Why Is Nick Carraway Important In The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby follows Nick Carraway as he spends the summer in New York and befriends the wealthy Jay Gatsby. From the moment Nick meets Gatsby, he becomes involved in a series of events that would change his life forever. However, Gatsby has a secret. He has been in love with Nick’s cousin, Daisy Buchanan, for years, even though she is married to another man. Gatsby manages to convince Nick to reintroduce Daisy to him, and from that point forward, Gatsby’s only goal is to win Daisy’s heart. Knowringly or not, Gatsby’s use of color throughout the novel expresses his feelings to Daisy, which eventually results in tradegy. In the fifth chapter of the novel, the reader witnesses the event that Gatsby has been

Nick agrees to invite Daisy over for tea, and Gatsby can just so happen to visit. This meeting is extremely important to Gatsby, as revealed by his nervousness and need to make every aspect of the situation perfect. After an afternoon of preparation Gatsby arrives at Nick’s house. Nick narrates, “An hour later the front door opened nervously, and Gatsby, in a white flannel suit, silver shirt, and gold-colored tie, hurried in” (Fitzgerald 84). The color white has strong association with innocence, which Gatsby may be trying to portray to Daisy due to the scandalous rumors surrounding him and his wealth. Before Nick meets Gatsby, he hears countless stories of how Gatsby acquired his fortune. One of the girls attending Gatsby’s party commented, “‘You look at [Gatsby] sometimes when he thinks nobody’s looking at him. I’ll bet he killed a man”’ (Fitzgerald 44). Gatsby is known to be mysterious, even potentially

His money, fame, and expensive parties were all methods devised by Gatsby to impress Daisy after not seeing her for five years. The aspect of Gatsby’s life that best symbolizes his lavish lifestyle is his yellow car. Yellow is the color most easily visible to the human eye, perfect for catching Daisy’s attention. In The Great Gatsby, the color represents the wealth of the newly rich in West Egg. Gatsby is showing off his money for Daisy, who had left him five years ago to marry Tom Buchanan. When Tom does realize of Daisy and Gatsby’s affair, he becomes irritable and insists they go into town on the hottest day of the year. Tom tries to take control of the situation and throws in a jab about Gatsby’s car, “‘Come on Daisy’, said Tom, pressing her with his hand toward Gatsby’s car. ‘I’ll take you in this circus wagon’” (Fitzgerald 121). While Gatsby owns his flashy yellow car, Tom owns a blue coupé. In the novel, blue represents the “old money” of East Egg, who have had family money for generations. Tom may be trying to convey something to Daisy with the color of his car as well. Blue is associated with security and trustworthiness. While Tom has certainly not been faithful to Daisy in his marriage, she does rely upon him financially. When Gatsby demands Daisy to tell Tom