The Great Gatsby Symbols

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The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald uses many symbols throughout the novel. Symbols are objects, characters, figures, and colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts. They also help the reader better understand the main idea behind the story. The reader may not completely understand the novel or story until he/she finds the symbols. One of the first symbols Fitzgerald uses are the eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg. There is a billboard located in the Valley of Ashes between the East Egg and the West Egg of Long Island, New York that was once used to advertise for an oculist, Dr. T. J. Eckleburg. The billboard is old and faded and has stood there for years. “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. Eckleburg. 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…But his eyes, dimmed a little by many paintless days under sun and rain, brood on over the solemn dumping ground.” Not long before the Tom vs. Gatsby showdown, Nick notes the eyes again keeping a "watchful vigil." Later, George takes Myrtle to the window (where the billboard is visible) and tells her she can’t fool God. T. J. Eckelburg’s eyes are always watching, and so are the eyes of God. The eyes also represent how people can just not care at all about others as long as they obtain fame and fortune. Another symbol used in this novel is the green light on Daisy’s dock. For Fitzgerald, green means hope and a promise for the future. For others, it means wealth, power, and the achievement of the American dream. “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no

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