspired by a couple of real life mansions, the Oheka castle in Huntington, New York was one of the mansions that inspired Gatsby’s house (24 Great Gatsby Facts, Fact 11). The Great Gatsby is about an extremely wealthy and mysterious man who nobody knows much about also nobody knows how he came to be wealthy either. The title of the book is the name of one of the main characters called Jay Gatsby. Symbolism is shown throughout the book, symbolism is the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities.

Read More
790 Words | 4 Pages

One symbol is the green light. At the end of Tom and Daisy’s dock there is a green light. The green light can be seen from Gatsby’s backyard. Now to Gatsby, who lives across from them, this is his hope and dreams. He hosts these parties to see of Daisy come, to impress her.

Read More
450 Words | 2 Pages

Exotic, fascinating, and addicting are just some of many colorful words that could describe Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. This enticing novel has an exceptionally gripping plot and alluring characters. This is due to the language in the novel, however to me one of the most interesting aspects of this story has to be its use of symbols. From the the valley of ashes to the west and east egg, symbols show up everywhere and they are what strike my interest in the novel while also adding depth and charm to it as well.

Read More
379 Words | 2 Pages

Symbolism in The Great Gatsby The Great Gatsby uses its fair share of symbolism. The author, F. Scott Fitzgerald, uses symbolism to help communicate the meanings behind the colors used or visuals given to help the reader uncover the underlying message. The reader begins with meeting our main character, Nick Caraway, and hearing about his neighbor, Gatsby,’s life from his perspective. There are many different ways Fitzgerald uses symbolism.

Read More
543 Words | 3 Pages

Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby”, has a considerable amount of symbolism throughout the entire book. The symbols in the book intensify the main development of the characters in the story, create a well-structured plot, and provide the reader with endless themes. Every time Gatsby stares across the water, he can’t help but notice and admire the luminous flash of green light from Daisy’s dock. With each flash reminding him of the slim, yet joyous memories that he had with daisy five years ago. When we notice the color green, we think “to go”.

Read More
1114 Words | 5 Pages

To begin, The Great Gatsby was written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It was published in 1925. It is a fiction novel that tells the truly tragic story of Jay Gatsby, a hopeful romantic who chased the American Dream, a self made millionaire in love with a wealthy married woman. This story follows Nick as he watches the treacherous tail of Jay Gatsby. Fitzgerald is a brilliant writer who loves the use of symbols.

Read More
519 Words | 3 Pages

Symbolism can be found in every book. For example, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses symbolism throughout The Great Gatsby. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a novel about a man named Jay Gatsby. Jay Gatsby, a mysterious millionaire, is obsessed with reuniting with his former lover Daisy Buchanan. Narrated by Nick Carraway, the book takes place during the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City.

Read More
943 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout the history of literature, it is known that the greatest works tell more than just a story. Most of those great works of literature have symbolism. Through symbolism, the reader can understand better and enjoy the book more. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s book The Great Gatsby there are various scenes that include symbols. Two major things that are understood through the symbols in the novel are hope and the similarities with Christianity.

Read More
696 Words | 3 Pages

The Great Gatsby What’s your favorite color? Does that color define who your are, and your success in life because in the Great Gatsby, green and gold is all that matters and the more you have the more important you are. Symbolism plays a major role in The Great Gatsby, it is the most powerful way to gain an understanding of a characters feelings and hidden messages the author is trying to reveal. The most significant symbolism in this novel is color symbolism, the author chooses to express the characters lives in many different colors such as green and gold.

Read More
1317 Words | 6 Pages

Scott Fitzgerald shows many points in Gatsby’s actions and words that the reader can decide how he really felt for Daisy. It’s up to the reader’s imagination to see what mindset Gatsby has and whether his love for Daisy was either obsession, affection, or objectification. The Great Gatsby is a perfect example of how love and lust can drive a man crazy, whether it’s Tom, Gatsby, or Wilson. When Nick ends with, “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past” (189). Showed that no matter how hard Gatsby fought for Daisy’s heart and his American Dream, he was pushed back and had to start over, getting closer and closer, but he never got to fulfill his dream, and that’s the way life goes for many

Read More
1243 Words | 5 Pages

In life many people unintentionally associate color with emotions, sounds, situations and feelings. In the realistic fiction novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, color symbolism plays an essential role in the general plot scheme of the novel. Colors are used in this novel to depict the feelings and emotions that the characters throughout the story experience. In this novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald writes of a man named Gatsby who is in love with a woman named Daisy. Gatsby is on a constant mission to woo Daisy back to him and away from her new husband.

Read More
610 Words | 3 Pages

At the end of The Great Gatsby, Nick reflects upon Gatsby’s life and pursuit on the beach where “the green light” at the end of Daisy’s dock can be seen. As a significant metaphor, “the green light” represents Gatsby’s dream which guides him to keep pursuing wealth and social status, while the position of the light, the distant and inaccessible Daisy’s dock, indicates the close connection between Gatsby’s unreal dream and Daisy, and as well the disillusionment of the dream. In the last three paragraphs, Nick explains the disillusionment of Gatsby’s dream, “He had come a long way to this blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it” (162). Gatsby has always strived for his ambition and dream.

Read More
1245 Words | 5 Pages

The impact of the striking settings in the Great Gatsby can overwhelm the reader at first, with its flowery descriptions and cryptic imagery. However, when the settings are fully understood, there is a symbolic meaning Fitzgerald is trying to convey through the settings of the places that are visited within the Great Gatsby. There is a realization when the reader looks deeply into the reality of the 1920s through Fitzgerald’s book. Fitzgerald uses the characterization and symbolism of the settings in the book to convey the theme of how the glitter and glamor of the 1920s overshadows the deeper ugliness that hides itself below the surface. Fitzgerald uses the Valley of Ashes to represent the despair and destruction felt from the extremely

Read More
1013 Words | 5 Pages

The green light at the end of Daisy’s dock resembles her and Gatsby’s future with each other. When Nick had seen him with his arms stretched towards the light, it is a representation of the achievements Gatsby wants to obtain, such as a life with Daisy. Near the end of the novel, Nick explains, “Possibly it had occurred to him that the colossal significance of that light had now vanished forever” (93). The light diminishing represented Gatsby’s hopes being destructed. Now that his hopes have vanished, a void abrupts his dreams.

Read More

More about How Does Fitzgerald Use Symbols In The Great Gatsby

Open Document