Important Symbols and Imagery
Slagle (Pg. 158)
"This is Slagle speaking...' 'Yes?' The name was unfamiliar. 'Hell of a note, isn't it? Get my wire?'"
Slagle is a business associate of Gatsbys who wires him in the last chapter about one of their men who was arrested in New York. This alludes to and suggests the dirty history of Gatsby and his tainted work. Slagle immediately hangs up when Nick answers suggesting that Gatsby's legacy as a smuggler is over.
"This is Slagle speaking...' 'Yes?' The name was unfamiliar. 'Hell of a note, isn't it? Get my wire?'"
Slagle is a business associate of Gatsbys who wires him in the last chapter about one of their men who was arrested in New York. This alludes to and suggests the dirty history of Gatsby and his tainted work. Slagle immediately hangs up when Nick answers suggesting that Gatsby's legacy as a smuggler is over.
Henry C. Gatz (158)
"It was Gatsby's father, a solemn old man, very helpless and dismayed, bundled up in a long cheap cluster against the warm september day"
Gatsby's father represents a connection to the true James Gatz, which we do not see when Gatsby is alive. Also, Gatsby's father shows a lot about Gatsby because when he was stripped from his fame and power he is just another son of a poor farming family. Henry Gatz talks about Gatsby like a son and not a man of power that we are used to seeing throughout the novel.
"It was Gatsby's father, a solemn old man, very helpless and dismayed, bundled up in a long cheap cluster against the warm september day"
Gatsby's father represents a connection to the true James Gatz, which we do not see when Gatsby is alive. Also, Gatsby's father shows a lot about Gatsby because when he was stripped from his fame and power he is just another son of a poor farming family. Henry Gatz talks about Gatsby like a son and not a man of power that we are used to seeing throughout the novel.
Gatsby's Funeral (160)
The only people who attend Gatsby's funeral are his father, Owl Eyes, Nick, and the minister. The significance of this is that Gatsby surrounded himself with people making him seemingly loved, yet in the end no more than a hand full of people would show up to his funeral signifying the emptiness of Gatsby's life.
The only people who attend Gatsby's funeral are his father, Owl Eyes, Nick, and the minister. The significance of this is that Gatsby surrounded himself with people making him seemingly loved, yet in the end no more than a hand full of people would show up to his funeral signifying the emptiness of Gatsby's life.
Weather Symbolism (Pg. 163)
"When I left his office the sky had turned dark and I got back to West Egg in a drizzle"
Nick leaves Meyer Wolfshiem's office after Meyer refuses to attend Gatsby's funeral. The weather establishes the mood (pathetic fallacy) for this scene created in this chapter as Nick is dissappointed and sad that Gatsby's closest friend refused to go to the funeral.
Furthermore, the novel begins with Nick moving into West Egg during the spring/summer season "when great bursts of leaves were growing on the trees" (9). The book ends in the fall season as many references towards fall are made. This is another example of how nature symbolizes the mood of Gatsby's death and how his end came about during the season of death.
"When I left his office the sky had turned dark and I got back to West Egg in a drizzle"
Nick leaves Meyer Wolfshiem's office after Meyer refuses to attend Gatsby's funeral. The weather establishes the mood (pathetic fallacy) for this scene created in this chapter as Nick is dissappointed and sad that Gatsby's closest friend refused to go to the funeral.
Furthermore, the novel begins with Nick moving into West Egg during the spring/summer season "when great bursts of leaves were growing on the trees" (9). The book ends in the fall season as many references towards fall are made. This is another example of how nature symbolizes the mood of Gatsby's death and how his end came about during the season of death.
Hopalong Cassidy Book (164)
Gatsby's father shows Nick one of Gatz's books called Hopalong Cassidy and on the back of the book is schedule of things that a young Gatz wanted to accomplish. This symbolizes Gatsby's ambition and his pursuit of perfection and how from a young age Gatsby had ambition to fulfill his perception of the American dream.
Gatsby's father shows Nick one of Gatz's books called Hopalong Cassidy and on the back of the book is schedule of things that a young Gatz wanted to accomplish. This symbolizes Gatsby's ambition and his pursuit of perfection and how from a young age Gatsby had ambition to fulfill his perception of the American dream.
Colour Symbolism (166)
"the long and green tickets clasped tight in our gloved hands. And last the murky yellow cars of Chicago"
In this scene, Nick references the Chicago train and about all the memories of old friends and people on the way to something important in their lives while clasping the green tickets of the train symbolizing the hopes of each American and their pursuit of happiness. Nick then describes the cars of Chicago to be murky yellow and this represents the corruption of Chicago as it was home to illegal rum running, notorious gangs, as well as Gatsby's business.
"the long and green tickets clasped tight in our gloved hands. And last the murky yellow cars of Chicago"
In this scene, Nick references the Chicago train and about all the memories of old friends and people on the way to something important in their lives while clasping the green tickets of the train symbolizing the hopes of each American and their pursuit of happiness. Nick then describes the cars of Chicago to be murky yellow and this represents the corruption of Chicago as it was home to illegal rum running, notorious gangs, as well as Gatsby's business.
Gatsby's House (170)
After Gatsby's death, his house is left decrepit in its state. What was once described as something of amazement is slowly being overtaken by nature. This represents Gatsby's image as what was once the source of jealousy, beauty, and splendour that has now been reduced to nothing after his death because of the murder of Myrtle Wilson. Furthermore, Gatsby's house once represented the elegant facade that he created for himself and the American dream. Nick describes the house as a failure now, which is a way of saying that Gatsby has been torn down and the decline of the American dream.
After Gatsby's death, his house is left decrepit in its state. What was once described as something of amazement is slowly being overtaken by nature. This represents Gatsby's image as what was once the source of jealousy, beauty, and splendour that has now been reduced to nothing after his death because of the murder of Myrtle Wilson. Furthermore, Gatsby's house once represented the elegant facade that he created for himself and the American dream. Nick describes the house as a failure now, which is a way of saying that Gatsby has been torn down and the decline of the American dream.
East and West (167)
In the beginning of the novel Nick says that "the middle-west seemed like the ragged end of the universe" and that he would want to move to the East to start a newer, more fast-paced life style. However, he regrets moving to the East and longs for his home in the West, eventually moving back to his family. He describes the East as "night scene by El Greco: a hundred houses, at once conventional and grotesque, crouching under a sullen, overhanging sky and a lustreless moon". This depicts the East as a land of great expectations and opportunity that people flock to under the suspicion that they will feel happy, but all -in-all, people are left with a bitter aftertaste of what they hoped to achieve. The West is a more modest and conservative land, which retains the traditional american values.
In the beginning of the novel Nick says that "the middle-west seemed like the ragged end of the universe" and that he would want to move to the East to start a newer, more fast-paced life style. However, he regrets moving to the East and longs for his home in the West, eventually moving back to his family. He describes the East as "night scene by El Greco: a hundred houses, at once conventional and grotesque, crouching under a sullen, overhanging sky and a lustreless moon". This depicts the East as a land of great expectations and opportunity that people flock to under the suspicion that they will feel happy, but all -in-all, people are left with a bitter aftertaste of what they hoped to achieve. The West is a more modest and conservative land, which retains the traditional american values.
Owl-Eyes (165)
Initially we are introduced to Owl Eyes at one of Gatsby's parties and we know him as a character who sees the true nature of people. He sees through the facade of Gatsby and he is only one of the handfull of people who attend his funeral further suggesting that he sees something beyond Gatsby's money and generosity; that Gatsby indeed was a good man.
Initially we are introduced to Owl Eyes at one of Gatsby's parties and we know him as a character who sees the true nature of people. He sees through the facade of Gatsby and he is only one of the handfull of people who attend his funeral further suggesting that he sees something beyond Gatsby's money and generosity; that Gatsby indeed was a good man.
