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Examples Of Imagery In The Great Gatsby

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Comedian George Carlin, once said,” That's why they call it the American Dream, because you have to be asleep to believe it.” In the Great Gatsby, Nick is there alongside Gatsby, as he tries to fulfill his American Dream of being with Daisy Buchanan once more. However, due to a misunderstanding, Gatsby is killed by George Wilson, and is unable to accomplish his American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s use of imagery, a gloomy tone and the symbol of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg is able to prove that the American Dream is not obtainable.
F. Scott Fitzgerald uses tons of imagery in The Great Gatsby to describe the events in the book. However his depiction of this imagery shows how the American Dream is unattainable. For example when Nick and Tom are walking through the slums of of the city to get to New York, Nick …show more content…

Scott FItzgerald uses the symbol of Doctor T.J Eckleburg to show that the American Dream is not achievable. This poster, which represents eyes that are always watching, shows up once when they met with George Wilson, and Tom was trying to sell Gatsby’s car to him. As Nick turned around because he felt like he was being warned from behind, he was confronted by, “ … the giant eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg…” ( Fitzgerald 124 ). These eyes watched Tom as he tried to get rid of Gatsby's car, in an attempt to win Daisy back, and complete his American Dream with his wife and his mistress. Another place this poster shows up is after George finds out Myrtle has been cheating, and then she got hit by Gatsby’s car. To show that she got what she deserved, George said, “ God knows what you’ve been doing, everything you’ve been doing. You may fool me, but you can’t fool God! “ ( Fitzgerald 159 ). This shows Fitzgerald’s symbol of Doctor T.J Eckleburg as the eyes of God, and how she can’t get away with cheating without paying the price. The symbol of T.J. Eckleburg was used multiple times in The Great Gatsby to express that the American Dream is impossible to

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