Great gatsby color symbolism

Symbolism in the Great Gatsby
The Color symbol
1. “Here even the dust in the rooms, usually grey, is shining, while the usually golden tea is served at the grey tea hour. We find that contrast between golden and grey once more in “we went about opening the rest of the windows downstairs, filling the house with grey-turning, gold-turning light” (144). -This is telling that money is taking over their life. Its everything they are and everywhere they go. They are saying that the usual grey rooms, are now shining. This relates to the theme that says money does not bring happiness. Here, the money does not bring happiness, but they cannot escape from it, but they also are not trying to. 2. “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us” (171). -This relates to the theme by saying he believed in the ‘green light’ which represents hope in this novel.

This passage is saying he believed in hope and progress which he knew would be coming in the future. 3. “Gatsby, in a white flannel suit, silver shirt, and gold-colored tie, hurried in” (84) -In the novel, the Great Gatsby, white represents innocence and delicacy. He has a white suit, but also with a gold tie and silver shirt. This means that part of him is innocence, but he is being corrupted and changed with wealth and money. 4. “Nick, just let me know and I’ll be glad to arrange it for you. Just mention my name. Or present a green card. I’m giving out green..”(104) -The color green in this novel represents wealth and hope. Though sometimes wealth does not mean we suddenly have hope, but here they both correspond. Nick needs to use his wealth, and the fact that he has the ability to present a green card gives him hope

. The Billboard

1. “But above the grey land and the spasms of bleak dust which drift endlessly over it, you perceive, after a moment, the eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckelberg” (Fitzgerald 27). There is the underlying suggestion that he watches over everything that goes on around and in the valley, even as God watches over everything that goes on in the world. The eyes themselves can represent the characters in which they see.

2. “The eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are blue and gigantic – their retinas are one yard high. They look out of no face but, instead, from a pair of enormous yellow spectacles which pass over a nonexistent nose,” (Fitzgerald 27). The gold or yellow rimmed
glasses represent the materialistic desire for money, and superficial wealth. The empty face represents the hollowness of people and their materialistic values.

3. “But his eyes, dimmed a little by many paintless days under sun and rain, brood on over the solemn dumping ground,” (Fitzgerald 28). Not only does this billboard symbolize the watching eye of God and the materialistic desire for money, but it also represents, “the ignored conscience of the idealistic people. Although it is there and ‘sees everything’ the characters don’t pay attention to it

4. “‘If it wasn’t for the mist we could see your home across the bay,’ said Gatsby. ‘You always have a green light that burns all night at the end of your dock,’” (Fitzgerald 98). This light symbolizes all of Gatsby’s hopes and dreams for the future. Gatsby associates this light with Daisy, and in essence, as long as there is a green light, Gatsby has permission to move forward and attempt to attain his dream- Daisy. Weather

1. “The next day was broiling, almost the last, certainly the warmest, of the summer.” (p.120) on this day Gatsby is confronted by Tom. Tom raises the tension by confronting him about him going to oxford. Tom says it in front of Gatsby love and she then is attracted to Tom once again. The heat could represent the intensity of a situation because sense it was extremely warm the issue began to rise

2. “The touch of a cluster of leaves revolved slowly, tracing, like the leg of a compass, a thin red circle in the water.” (p.170) fall is when dead leaves fall of trees which show a sign of an end. Here Gatsby dies in autumn showing that he has reached his end and the death is matched along with the weather and season. Fall sets the emotion and tone of his death which is seen through the fallen leaves in the “red circle” in the pool.