What Does Eckleburg Represent In The Great Gatsby

The Eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg: The eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg, “are blue and gigantic…they look out of no face, but, instead, from a pair if enormous yellow spectacles which pass over a non-existent nose.” (Fitzgerald.23) These eyes can be perceived in many different ways but they are more prominently looked upon as a representation of God. They are constantly staring down at The Valley of Ashes judging society’s every move. George happens to be one of the few characters that takes this into consideration when making his decisions. He feels as though, “God sees everything,” (Fitzgerald.170) and that everyone should be cautious about their actions. For example, when George learns of Myrtle’s affair with Tom, he proclaims that, “she might fool

It is a Rolls-Royce and is described as being, “a rich cream color, bright with nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hatboxes and supper-boxes and tool-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of windshields that mirrored a dozen suns.” (Fitzgerald.69) The extravagance of his car represents his wealth, the West Egg wealth, which is considered, “new money” (Fitzgerald.6) when contrasted to East Egg’s old money. It shows just how lavishly and luxuriously Gatsby lives in comparison to the elegant way of life Tom, Daisy, and everyone else lives in East Egg. His car symbolizes his place in society. He is extremely rich yet he will never be completely accepted into Daisy’s world because of their customs and way of living. This can be seen with the impressions of Gatsby’s car; those living in The Valley Ashes admire it to quite an extent, however, when Tom takes a look at it, he merely thinks of it as a, “circus wagon.” (Fitzgerald.129) This proves the fact that Gatsby will never be considered good enough for anyone in East Egg due to the differences in their

Gatsby’s large income isn’t enough to satisfy his happiness. He feels the need to overflow his house with expensive items in order to show-off his wealth to Daisy. This showcases his carelessness and immodesty with money which is a huge part of his personality. You could say the he prefers form over function. Nick on the other hand, while still possessing money, decides to lead a simpler life without all the luxuries. He feels as though there is no need for all those material things. He attempts to down-play his family’s richness by starting a life of his own. For him, attention from ladies isn’t important, what really matters is living a life full content. Even though his, “own house was an eye-sore…it had been overlooked,” (Fitzgerald.7) because he doesn’t care about how he or the things he possesses looks, all that matters is its