Fitzgerald uses symbols to suggest the life of Gatsby. He uses the green light to represent the hopes and dreams of Gatsby, Dr T.J Eckleburg's eyes to represent the eyes of God, the Valley of Ashes to show the effects of capitalism and the symbol of time is also repeated throughout the novel.
For example, in The Great Gatsby, one important symbol is the green light on Daisy's dock, which is a concrete object that also represents the abstract concepts of yearning and the American Dream.
Gatsby's mansion symbolizes two broader themes of the novel. First, it represents the grandness and emptiness of the 1920s boom: Gatsby justifies living in it all alone by filling the house weekly with "celebrated people." Second, the house is the physical symbol of Gatsby's love for Daisy.
Chapter 7 Symbols
There are several symbols in chapter 7 of The Great Gatsby that contribute to the plot and the themes. These include Gatsby's yellow car, the heat, and the Valley of Ashes. Gatsby's car symbolizes the arrogance of wealth throughout the chapter.
The green light on Daisy Buchanan's East Egg dock that Jay Gatsby can somewhat see from his dock across the water in West Egg is a symbol of the unreachable. It symbolizes the title character's yearning for what is in his line of sight but remains out of his reach.
Gatsby's dream, personified in the green light, is the primary symbol of the novel and ties into Fitzgerald's overwhelming critique of the American Dream throughout the novel. Gatsby's car has many roles throughout the novel, so much so, it could even be considered a secondary character.
The key symbols in The Great Gatsby are: colors, the green light, T.J. Eckleburg's eyes, and Gatsby's car.
Fitzgerald uses symbols to suggest the life of Gatsby. He uses the green light to represent the hopes and dreams of Gatsby, Dr T.J Eckleburg's eyes to represent the eyes of God, the Valley of Ashes to show the effects of capitalism and the symbol of time is also repeated throughout the novel.
Symbols in The Great Gatsby Chapter 3
The party serves as a lavish and shallow mask for the more serious goings on in Gatsby's personal life. There is also the distinction, made by Nick, between East Egg and West Egg.
The Great Gatsby: Meaning of the Eye Symbolism
The eye symbol in The Great Gatsby shows the complex dualities of the human heart and illustrates the moral and spiritual decay of American society through Dr. T.J. Eckleburg and Owl Eyes. These two symbols both have glasses and act as having double vision.
Automobiles and their owners in the novel include Jordan Baker, and the association her name has with major automobile manufacturers of the time. They symbolize the materialism and selfish behavior of 1920s America. Daisy and Tom Buchanan are careless people, and the blue coupe represents that they are from old money.
Gatsby's yellow Rolls Royce represents corruption and deceit. Gatsby buys this car to promote his wealthy facade to others, while this very car is also used by Daisy to run over and kill Myrtle.
The ladder symbolizes success, and the reach to the American Dream; that the American Dream is possible as long as people are willing to climb the ladder of success. This quote states that Gatsby can only climb the ladder alone if he wants to have all the wonderful things that he could ever dream of.
Yellow is the most common color appeared in the novel. First, it symbolizes money, materialism and high social position, such as Doctor T. J. Eckleburg's enormous yellow spectacles and Gatsby's golden tie. Second, it symbolizes luxury and greed when the author describes Daisy as a golden woman.
Daisy Buchannan is made to represent the lack of virtue and morality that was present during the 1920s. She is the absolute center of Gatsby's world right up to his death, but she is shown to be uncaring and fickle throughout the novel.
The library shows how Gatsby wants himself to be perceived by others, but it does not represent his true self. Another object in the novel that is symbolic for emotion is the green light. The green light is first introduced at the end of chapter one.
One of the most memorable images in The Great Gatsby is the green light that Gatsby watches across the water, which simultaneously symbolizes Gatsby's love for Daisy, money, and the American Dream.
So Gatsby made himself rich: he thinks that money will win her back. Now his mansion, the symbol of "new money," is directly across the bay from her house, symbolic of "old money." The green light represents both Gatsby's dream of recreating his past with Daisy and the corrupt American Dream of extreme wealth.
Common Types of Symbolism in Literature
Using symbols can create a powerful story that uncovers universal truths. Three key types of symbolism in literature are religious, romantic, and emotional symbolism.
In their eyes the number 3 was considered as the perfect number, the number of harmony, wisdom and understanding. It was also the number of time – past, present, future; birth, life, death; beginning, middle, end – it was the number of the divine.
What does Nick Carraway symbolize? Nick symbolizes the outsider's perspective of the way things were in the 1920s. He is not as wealthy as the other characters in the novel and thus recognizes how morally corrupt they are.
Water plays a great part in Gatsby and Daisy's love story, to symbolize many things such as baptism – the cleansing of all wrong doings, purification, the renewal of love and the inevitable separation.
White represents the immaculate and pure beauty. It symbolizes nobleness and purity. It is Daisy's color in the novel. She wears white dress when she meets Gatsby for the first time as well as when Nick visits her in the East Egg.