Examples Of Allusions In The Great Gatsby

Allusions to Christ or other aspects of religion are found in literature all throughout history. There are many different reasons why authors tie in these elements of religion. It could be to provide characterization or help provide reasoning and explanation for the overall theme. Two well known authors do this in some of their most famous pieces: Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. In their novels, The Old Man and the Sea and The Great Gatsby, the two authors provide many Christian allusions using diction, symbols, and characters. The reasons however, may be for different purposes. In Hemingway's novel, The Old Man and the Sea, the author uses a single character in particular to show Christian allusions, Santiago. In the novel, Santiago is an old man who’s spent his whole life working as a fisherman off of Havana, Cuba. Santiago

In the novels, there are both similarities and differences of why the authors made religious allusions. In The Great Gatsby Jay often looks at the green light at the end of the Buchanan’s dock. Similarity, in The Old Man and the Sea when Santiago is being towed by the fish farther and farther of the coast, he looks back at the lights of Havana. These lights are to represent hope and a safe haven for these characters. Both the characters look to these in hope of a better future, one with the love of their life, one as a successful fisherman. This symbol also relates to the “light at the end of the tunnel” which many christians believe in as heaven. Both represent a hope for a better future, and that is why it is used. The one main difference between the two christian allusions in each novel is the reason behind use of the allusions. In The Old Man and the Sea, the allusion is made to show how Santiago is a teacher and an example to the young boy. In The Great Gatsby however, the allusion is made to show how God is always watching and sees