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Valley Of Ashes Symbolism In The Great Gatsby

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Money doesn't buy happiness. This is the case for many in The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Nick Carraway is the narrator. He tells about his time in New York, as he lives on the west egg next to Gatsby. During this time Nick learns that his cousin Daisy knows Gatsby. Throughout the story Nick tells the readers about life during the 1920’s. Fitzgerald uses symbols such as the green light, valley of ashes, and Gatsby himself to represent that the American dream is unattainable. To begin the first time Nick sees Gatsby is when he is extending his arms out towards a green (21). To many in the 1920’s the color green stood for money, growth, or the future. To Gatsby the color green is his American dream. The reason Gatsby is extending …show more content…

The valley of ashes can be described as “A fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens;... of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air (23).” The barrenness of this place shows the failure of the American dream. The people who live in the valley of ashes all want to leave, but have no way of doing so. Two characters George and Myrtle Wilson live here in their car garage. Neither of the characters are happy with their life. Myrtle even cheats on George so she can fulfill her dream of being rich, or at least feeling rich. As much as George wants to provide for her he can not. The dust of the ashes has settled on him bringing him lack of life and hope. When George figures out that Myrtle had been cheating on him he locks her up in hopes that he will have enough time to figure out how to move them west (136). This plan all falls apart when Myrtle runs out into the road and gets hit by a car (137). This kills both George’s dreams of providing for Myrtle and Myrtle’s dream of finally being wealthy. The valley of ashes collects more ashes as Myrtle is hit by the

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F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby to represent the roaring twenties lifestyle and the ever changing American Dream during the 1920s. Symbolism plays a drastic role in bringing the essay into a more perspective view for readers by growing characters, creating suspension and motivating the reader to continue reading. The Great Gatsby contains large amounts of symbolism, making it one of America's most loved novels. Fitzgerald uses different concepts of symbolism by integrating weather, location, colors and signs into the book by playing out relatable situations, for example the tension during hot weather. The valley of ashes played a very significant role in the book The Great Gatsby by creating a definition of the classes.

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But in the end she dies because she wanted to be with her lover instead of being with her husband. In the book Myrtle is living with her husband in the Valley of Ashes who owns a Gas business. They don’t have much and isn’t really doing to well so myrtle sets out and finds herself a rich man to

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Alyssa Kaufmann Dr. B English 10 15 March 2023 Symbolism and the Power of the Past F Scott Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby as a commentary on society post World War I. Within the novel, it addresses the idea of the American Dream, social class structure, and the power of the past. Some of the most potent examples that symbolize the power of the past are Daisy as a character, the eyes of Dr. Eckleburg, and the Valley of Ashes. Daisy represents the significant power of the past over identity, and the future. She and her actions are the precipice of the entire plot.

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In contrast to her husband and the rest of the people in the valley of ashes, Myrtle has worth and dreams. Her husband has “white ashen dust veil[ing] his dark suit and his pale hair [veils] everything in the vicinity--except his wife, who [moves] closer to Tom” (26). George has lost all hope of a better life, but Myrtle is not a part of this dust leaven place because she still hopes to achieve this American Dream of being rich which is shown as she moves closer to Tom who has achieved it. But having a carefree life like Tom can only come by hurting others. Myrtle finds this when with one last chance to go after Tom, she and her dream are killed by Tom’s wife.

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Myrtle’s death in the Great Gatsby is the death of the common man, in the great adulterated mirage of the 1920s that is the American Dream. Myrtle is first introduced as the wife of a poor engineer in the valley of ashes. She is another one of the many people who are in the dark underside of the American Dream. She desperately tries to escape her spot from the lower class living living in the Valley of Ashes by associating with the upper class as much as possible. Fitzgerald describes her apartment as “―a small living room, a small dining room, a small bedroom and a bath.

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George Wilson is a pitiful character who craves a lot of sympathy. He is clearly desperate to make his wife happy. Sadly he is not capable to keep her happy. He really loves Myrtle, but is unable to buy her a wonderful life she desires, a life of comfort and wealth. They lived ashy place literally it was called The Valley of Ashes, surrounded by gray, grim decay: a symbol of their terrible existence.

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Unfortunately, George’s hardworking and dedicated personality isn’t enough for Myrtle, so she decides to have an affair with East-Egger Tom Buchanan. Tom blatantly abuses both his relationship with George and his relationship with Myrtle throughout the entire book, seemingly stringing them along and using them whenever he deems necessary. “‘You see,’ cried Catherine triumphantly. She lowered her voice again. ‘It’s really his wife that’s keeping them apart.

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