What Does The Ashes Symbolize In The Great Gatsby In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott. Fitzgerald, the entire novel is centered in the 1920’s. This time period was known as the Roaring 20’s. This was an era right after World War I. It was a time of change. There were lots of new styles, morals, and dancing. F. Scott Fitzgerald uses symbols to illustrate an outlook on what the Roaring 20’s was like. One symbol found in the novel is when Nick notices Gatsby staring at a green light. Tom states that Gatsby “stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and far as [he] was from him [he] could have sworn [Gatsby] was trembling” (24).
Gatsby has always wanted Daisy. When he was younger, he was not able to financially support her. Now, he has built a fortunate lifestyle that he yearns to share with the love of his life. Gatsby is trembling in hopes that Daisy will want him back now that he is wealthy. The green light represents the hope and ambition of Gatsby’s dreams. This has a connection to the Roaring 20’s because of how ambitious people were to become wealthy for their own purposes. It was an era that consisted of changed lifestyles that everyone wanted to live up to.
In the book, “CRITICAL CONTEXTS: “The Self-Same Song That Found A Path”: Keats And The Great Gatsby,” by Dan McCall, he discusses the literary work of John Keats in comparison to Fitzgerald’s novel. While analyzing the novel, he talks about the green light that Gatsby looks out to and concludes that it “lies in the covert meaning that the distance set up is exactly the right one. It is far enough to need the green light shining into the mist, far enough to establish the appropriate distance for the preservation of the dream as dream” (54-55).
McCall is saying that the light being so far away creates a replica of an actual dream. This gives the green light and even more significant symbol of his dreams and aspirations. Gatsby knows what he wants, but it is so far away from his fingertips. Like what the color green stands for, Gatsby “hopes” that one day his dreams will turn into reality. In Bjornar Grande’s “Desire In The Great Gatsby”, Rene Girard’s theory of desire is applied to greatly explain the desires in Fitzgerald’s novel. Grande states, “Gatsby’s urge to rise in society leads to naive imitation, sometimes making him look ridiculous” (10).
Rightfully so as Grande state, Gatsby wants to accomplish his mission of getting Daisy back that he’s willing to do anything. He would cheat and lie his way up to the top to prove that he turned out to be a very fortunate person. In the end, he never got what he ultimately wanted. It is true that he has always wanted to live a fortunate lifestyle. However, Gatsby felt like his life was incomplete without Daisy in it. Going back to the green light, in correlation to a traffic light when it’s green, Gatsby is on “GO” after Daisy and he does not give up.
Gatsby does not know how to stop chasing after what he wants badly, and that eventually makes him look foolish in the end. Gatsby’s mansion is another representation of Roaring 20’s. Gatsby is known for throwing big parties quite often. His parties represent how carefree everyone was in the beginning of the 20’s. Everyone is live and full of joy. Nick recalls coming home one night thinking his house was on fire from bright lights, but as he got closer, he “saw that it was Gatsby’s house, lit from tower to cellar” (87). Very soon, when Daisy attends a party of Gatsby’s, she dislikes it.
Gatsby, wanting to be pleasing in Daisy’s eyes, puts an end to all parties in his mansion. The parties at Gatsby’s mansion represents how people lived carelessly in the 20’s. Money was borrowed from banks often and spent without a caution. When Gatsby’s parties come to a standstill, this represents the economic downfall of the Roaring 20’s because Gatsby’s mansion, once full of life, is now gloomy and lifeless. In the essay, “CRITICAL CONTEXTS: Gatsby in Context,” Jennifer Banach Palladino disparagingly analyzes the time period of the 20’s in which becoming wealthy was the ultimate goal for everyone.
She contends, “The American dream, which used to be about attaining security for one’s self and one’s family and happiness, has been corrupted by people who want money for money’s sake, for status, and for other shallow and selfish reasons. “(35) Gatsby’s mansion symbolizes wealth. He wanted the mansion mostly because of his love for Daisy. He yearned for Daisy so much, that he would do whatever it takes to please her expensive taste of wanting fortune. Kimberly Heard writes “Fitzgerald’s Rendering Of A Dream,” an article that depicts the American dream deferred throughout the entire novel.
Heard states, “… the American dream is beautiful yet grotesquely flawed and distorted. No matter what idyllic picture we paint of America and all of its promise, underneath the brightest of hues lies the stark white canvas of truth: No one is truly equal, and regardless of opportunities, someone is always struggling underfoot-inevitably, as one rises another falls”(191). Gatsby’s mansion is the perfect symbol of how it appears on the outside that his life is crystal clear, but internally he once lived a lie. He was never completely happy and his life was basically built upon dishonesties.
In the 20’s, everyone wanted to live out the “American Dream,” even if it consist of many flaws. Many people went bankrupt trying to depict their selves as someone they were not when the stock market crash came about. Many people of the 20’s who was once living the life, ended up with as little as a penny to their name. Dr. T. J. Eckleburg eyes on the billboard as an oculist advertisement has a much bigger meaning. As his eyes drift among the Valley of Ashes, it is yet, another significant symbol. The eyes represent how they see all. It depicts and image of God.
The past and present is seen from the Valley of Ashes, as well as the future because of the glasses he wears. In the novel, it is noted that “above the grey land and the spasms of bleak dust which drift endlessly over it, you perceive, after a moment, the eyes of Doctor T. J. Ecklburg”(26) The billboard has wear and tear on it. This relates to the Roaring 20’s because even though there has been an economic downfall and the society is hurt, God remains and does not crumble under pressure like his people did, nor does he leave them deserted when the economic downturn happened.
Lastly, the Valley of Ashes is an important aspect of the novel. The valley of ashes lies between West Egg and New York City. Within this land, it is filled with nothing but ashes. This represents how Roaring 20’s had a deserted outcome. It is noted that “the valley of ashes is bounded on one side by a small foul river… ” (27). Fitzgerald was a catholic. His religion maybe be an indication to what influenced him to add in the usage of billboard and the valley of ashes. In Robert C. Hauhart’s, “Religious Language And Symbolism In The Great Gatsby’s Valley Of Ashes,” he discusses the religious symbols the Fitzgerald implements.
Hauhart states: “Fitzgerald’s own religious background imbued his choice of the ashes for depicting desolation with a hint of religious symbolism. Ashes, for example, form an important part of one of Catholicism’s signal ceremonies-Ash Wednesday, inaugurating the penitential period of Lent and ultimately leading to Easter. At the same time, it is apparent that not all of the images and references arising from the valley of ashes are exclusively Catholic, since most Christian religions imbue ashes with significance. ” The ashes in the valley are a symbol of the fallen sins committed by everyone.
The ashes consists of sins such as partying, drinking, evilness, and everything that is considered immoral. In the beginning of the 1920’s everyone had a great time, showing hardly any remorse for their actions of wrongdoing. The ashes in the valley is a representation of how people gave up being acceptable in thy sight of God, in regards to how during lent, something is given up. The river that runs by the valley of ashes represents how the debt continues to flow into America during the stock market crash. People who once thought they were very fortunate became deprived in the end.
The society as a whole collapsed in shambles Fitzgerald brilliantly uses symbols throughout his novel to represent what the Roaring 20’s was about. The Roaring 20’s was an era America had never seen. Jazz music was discovered. Flappers were known as dancers with short hair and dresses. The Roaring 20’s was also known for the 1929 Stock Market Crash, leading America into the Great Depression. Fitzgerald uniquely uses the green light, Gatsby’s mansion, the oculist, and the valley of ashes to symbolize aspects of the Roaring 1920’s.