Symbols in The Great Gatsby

Symbolism in The Great Gatsby Symbolism is an extremely important device for F. Scott Fitzgerald in the writing of his novel The Great Gatsby. F. Scott Fitzgerald is very clever in the ways he uses and demonstrates symbolism in The Great Gatsby. Virtually almost anything in the novel can be taken as a symbol or represented for something in some form. However, one can believe that they’re three major symbols in the novel which Fitzgerald conveys. Those symbols include: the eyes of Dr. T.J Eckleberg, the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock, and the valley of ashes. Symbolism is what essentially makes The Great Gatsby one of the greatest American novels of all time. One of the first symbols introduced in The Great Gatsby is the valley of ashes. The valley of ashes is unlike any other setting in the book. It is the complete opposite of life in East Egg and West Egg. The valley of ashes is located halfway between West Egg and New York City. The men who live there work at shoveling up the ashes. In the novel the valley of ashes is described as, “a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens; where ashes take forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and finally, with a transcendent effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air” (Chapter 2, page 26) The valley of ashes resembles something lifeless and dark. It symbolizes poverty and the moral decay hidden by the beauty of East Egg and West Egg. The people who live here basically have nothing to look forward to in the future and have little going on in their lives. The death of Myrtle Wilson in the valley of ashes stands for the pain associated with this area.

Secondly, the eyes of Dr. T.J Eckleberg are a pair of fading eyes also located in the valley of ashes. “The eyes of Doctor T J. Eckleburg are blue and gigantic...they look out of no face, but instead, from a pair of enormous yellow spectacles” (Chapter 2, pg 26). It is seen high above on an old advertising billboard for an optometrist. The eyes look down at everything that takes place in the valley. Fitzgerald uses the eyes as an important symbol in the novel to help clarify the different perspectives. The eyes have no fixed meaning because each character has a different opinion on what it means. They may symbolize the eyes of God as thought by Wilson in the novel. To Wilson it is much more than an advertisement; he strongly believes that they are the eyes of God looking upon everyone and judging them and the American society as a moral wasteland. Wilson is made fun of because of his strong faith with God. The faded paint may symbolize the distant and decaying relationship between God and humanity. The eyes of Dr. T.J Eckleberg are very disturbing due to the lack of a distinct meaning of the image. In addition, the eyes can also be seen as symbolizing Nick because he is the only one who really knows what is going on in the novel. Finally, the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock is probably the most crucial symbol in The Great Gatsby. The initial appearance of the green light is when Nick sees Gatsby for the first time. Gatsby was standing in front of his mansion and had stretched out arms saying, “A single green light, minute and far away that might have been the end of dock”. Green is the colour of hope. The green light at the end of the dock symbolizes Gatsby’s distant hopes and dreams of one day reuniting with Daisy again and winning her heart back. Throughout the novel it is well put that Gatsby believes in the green light. Gatsby’s desire for Daisy is associated with the American dream therefore the green light

symbolizes the American dream as well. The end of Gatsby’s life also represents the end of the green light and essentially the American dream. In conclusion, symbolism is a very important and effective tool in the writing of the novel The Great Gatsby. Almost anything can be taken as a symbol in this novel however they are symbols that have more importance throughout the book. For example, the valley of ashes represents poverty in the 1920’s and lives that have no future at all. Another important symbol is the eyes of Dr. T.J Eckleberg which may be the eyes of God looking down at the moral decay of the 1920’s. Finally and probably the most crucial symbol, the green light at the end of Daisy dock. This symbols both Gatsby distant hopes of being with Daisy and the American Dream. These hopes and dreams end with the death of Gatsby in the novel.