Symbolic Meaning of Colors in the Great Gatsby - Essay Example

Symbolic Meaning of Colors in The Great Gatsby

When reading the Great Gatsby, you will often run into the use of different colors such as yellow, green, and white that bear significant meaning in the story. We look at the symbolic meaning of colors in the Great Gatsby. Yellow symbolizes social class, wealth, and Daisy. In the early 1900s, the color symbolizes the high social group for the elite and show off class and affluence. Gatsby believes in getting Daisy back; there is a mission he must embark on becoming wealthy, famous, and successful. Gatsby chooses the yellow color that symbolizes the high social class and applies it everywhere from his attire to home decor. Yellow is made a trademark for his house parties as a sign of his wealth. Gatsby further shows off his affluence with the plated car, gold-brazed toiletries, gold embedded music, and decorations. There is a comparison between the golden age led by Gatsby and the modern world. His world involves coveting money and status, while the modern world involves seeking God as the sole aim of life. There is a clear relation between yellow and Daisy. The color is symbolic of the greed, affluence, and cowardice Gatsby has in life. Yellow envisions the ultimate sacrifice in the eyes of Gatsby. At one point in the book, Gatsby shows off his vast collection of shirts, which breaks down Daisy into a pool of tears as she submerges herself in the shirts. It becomes apparent that the more she stays around him with the promise of a wealthy status, the more she would be letting herself live a terrible marriage life. The light makes her aware of wealth that symbolizes loneliness.

The yellow feather symbolizes the falling leave that symbolizes the demise, rot, destruction, and darkness that comes with great power. When Mr.Wilson shoots Gatsby, he slowly walks into the yellow leaf trees. The fading light symbolizes the end of the dreams. The slow walk through the trees and fading light makes Gatsby recount his life. With all that he earned in his life, Gatsbys experience includes feelings of emptiness and unaccomplished dreams. Despite the happiness with wealth in life, he feels sad and incomplete. The emptiness inside makes Gatsby paint a light of the purpose of chasing their dreams. The slow walk to his death symbolizes the end of the American Dream. Gatsbys dies without achieving his ultimate goal of having Daisy, who was the ultimate price. Even when he had her by his side, he could not feel the feeling of accomplishment. It was still unsatisfactory in Gatsbys eyes. Various depictions paint the use of the yellow color within the book with a different meaning. The yellow trees represent the death and downfall of the main character. The yellow color represents a sign of death, solidified by the fact that Mr. Wilson and Gatsby both die in the yellow car. Apart from symbolizing wealth, Daisy, status, and eventual demise, yellow also points a reflection of the death of the light with the American Dream. Yellow symbolizes the struggles he lives in his quest to achieve his life dreams. The struggles he faces lays the foundation of the American Dream that keeps Gatsby motivated to achieve more. After acquiring wealth, there is supposed to be a feeling of fulfillment. However, there is a sense of a void deep inside him. Aside from acting as a motivation for his success, the color representation finally acts as a blow to the general nature of the character’s life. Yellow also symbolizes the character’s final fate and its reflection on the notion of the American Dream.

Daisy is the embodiment of the purity expressed through the white color. White is symbolic of peace, pureness, and the innocent nature of Daisy. The first encounter between Daisy and Gatsby shows her downing a white gown. Gatsby rocks a white suit during their first visit too. Despite this, Gatsby comes off as immature throughout the entire scene. Daisy’s presence evokes a mixture of feelings of nervousness and embarrassment. The Gatsbys innocence is represented with the white suit for the occasion. Throughout her childhood, Daisy lived peacefully in her white home that had white decorations on the side. The place was downed in white gowns and had a white car. Through her entire lifestyle, Daisy comes off as a pure and innocent noble girl.

Contrary to popular opinion, white is not symbolic of the light, pureness, virtue, innocent nature, the beauty of nobleness. White is also symbolic of emptiness, a vacuum, a selfish nature, materialism, and ruthless behavior in Daisy. Daisy’s representation with the white color paints a picture of a character with two personalities. At first, Daisy comes off as gentle, calm, beautiful, and rational with the white color, but her other personality presents an irrational, selfish, heartless, greedy, and self-centered person. Daisy was raised with pure luxuries surrounding her entire life representing the white privilege. Daisy life faded away as she lived in total solitude and boredom. The character of Daisy transforms from the innocent white life into a hollow and superficial figure that represents both purity and corruption. The white background of innocence taints more after looking into the lifestyle of Daisy.

The spring season depicts the use of the green color that signals a newfound hope and revitalization. Green is the initial representation of Gatsbys original dream. The color green indicates the pursuance of the long dream and marks a sense of corruption. Gatsbys eyes view the green light that shows Daisy as a long-life pursuit of happiness. Green showcases the point where he reveals the nature of his wealth to Daisy, which makes her cry. When Daisy lies in his arms, Gatsbys realizes that he is closer to his dreams. However, he feels lost in his realities due to the difference that exists between fact and fiction with Daisy. The green color symbol also comes with the resultant death of the main character. It becomes clear who lives with the dreams, eventually succumbs to it with the fading green leaves. It paints a clear picture of the true result of the American Dream. Gatsbys life portrays an image of the future life with which we are living in. Even though he knows that his allusions allude, he still believes there is light for people who believe in it. Apart from the reality which beckons the dream, the green light also shows the newfound hope. The new green light shows the struggle that must be felt in the pursuit of Gatsbys dream. The symbolic green color makes the theme in the book more complete while giving it a more in-depth and profound meaning. The green symbol paints a clear picture of what makes the American dream and what costs people are willing to take to have it. It tests the limits and human extents that they are eager to go to in order to achieve their goals with all the forces against them in life.