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Theme Of Food In The Great Gatsby

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Rich, irresistible cake, the sour tang of oranges and lemons, and the dinner of chicken, all of which are mentioned in The Great Gatsby. The usage of food imagery is prevalent throughout the story, and is used to symbolize the characters, theirs actions, and major themes of the plot. Most significant of the events and places related to food imagery were the descriptions of the Buchanan mansion, the events that transpired in the grounds of Gatsby’s mansion, and the dinner scene after the death of Myrtle. For example, the Buchanan mansion is described as a wedding cake, which gives insight into the lifestyle of the Buchanans, most notably Daisy. Gatsby’s mansion is the designated location for frequent, extravagant parties, filled with excessive amounts of food that are used up by the guests, much like Gatsby is used by others. Another significant example would be the cold chicken present at the dinner scene between Daisy and Tom after Myrtle was murdered, which parallels Daisy’s coldness towards the dilemma. While these details have little literal explanation, they symbolize and foreshadow a great deal of the plot, adding to the underlying themes as well.
To begin with, when the Buchanan mansion is first introduced, Nick describes the home’s refinement with wedding cake imagery, “A breeze blew through the room, blew curtains in at one end and out the other like pale flags, twisting them up toward the frosted wedding-cake of a ceiling, and then rippled over the wine-colored

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