The Great Gatsby Artistic Symbolism

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Cugat’s Creation When you’re an unknown person surrounded by big-name celebrities, making a reputation for yourself can be hard. Many people try, and many people also fail. It takes a special type of person to dig themselves up from the bottom to the top. Francis Cugat was that type of person. He was a quiet man who wasn’t very sociable and not many people knew who he was. But then in 1925, he designed the cover for F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and made a name for himself. The illustration, named “Celestial Eyes,” isn’t a picture that describes the novel in a literal sense. Instead, it uses vibrant colors, significant design settings, and small details to portray the novel both figuratively and symbolically. There are many different analyses that could possibly describe “Celestial Eyes,” but no one can be positive about the deeper meaning behind Cugat’s artwork. What caught my attention first in the painting were the two mysterious eyes that the piece was named after. My interpretation about the two luminescent eyes blaring out of the darkened background represents Dr. T.J. Eckelburg’s all-seeing eyes in the novel. However, there is a glowing green teardrop trailing down from the left eye. The combination of the teardrop and the huge, almost melancholy eyes symbolizes Gatsby and his unrequited love for Daisy. Gatsby built himself up from practically nothing with only the thought of being reunited with Daisy once again and finally being “good” enough for her high standards motivating him. Then, once he had reached the peak of his success, he still couldn’t have her. She was literally so close yet so far away. She was right across the bay with her husband and Gatsby had no connection with her. All he could do was stare across the bay with his wishful, love-struck eyes at the green light located at the end of her dock. To Gatsby, that light “seemed as

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