Parkinson's Complex Patterns In The Great Gatsby

Most people associate patterns with artwork, however, they are also common within novels. In Kathleen Parkinson’s novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald; The Great Gatsby, she voices her opinion on the organization of the novel, The Great Gatsby. Parkinson’s suspects that the author, F. Scott Fitzgerald, wrote this novel based on patterns. Her second chapter, “A Novel of Intricate Patterns” reveals Fitzgerald’s complex patterns by presenting specific times, locations, and imagery throughout Fitzgerald's novel. Parkinson’s believes that time in The Great Gatsby is used to create an uncertainty for the reader. Fitzgerald begins the novel in the early summer of 1922 and ends it about 4 months later. Skipping close to 20 years of the characters lives emphasizes

Fitzgerald creates images with the locations in order to give the readers meaning to the locations. Parkinson speaks about four recurring locations that Fitzgerald emphasizes throughout the novel, the West Egg, East Egg, New York, and the Valley of Ashes. Three of the four compare in wealth, while the fourth is the face of poor. The West Egg contains people who earned money by their own personal successes. It represents vulgarity and formlessness. Fitzgerald makes Gatsby a lot like the boss of the West Egg, his mansion centers the entire location and his parties are what everyone goes too. The East Egg is made up of people who inherited money from their families. Fitzgerald uses this location to build a negative opinion about the people of this egg. It represents rules of formative and tradition. Many of the homeowners are exclusive, opulent, and self regarding. Fitzgerald used these two locations to show the personalities of the residents. New York is the people magnet of this novel. New York also represents wealth, but also life. It contains bright lights and colors drawing characters to this location. Fitzgerald uses this location to reveal truths and big emotions of characters. Lastly, Fitzgerald uses the Valley of Ashes or also called the Valley of the Shadow of Death as the grim underside of all three locations. This location is significant because it shows the isolation of this

Fitzgerald uses imagery to show how objects and nature contributes to the characters and plot. Ghost and Death represents betrayals and violent deaths. Fitzgerald makes deaths expected in his novel. This creates the haunted mood for the readers. The haunted mood Fitzgerald wanted to create is associated with ghostly things including wealth, dreams, and Gatsby himself. From the very first page of Fitzgerald's novel, Gatsby spoken in past tense, making readers assume he has passed. Motor cars are associated with violence and potential death, wealth, restlessness, and power. Cars becomes a metaphor to other people that characterizes such careless people who are insulated by their wealth from the reality of others lives. Fitzgerald ends the novel with cars being shown as the cause of death. Nature is an image that Fitzgerald created to show the beauty of things. The flower is the name itself, Daisy. Her name is incorporated with gold and white to represent innocence and clean. Locations are described by different flowers based on beauty and wealth. Flower imagery is significant because after a while, flowers pass, just like characters reveal their true selves and intentions throughout the novel. Birds are another way Fitzgerald shows characters. Sound of voices are compared to birds singing. Just like a poet, Fitzgerald creates out of the birds song an ecstatic moment that seems to transcend pain, death, and time. This is