Green Symbolism In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the color green symbolizes the corruption of the American Dream. This is shown by the green in the money and wealth that is desired, the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock that Gatsby can see, and the green car that kills Myrtle towards the end of the book. The American dream is desired because everyone’s expectations for money, power, and glory set by the rich and famous, but it’s these expectations and materialistic goals that people set that lead them to their downfall in the end. The color green is associated with the American dream and it’s corruption, but it first starts at what this dream is all about, money, before anything. Green is the color of money and this the entire basis of the

He is constantly staring at the light, which symbolizes Gatsby’s hopes and dreams of getting Daisy Buchanan. He is not satisfied with the wealth he has, but wants to achieve his dream of getting real love. This is shown when Gatsby said, “If it wasn't for the mist we could see your home across the bay … You always have a green light that burns all night at the end of your dock." In this passage Gatsby describes seeing only a green light where Daisy’s house is because it is always surrounded by mist. This symbolizes Gatsby’s hopes and dreams of pursuing Daisy, but Daisy is with Tom, while pursuing her American dream of wealth. Gatsby’s American dream does not consist of money, but he wants love and Daisy instead. However, near the end of the story, the readers realize that Daisy doesn’t care about love because her only focus is that “American dream” of wealth and fame. That is why Gatsby kept looking at the green light through the mist. He was always longing and hoping to find Daisy’s house, which represents his desire to have Daisy to love again, but she was never there for him. Near the end of the story, Gatsby was shot and murdered and that longing for Daisy was finally gone. This is displayed through the green light in one of the last lines of the story, “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter--tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther ...” Gatsby believed in the green light, which symbolized in his faith in himself to get the love of his life back. Gatsby hoped and dreamed of Daisy, but the evils of the American dream spoiled it for him. The green light represented Gatsby’s hope for his future with Daisy, but the corruption of the American dream and the expectations it brings on society lead to his