symbols in The Great Gatsby
The use of symbols in The Great Gatsby The critic Harold Bloom once wrote, "Never has symbolism played such a crucial part in the very foundation of a novel as it does in Scott Fitzgeralds masterpiece, The Great Gatsby. ... In "The Great Gatsby" Fitzgerald cleverly uses symbolism, virtually anything in the novel can be taken as a symbol, from the weather, to the colours of the clothing the characters wear, some of the symbols are used as tools for characterization as we will see. ... In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald applies many important colours that allude to the personality of his characters but they also reveal their true intentions. ... Daisys colour is white, she wears white dresses and recalls her "white girlhood", and this use of colour helps us to characterize her as the unattainable "enchanted princess" who becomes personified as Gatsby s dream. ... While on the beach, Gatsby is stretching out his arms to the light as if he will acquire it somehow. The light was only a light, however to Gatsby it becomes his dream for the future. ... Gatsby buys the house across the bay so he can see the Buchanans light. ... Gatsby believes that there is hope for his future relationship with Daisy. ... Through Gatsby this promise is corrupted by the means that he uses to attain it. By attaining material wealth to win Daisy, Gatsby also shows the corruption of the American Dream. ... This green light represents money and prosperity, which Gatsby has obtained over the years in order to finally reunite with Daisy. ... Gatsby envied Tom because he knew that Daisy needed a wealthy man to take care of her. And as he was building his wealth, Gatsby would look toward that green light with envy and await the day he would be good enough for Daisy. - BLACK or GRAY: Another important colour in The Great Gatsby is the colour black. ... In order to win back Daisy, Gatsby also tries to portray himself as having old wealth, even though he only has new money. ... Just before Gatsby was shot by Wilson, Gatsby decided he was going to take a swim in his pool. ... "Gatsby shouldered the mattress and started for the pool. ... In this sense the yellow colour has been always associated to Autumn and with the fall of leaves and so on, which is another symbol of death as Gatsby dies in this season. -PINK: The last colour portrayed heavily when discussing the character of Gatsby is pink. ... When Gatsby states that Daisy never loved Tom, she has always been in love with him, he was shocked to hear from her own mouth that she loved both of them. This places Gatsby in a very uncomfortable situation and this event finally brought him over the edge. Pink is also the colour of Gatsby’s shirts and suit, which are a symbol of his newly acquired wealth. Colours, especially white and yellow, are very related to other symbols which explain the decadence of morals and of this American society. ... Many of the extravagant parties that Gatsby had to bring Daisy to his house, take place in West Egg. West Egg, as well as East Egg, although appear to be the home of great and honourable men and women are places of utter corruption. ... This applies to everyone living in East and West Egg, but mostly Gatsby and Daisy. ... -OTHER SYMBOLS: WEATHER, WATER, TOM’S HOUSE, GATSBY’S CAR, WEST vs EAST- - WATER: Water has always been related to rebirth, renewal and so on. ... One of them is that Gatsby is separated from Daisy by water. ... - WEATHER: the weather in The Great Gatsby matches the emotional and narrative tone of the story. Gatsby and Daisys reunion begins amid a pouring rain, proving awkward and melancholy; their love reawakens just as the sun begins to come out. The showdown between Tom and Gatsby, for instance, takes place on the hottest day of the summer. ... Wilson kills Gatsby on the first day of autumn, as Gatsby floats in his pool despite a palpable chill in the air—a symbolic attempt to stop time and restore his relationship with Daisy to the way it was five years before, in 1917. ... - GATSBY’S SHIRTS: in page 6 we find a four-line poem of Thomas Park dInvilliers that Fitzgerald quotes on the title page describes exactly what Gatsby has done.