Symbolism in the Great Gatsby

"The Great Gatsby" is a book full of symbolism. On a large, political scope the book itself is a symbol of the materialism of the twenties. Many of the symbols in the book are given their meaning by the characters - who are symbols in and of themselves. To make this last point, it is only necessary to look at Gatsby himself.

Gatsby is, in a nutshell, the American Dream corrupted. He has worked hard to obtain everything he owns, often using illegal means to do so, but can enjoy none of it because he is so busy chasing something he will never be able to have.

Daisy, the thing he is chasing, represents the American Dream as it to the lower classes of society during the twenties. She is chasable and appears to be obtainable, but is always just out of reach.

The green light is a relatively straightforward symbol, though it has two different meanings depending on how you look at it. To the reader, it is yet another symbol for the American Dream. To Gatsby himself, as he "stretched out his arms toward the dark water," it symbolized everything he had been fighting to obtain, and everything (he thought) was close to being his. Nick compared it to how America must have looked to the settlers, rising up out of the water.

Perhaps the most interesting symbol in the book is the valley of ashes. This valley symbolizes the result of