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What Does The Valley Of Ashes Symbolize In The Great Gatsby

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The American Dream is supposedly achievable by anyone who works for it. In the Great Gatsby many symbols represent a theme of the American Dream but not all symbols show the ability to achieve this Dream. Throughout the novel there is representation of how the American Dream is not achieved by materialistic possessions but by achieving your overall goal in life and being happy with what you live with. For Gatsby, a man deeply in love with his ex Daisy, his own American Dream is to live in his mansion with Daisy as his partner. This Dream of his may never be achievable but he tries his hardest and does everything he can to get her back, yet Gatsby never succeeds in restoring his relationship with Daisy. His American Dream was not accomplished and he went to the extreme in order to gain fulfillment. Symbols in the Great Gatsby such as the green light, the valley of ashes, and Gatsby's possessions all represent an overall theme of the American Dream …show more content…

When Gatsby is seen by nick gazing at the light it is clear that it gives him hope for the dream of living with daisy. Fitzgerald writes “He stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him, I could have sworn he was trembling. 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). Gatsby looking at this light so intensely shows his desire for daisy back. This relates the the theme of the American Dream because daisy completes Gatsbys American Dream. Therefore the light in which Gatsby reaches for shows the want to have his American Dream

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Difference Between The Valley Of Ashes In The Great Gatsby

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Fitzgerald creates clear distinctions between the upper and lower classes primarily through the use of the valley of ashes. The valley of ashes is nothing but a grey wasteland where “Ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke” but it is also the home of the poor, “The only building in sight was a small block of yellow brick sitting on the edge of the waste land”. This is very much different to East Egg, where the wealth live which is described that “Across the courtesy bay the white palaces of fashionable East Egg glittered along the water”. This distinct different between settings shows the differences of the classes but also the hollowness of the upper

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At the end of chapter one, we are first introduced to Jay Gatsby through this quote. In the passage, Gatsby is reaching for a “minute and far way” green light. Later on, in chapter four, we acquire that this green is coming from a light that burns at the end of Daisy’s dock. Daisy is the woman that Jay Gatsby loves, and he purchased his home due to its proximity to Daisy’s home since it’s just across the bay. This connects to the subject of the American Dream because it represents Gatsby’s dreams and hopes for his future.

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Everybody has a dream whether they want to or not. No matter how big or small, there will always be a dream. In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald there is a man named Gatsby who wants to complete the great American Dream everyone strives for, which is to be successful with no worries. For Gatsby to complete the dream, he wants to get the girl he has been longing for. He uses a glowing green light at the end of the girl’s dock to symbolize this dream of his.

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In "The Great Gatsby" the American dream is shown through the way Fitzgerald places symbolism within simple objects or names throughout the book. The American dream is shown through the main characters of the book as they "run in circles" to achieve their "American Dream" even if it is never really completed in the end. The American Dream in this book shows many different dreams between each different character although most of them never achieve when they wish they could in the end. In the Great Gatsby Fitzgerald uses symbolism and literary devices to represent the American Dream through using major symbols such as the green light, the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg, and the Valley of Ashes.

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In the “American Dream in The Great Gatsby” by Dr. Anna Wulick, she analyzes how the American Dream is a recurring theme throughout The Great Gatsby. The American Dream is the belief that anyone, regardless of race, class, gender, or nationality, can be successful in American life if they just work hard enough. It was often discussed how the idea of chasing the dream and coming up empty-handed was common in The Great Gatsby. Wulick mentions how Gatsby was always throwing everything into chasing Daisy and his luxurious, lavish life, but then realizes that it was all for nothing. Anna Wulick brings out how Fitzgereld uses symbols like the green light that was located at the end of Daisy’s dock.

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In chapter nine, Nick said, “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter - tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther. . . and one fine morning - so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past” (Fitzgerald 189). This supports Fitzgerald’s message to the reader about the American Dream because the green light stands for everyone’s hopes and dreams and desires, however, it is unattainable.

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The light being so far from Gatsby represents how far his dream is out of reach, “I thought of Gatsby’s wonder when he first picked out the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock… his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him…” Gatsby was determined to repeat the past and relive the love he once shared with Daisy, not realising that the past is not recurring. The American dream was once about discovery and happiness, but it has now been overshadowed by the pursuit of wealth and

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764 Words | 4 Pages

It was scary and uncertain, but it was all worth chasing after in order to grasp that final result of accomplishment. Nonetheless, according to Fitzgerald, our dreams are constantly in front of us and we continue to chase after them, therefore elucidating the impression that the green light is a symbol of the American dream to which Gatsby is reaching out for. Furthermore, at this point after Gatsby’s death, the light has ceased and completely has disappeared. His goals can no longer be accomplished and there is nothing left for him to reach out for. His desire for greed, the longing for Daisy, and the aspiration for the American Dream has also died with Gatsby alongside

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