Symbolism is an important part of The Great Gatsby. F. Scott Fitzgerald used so many different kind of symbols to tell the different characters side of the story or their future decisions. But what if there is something greater than that? What if their symbols showed a side of them that we have to search for to see?
Gatsby was the first to come up in for me on symbols in The Great Gatsby. Mainly the part where he’s reaching out to the green light on the other side of the dock. “He stretched out his arms towards the dark water in a curious way, and as far as I was from him I could have sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward - and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been at
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It was the color of her clothes. In the book Daisy and Jordan were both always seen wearing white. “They were both in white and their dresses were rippling and fluttering as if they had just been blown back in after a short light around the house.”[Pg.15] I think it meant something of false purity or the view of goodness. Daisy was known for her beauty and her kind soul but later in the book she starts an affair with Gatsby, giving that purity away and making it false. However with the second choice of goodness, Daisy could have been doing what she did out of mercy of not only her own heart but also of Gatsby’s. “Suddenly with a strained sound, Daisy bent her head into the shirts and began to cry stormily. ‘They’re such beautiful shirts’ she sobbed, her voice muffled in the thick folds. ‘It makes me sad because I’ve never seen such - such beautiful shirts before.’”[Pg.89] Now this could mean that she just really liked the shirts and she’s being over dramatic. But I think it’s more like she’s saying that instead of saying what she wants to say because she can’t. Daisy wants to say she’s still in love with Gatsby but is scared at what not only his reaction would be but also knows that she is married to Tom with a