Symbolism In The Great Gatsby

Ava Latoria
Mrs. Mennenoh
English 3 Honors
10 March 2023
Desire for the Dream The American Dream gives people a false sense of hope and positivity for the future, but, in the long run, the American dream only draws people back to the past. James Gatsby, formerly Jay Gatz, illegally inherits an abundance of wealth so that he can live his American Dream. Before he gets deployed in the war, Gatsby meets his true love, Daisy Buchannan. Since she is from a wealthy family, Gatsby decides to raise his social status by illegally receiving money, so that he can get on her level. When Gatsby goes back to Daisy, she is married to Tom, therefore making it hard to get back together with him. Gatsby does not give up, and he does everything in his effort

In The Great Gatsby, the setting is used to communicate that the American Dream is unrealistic and a false sense of hope. Acting as a barrier to separate West Egg from New York City, the Valley of Ashes symbolizes the downfall of the American Dream by showing indulgences of the rich, and hopelessness of the poor. By using strong imagery to describe the destruction and decay in the Valley of Ashes, Fitzgerald describes the moral and environmental decline resulting from capitalism. The Valley of Ashes is described as “a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens; where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and, finally, with a transcendent effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air” (Fitzgerald 23). Doctor T.J. Eckleburg’s brooding eyes symbolize God’s eyes looking down and judging the moral downfall of the American society. These eyes also show that the American Dream is unachievable and can change someone’s actions and how they view the world. On many billboards, Doctor T.J. Eckleburg’s eyes ominously observe The Valley of Ashes, from “above the gray land and the spasms of bleak dust

Nick, Gatsby’s neighbor, experiences the American Dream second handedly, through Gatsby and his strong desire for Daisy. While Nick never has an opportunity to experience the dream for himself, he believes that Gatsby’s American Dream is just a repetition of the past, giving Gatsby false hope that he can spend his life with the woman he desires. Nick disagrees with Gatsby’s pursuit of the past because he thinks that it is impossible to recreate the past. Reflecting on Gatsby’s devotion to Daisy, Nick realizes that Gatsby wants to “recover something, some idea of himself perhaps, that [has] gone into loving Daisy. His life [has] been confused and disordered since then” (Fitzgerald 110). With his high social status and inherited wealth, Tom Buchannan lives the dream that many people, like Gatsby, long for. Besides all of Tom’s riches and his marriage to Daisy, he is not satisfied, and he takes advantage of his fortune by having a public affair with Myrtle Wilson. After Myrtle’s death, Tom looks for condolences from Nick by explaining how heartbroken he is, showing that he is self centered and has no remorse for his actions (Fitzgerald 178). With Gatsby’s newly found wealth, he hopes that he can win Daisy back, and pursue a relationship with her, similarly to their unfinished relationship from five years prior. Even