The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby introduced life during the 1920s where color was represented to serve ideal purposes of expressions and ideas. Fitgerald added symbolism to the novel by introducing symbolic values to the colors green and white. Fitzgerald uses green to allude to Gatsby's choices, attitudes, and thoughts; while white represented a social facade behind every character's action.

The green light at the end of the dock was introduced as a vision in the first chapter, but later became the factor of Jay Gatsby's love life. Gatsby's intention of reliving the past was represented by the reflection of the green light situated at the end of Daisy's dock at East Egg with Nick Carraway's insight: "I could have sworn he was trembling. I glanced seaward--and distinguished nothing except a single green light [...] When I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished." (Page 26) Gatsby's definition of the green light represented his desperation to recreate the past with Daisy. Gatsby's had high hopes and dreams of transforming the past with Daisy when he stated: "I'm going to fix everything just the way it was before, She'll see.", (Page 117) but in reality, Daisy's marriage with Tom Buchanan weakened his determination for love. Gatsby defended his quote by displaying his picture perfect life to Daisy in order to pursuit and persuade his dream. Also, the green can be seen as the color of money, the tool which Gatsby uses to catch the heart of the undeserving, shallow Daisy. Gatsby's false front of living the "American Dream" was his initial method to lure Daisy into his life. Gatsby, unexperienced and unhappy, resorted to money to "win" Daisy over. Grasping every chance he has, Gatsby is desperate to pursue his dream of destined happiness with Daisy in his arms, but his actions are based on an ideal unattained by the reckless, selfish, shallow Daisy. In a way, Gatsby's green can represent the money, the financial happiness that he ignores, in his mad quest for the idealized, pure illusion of Daisy.

During the 1920's, living high and fast was the order of the day. Many women of the time, feeling a new sense of independence brought on by money and society, became very active in social circles. The color white is a representation of a women's "social personality", the facade presented at parties or other events. Daisy, for instance, is mainly seen dressed in white, symbolizing her innocent and proper appearance. Daisy's uses her status of innocence as a back door from her wild adventures in her life. Her image is revealed during a car ride with Nick as she confesses: "I hate careless people. That's why I like you." (Page 63) Daisy lives life to the edge and pushes it to the limit as she protects her image when nessecary, but in reality her attitude is conceived as careless and snobbish as described: "They were careless people, Tom and Daisy--they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together." (Page 187) Also, Daisy's young friend Jordan Baker directly relates as she was often dressed in white with a self-centered personality. Her dishonest attitude portrays her cynical act of being superior to others. Nick discovers her dishonesty during Gatsby's party,