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Values, Themes And Symbolism In The Great Gatsby

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The Great Gatsby GEOGRAPHY Throughout the novel, places and settings symbolize the various aspects of the 1920s American society that Fitzgerald depicts. East Egg represents the old aristocracy, West Egg the newly rich, the valley of ashes the moral and social decay of America, and New York City the dissolute, amoral quest for money and pleasure. Additionally, the East is connected to the moral decay and social cynicism of New York, while the West is connected to more traditional social values and ideals. Themes: The American Dream "Whereas the American Dream was once equated with certain principles of freedom, it is now equated with things. The American Dream has undergone a metamorphosis from principles to materialism." - John E. Nestler, …show more content…

Gatsby associates it with Daisy, and in Chapter 1 he reaches toward it in the darkness as a guiding light to lead him to his goal. Because Gatsby’s quest for Daisy is broadly associated with the American dream, the green light also symbolizes that more generalized ideal. In Chapter 9, Nick compares the green light to how America, rising out of the ocean, must have looked to early settlers of the new nation. THE VALLEY OF ASHES First introduced in Chapter 2, the valley of ashes between West Egg and New York City consists of a long stretch of desolate land created by the dumping of industrial ashes. It represents the moral and social decay that results from the dissolute pursuit of wealth, as the rich indulge themselves with regard for nothing but their own pleasure. The valley of ashes also symbolizes the difficulties of the poor, like George Wilson, who live among the dirty ashes and lose their vitality as a result. THE EYES OF DOCTOR T. J. ECKLEBURG Another dominant symbol within this novel is the billboard eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg which is in the middle of the valley of ashes, right next to Wilson’s garage staring at the waste that careless capitalism has

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Jesse Zapata 3/7/16 Ms. Pruitt Seminar Questions: The Great Gatsby 1. Fitzgerald uses setting to emphasize various aspects of his social classes in the novel. The Valley of Ashes is a dark place, and it is home to the poor, unfortunate lower class then was exploited during the 1920s. West Egg is tacky and looming, representing how many of the young millionaires (The "New Money") in the novel have found themselves suddenly rich and upper class without preparation. East Egg is just the opposite.

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1. It is the symbolism of the green light across the way as it pertains to Gatsbys reaching out to something better or something that he wishes to have. To him it represents a need in which he cannot obtain even with his vast wealth, friends and family. Even with all this there is still something missing. Something important.

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Dust is often found in abandoned, abused buildings which used to be used but have now been put aside. In The Great Gatsby, dust is found in the valley of ashes and other places where all ambitions have been lost. Fitzgerald uses the valley of ashes and dust to represent the ongoing theme that the American Dream of a money filled, carefree lifestyle can only be achieved on the backs of others. The valley of ashes represents the industry workers’ exploitation in the making of rich corporation leaders who have left their employees hopeless. In the valley, formally known as Queens, New York, “ashes take the forms of… men who move dimly and already crumbing through the powdery air” (23).

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There is a billboard that overlooks the Valley of Ashes, which is a very dark and dreary place in the novel. “They look out of no face but, instead, from a pair of enormous yellow spectacles which pass over a nonexistent nose,” (Fitzgerald 27). The glasses are yellow because they are looking over the wasteland of America and it is not good enough for gold. The color yellow may represent a lesser version of gold like when Fitzgerald mentions “two girls in twin yellow dresses who stopped at the foot of the steps,” (Fitzgerald 47). Gatsby sees these two girls as being too easy and they are not as good as Daisy or Jordan because they do not have the pizzazz.

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It symbolizes poverty, and the population of Manhattan that is not rich and self indulged in their personal lives. The Valley of Ashes is described as a dumping ground, Nick even explains how it’s “bounded on one side by a small foul river, and, when the drawbridge is up to let barges through, the passengers on waiting trains can stare at the dismal scene for as long as half an hour” (27). This is completely opposite to places like West Egg, where most of the novel is taken place. Everything is luxurious and fast paced, comparing these two places opens up many symbols in the reader's mind, like poverty and the fact that not every American at that time could live as Gatsby can, for instance.

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In the novel, the valley of ashes is symbolic of the American Dream because it represents the failures of society and mankind. When traveling back home, Nick often passes the valley of ashes and describes that, “This is a valley of ashes – 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” (23). Even though Gatsby achieved the American Dream and became successful, his values were ultimately corrupted by his greed and wealth in order to entice Daisy. In comparison to the valley of ashes, Gatsby’s physical surroundings begin to have superficial values making him hollow similarly to the crumbling valley. The valley of ashes, also demonstrates the oppression of the poor who are forced to live in a such a world where only the wealthy thrive.

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Tatiana Martinez 10/15/15 English 4 (period 8) ISA #3 Writing Some of the symbols in the novel “The Great Gatsby” connect with the valley of ashes that is introduced in chapter 2. The valley of ashes symbolize poverty, hopelessness and the lost hopes and dreams of people who have failed to live up to the American Dream.

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It’s a guiding light for Gatsby hence why he stares at it and reaches out as if to grab it. The Valley of the Ashes serves as another symbol for how Fitzgerald uses the American Dream to connect to his audience. The Valley of the Ashes in the Great Gatsby is an industrial area that when described in the story sounds depressing. The character’s cross along this path several times throughout the story and is where Myrtle and George Wilson live. The Valley of Ashes represents how the American Dream can lead to ugly consequences and Americas obsession with wealth.

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For the eggers, it appears to be a place you run away to for the rich, to forget about your problems. In The Valley of Ashes, there is an old billboard that is falling apart with giant eyes with glasses on it. This billboard represent how people invest objects with meaning, only to forget about it later. Gatsby tries desperately to fake status, even buying British shirts and claiming to have attended Oxford in an attempt to justify his position in society. Ultimately, the clash of the classes separate Gatsby and Daisy, and bonds her relationship with her husband, who is from the same class as she is.

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In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Nick finds himself emerged in the lavish lifestyle of the wealthy residing in either the East Egg or the West Egg. Grasping to the glamor of both Eggs and dividing them is the Valley of Ashes. This valley is the paragon for poverty that perfectly separates two worlds with only the eyes of God watching over it. Though Nick, Daisy, Gatsby, or Tom are never unfortunate enough to live in this alley unlike the Wilsons, the alley plays an important role in all of their lives. The alley can be seen to represent an impecunious lifestyle, bare the consequences of the world around it, and also muffle the screams of the superficiality dwelling in the Eggs by representing a failed American Dream.

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Fitzgerald uses personification and imagery to convey that the Valley of Ashes is a polluted area filled with ashes and dusts. It is also where many of the less fortunate, lower-class citizens live and work in the society. A literary device Fitzgerald uses is personification as he describes the motion of the cars driving through the place. He mentions, “Occasionally a line of grey cars crawls along an invisible track, gives out a ghastly creak, and comes to rest…” (Fitzgerald, 23).

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Francis Scott Fitzgerald was an amazing writer who lived during the Roaring 20’s and the Great Depression. Though he mostly wrote lone-standing books, he was an incredible and moving author. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novels were inspired by his wife and muse, Zelda Fitzgerald, and his books carried a lot of symbolism. Fitzgerald’s life was one of excess and luxury. The son of Mary McQuillan and Edward Fitzgerald (and a distant relative of Francis Scott Key, author of the Star-Spangled Banner), Edward Fitzgerald went to several schools as a child.

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The great Gatsby a story of many themes like power, betrayal, greed, the American dream, justice, etc. All these themes yet the most developed, important, one maybe the social stratum. The great Gatsby is know to be a master piece to show what life was like in America during the 1920s. The book my be a romantic book showcasing two lovers but that is not it moral or deepest theme in the book. By creating social classes as old money, new money, and no money, Fitzgerald send a strong message about the stratum of society.

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The Green Light at the end of the Buchanan mansion docks represents both the past and the future. The Valley of Ashes represents the dead American Dream. Firstly, there are the eyes of T.J Eckleburg. The eyes themselves are on a billboard, as an ad for an ophthalmologist.

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Overlooking the “Valley of Ashes”, the eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleberg glare out of a sign promoting the sale of eyewear. Often thought to represent the eyes of God, they stare down at an American landscape consumed by commercialism and the greed of its citizens, who wrap the fabric of their lives around attaining their own fortunes. The eyes look on though the rain and sun, seeing all the events and actions of individuals across not only New York, but the nation, and choose not the intercede. This creates the feeling that these are the eyes of a God who has abandoned hope for the American people, just as they have for it.

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