The Great Gatsby Color

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” is a story based in the early twentieth century. In the 1920’s, there was a big distinction between the “old wealth” of Americans, inherited money, and the “new wealth” of hard workers who had to work their way up in the rankings. “The Great Gatsby” is told by a neutral character Nick Carraway. In the novel, colors are assigned to characters to signify something similar to a certain race. With race, comes different social standings, stereotypes and opportunities. In “The Great Gatsby,” although not a novel about race, it is most certainly a novel about class distinction and the separation of wealth. Through color distinction, Fitzgerald individualizes his characters, which demonstrates their class;

Considering he uses Daisy to represent this color, it can be assumed that white equals wealth. For example, when Gatsby says that Daisy’s voice is “full of money” (120), Nick furthers that analysis by saying that Daisy is “ … High in a white palace the king’s daughter … “ (120). By calling Daisy the “king’s daughter”, Nick is letting the reader assume that Daisy is equal to royalty in some ways which suggests wealth. Also, the Buchanan’s mansion in East Egg is described as “ … a cheerful red-and-white Georgian Colonial mansion … “ (6). The village of East Egg is already known to be wealthy, specifically coming from old wealth. Daisy’s house being white is a direct comparison to the wealth in East Egg. In opposition to this, Gatsby’s house is described by Nick as “ … a factual imitation of some Hôtel de Ville in Normandy … “ (5). Fitzgerald uses the word “imitation” to show Gatsby’s determination to appear as if he was from old money. It is also significant that Gatsby was imitating a building in France where a lot of the wealth of old money comes from. Similarly, Fitzgerald compares the clothing using the color white to show the distinction between old and new money. For example, Daisy and Jordan, both coming from old money are mostly described wearing white while Gatsby’s shirts are described as “ … shirts with stripes and scrolls and plaids in coral and apple-green and lavender and

Gatsby can change his yellow assignment to gold when trying to impress Daisy. For example, when Gatsby is meeting Daisy for the first time since they were dating, he wears a “ … gold-colored tie … “ (84). Also, while Daisy is touring Gatsby’s house his bedroom is described as “ … the simplest room of all - except where the dresser was garnished with a toilet set of pure dull gold” (91). This switch from yellow to gold shows that Gatsby does have wealth, but it is not completely genuine. He is only using these gold appearances to impress Daisy, not because he is actually a classy man from old money. In comparison, Tom and Gatsby switch cars when they go to the Plaza; Tom suggests to Gatsby, “Well, you take my coupe and let me drive your car to town” (121). This switch in power controls who had possession of Daisy at the time. Since Gatsby had the power in Tom’s blue car, he had possession of Daisy for the moment while Tom is with Jordan and Nick in Gatsby’s yellow car. The role reversal did not last long, however, Tom ends up getting Daisy and she never sees Gatsby again after the day at the Plaza. Gatsby is driving his yellow car on the way home when he loses Daisy, which is basically the end of Jay Gatsby. He lives his whole life trying to win Daisy over, and when the chase is finally over, so is his