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Morality in The Great Gatsby
Morality in The Great Gatsby
Morality in The Great Gatsby
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More handpicked essays just for you.
Morality in The Great Gatsby
Morality in The Great Gatsby
Morality in The Great Gatsby
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
One of Fitzgerald’s hidden yet salient symbols is T.J. Eckleburg's billboard. Initially recognizable as the second pair of eyes in the novel, where owl-eyes is the first, the billboard is in actuality an advertisement for an optometrist that in which case is displaying a stupendous pair of monumental blue eyes seemingly not painted to scale that are vaguely shielded by shabby yellow spectacles. For all that, it is particularly filthy and blanch with the weather considerably left to blame abandoning it with a ragged overlook. This billboard is alluded to on numerous occasions for the entire duration of the story, but each time, obtaining further magnitude and snatching attention from the reader to suppose representation of a much deeper idea.
"But above the gray land and the spasms of bleak dust which drift endlessly over it, you perceive, after a moment, the eyes of Doctor T.J Eckleburg" (Fitzgerald 23). These eyes are more than what they appear to be. They are mounted on a billboard that watches over the Valley of Ashes, which stands between West Egg and New York City. This location is what makes Dr. T.J Eckleburg's eyes so significant and important to the book because the idea of watching over a grey and decayed society is how it relates to today. F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author of the popular 1920’s novel, The Great Gatsby, only mentions the eyes twice throughout the entire story, which leaves an impression that is key to understanding the novel.
In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, there are many symbols. From the green light to the mansion Gatsby lives in, they are all significant but the most significant is Doctor T.J. Eckleburg wide eyed billboard. Eckleburg’s billboard has great depth to it. It represents someone watching over the characters at all time, and it represents the strength of the American dream. Gatsby has a past unlike one we thought he had; he was full of lies throughout the novel.
In The Great Gatsby written by F.Scott Fitzgerald symbolism is shown in more ways than one but one major form is the eyes of TJ.Eckleburg. The eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg is a billboard advertising an oculist that features a pair of giant blue eyes covered by yellow glasses that seem to watch over everything in the valley of ashes. First example The eyes witness the sin of adultery between Tom and Myrtle “I want to see you said Tom intently. Get on the next train.” (Fitzgerald 15)
The Analytical Gatsby Fitzgerald has countless themes in his novel The Great Gatsby. One of these many themes is that even when no one is around to witness your actions there is always a moral force that knows what you have done, this moral force keeps the actions of the community under a strict moral code. This theme has been amplified by the use of a Motif, a giant billboard of T.J. Eckleburg which only shows two large eyes behind a large pair of glasses. This Motif helps you visualize how the community associates the moral force into their lives, also it shows that even when no one is watching God is.
In the novel The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the lack of morality and judgement in the story is pervaded by various symbols throughout the novel, but none are more startling and apparent than the Eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg which convey a message of judgement and instill a sense of unease in the characters who come across them. At the start of the story, Tom Buchanan takes Nick to the Valley of Ashes, where readers make the first connection to Eckleburg's eyes, “we walked back a hundred yards along the road under Dr. Eckleburg’s persistent stare... ‘terrible place, isn’t it,’ said Tom, exchanging a frown with Dr. Eckleburg” (Fitzgerald 20). The disembodied eyes are part of a faded billboard that stares across the barren and wretched terrain of the valley.
The novel, The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is told through the eyes of Nick Carraway, who comes to 1920's New York to fulfill the American dream. Instead, he realizes the hollowness behind industrial wealth driven ideals. After Nick gets settled in West Egg, he finds himself in the company of millionaires Daisy, Tom, and Jay Gatsby; all of whom demonstrate either an inability or unwillingness to acting with consideration to those around them. Even Nick, who is meant to be reflective and unbiased, ended up being a morally ambiguous character at best. The one thing contrasting the stories ubiquitous impropriety, is the billboard of T.J. Eckelberg's bespectacled eyes.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Great Gatsby is full of many themes and symbols throughout the book. I’ve chosen one of the most influential themes in the book and really draws the book in the end. I chose the eyes of T.J Eckleburg. The eyes of T.J Eckleburg represent corruption, the eyes of God, and decline of the American Dream.
“But above the grey land and the spasms of bleak dust which drift endlessly over it, you perceive, after a moment, the eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg. The eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg are blue and gigantic” (Fitzgerald, 23). In this short segment from the beginning of the second chapter of The Great Gatsby, we can find some of the recurrent symbols of the book.
In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, symbols are conveyed throughout the story to introduce hidden meanings and themes. In the novel two prominent symbols were the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg and the green light. These symbols evoke the feelings, desires, or social interactions between characters. T.J. Eckleburg’s eyes watched over the valley of ashes as a symbol of someone who is always watching or how God sees everything. In the novel, Tom has a mistress that lives in the center of the valley which shows that even if Daisy does not realize, someone always knows the real truth.
God Is Always Watching In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the symbolism of the billboard overlooking the “Valley of Ashes” holds extreme significance. The billboard pictures big blue eyes with yellow glasses and it was an advertisement for Doctor T.J. Eckleburg, an old oculist out of Queens, New York. It is located in the “Valley of Ashes”, which is a grimy area between New York City and the “Eggs.” All of the coal and ashes used to run New York City are dumped here. The eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg serve as a representation of God’s watchful eyes and also the contrast between the illusion of the American Dream and the cruel reality of the 1920s.
The Great Gatsby Some people may look at an object and see it as meaningless, like a cross for example. Another person may look at that same object and it may represent God or a higher power, again using the cross as an example. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, where a man by the name of Jay Gatsby reunites with his long lost love Daisy Buchanan, but she is married. He hopes to steal her back through wealth and charm, but his dream doesn’t come true. In this book, the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg, the eyes of an optometrist on a billboard, represent the eyes of God.
The last few pages of the novel focus on Nick’s view of Gatsby’s life and the way that his dream with Daisy has ultimately failed. It’s a powerful and emotional moment that uses symbolism and imagery. It reminds us of the fragility of life and the importance of pursuing dreams when they seem impossible. Nick’s attitude in this passage shows pity and admiration toward Gatsby. “Gatsby’s house was still empty when I left– the grass on his lawn had grown as long as mine”(179).
Though this may make him seem insignificant, he maintains an ominous presence throughout the course of the novel. What is focused on most is Dr. Eckleburg’s eyes. These eyes are possibly the form of a God-like figure that watches over all the doings and happenings of Gatsby, Nick, Tom, George, and Myrtle. As the events of the novel unravel before the reader’s eyes, Eckleburg’s eyes are constantly there. They seem to be watching over the lack of “humility, compassion, patience, or (and) charity.”
What is the real story behind The Great Gatsby? The Great Gatsby is a book written by F. Scott Fitzgerald in the 1920’s, it features the imbalances of life in the roaring 20’s and how it affected the wealthy. The Great Gatsby symbolizes love throughout the book. It highlights many different relationships, however a key relationship that isn’t read into as much is between Gatsby and Nick. Whether this is because the book was published so long ago or because people see this relationship at face value is besides the point.