What Does The Color Gold Symbolize In The Great Gatsby

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Have you ever seen an old 1980’s cartoon where a one character gets angry so his face turns a deep shade of red? Or have you seen when a character’s face turns green? Without knowing this information you have been exposed to color symbolism. The red face of this character represents his anger. Similarly, the green face could represent greed or maybe envy. James Gatz, other known as Jay Gatsby, in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, encounters many forms of color symbolism through his summer of trying to achieve his dream of marrying the girl of his dreams, Daisy Buchanan. Color symbolism plays an important role throughout the novel.

The color gold usually represents wealth and money and

The first use of the color green as symbolism is the first scene where Gatsby is seen. When Nick sees Gatsby he says, “Involuntarily I glanced seaward — and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that Might have been the end of a dock”(Fitzgerald 21). The green light at the end of the dock belongs to Daisy Buchanan. The green light at the end of this dock represents Gatsby’s hope for a reunion of him and his love Daisy. Like the light on the end of the dock, Daisy is so close yet just out of reach from Gatsby. This represents that Gatsby will not be able to achieve his goal of getting Daisy back (SAMKANASHVILI). “Green…is traditionally associated with spring, hope, and youth” (SAMKANASHVILI). However, another possible meaning of green is envy (SAMKANASHVILI). An example of when the color green represents envy is when Tom went to Wilson’s garage to fill his gas tank and nick stated, “With An effort Wilson left the shade and support of the doorway and Breathing hard, unscrewed the cap of the tank. In the sunlight His face was green”(Fitzgerald 123). The green in his face represent the envy that Mr. Wilson has for Tom Buchanan. Mr. Wilson is envious of Mr. Buchanan because Mr. Buchanan has a beautiful car, wife and has an amazing home in west egg while Mr. Wilson has to work every day of his life

In The Great Gatsby, the same idea persists with the color white symbolizing good and pure. The most effected by the color symbolism of white is Daisy Buchanan, Gatsby’s Love. The first example of this is when she is first introduced into the story and nick describes her as, “Dressed in white, and had a little white roadster” (Fitzgerald 79). The, “first time Nick Carraway meets his cousin Daisy Buchanan at Tom’s and Daisy’s home, she was dressed totally in white. So as the house and its furnishings are also tuned in light shades. This fact might be interpreted as: beauty, cleanliness, wealth, innocence, virginity and also laziness.” (SAMKANASHVILI). The use of white can be seen as a good thing for the purity but, it can also be seen as a bad thing because it also symbolizes her laziness and how she has never worked a day in her life. Another example of old money’s purity is when Nick describes the Buchanan house by saying, "Their house was even more elaborate than I expected, a cheerful red and white Georgian Colonial mansion overlooking the bay” (Fitzgerald 6). The final example of white as a symbol of something more is when we find out about Daisy’s past life when nick states, “High in a white palace the king’s Daughter, the golden girl” (Fitzgerald 120). The white in daisy’s life is representative of her being