THE EYES OF DOCTOR T.J ECKLEBURG
"But his eyes, dimmed a little by many painless days under sun and rain, brood on over the solemn dumping ground". (Fitzgerald, 24)
"But above the gray land and the spasms of bleak dust which drift endlessly over it, you perceive after a moment, the eyes of Doctor T.J Eckleburg"(23)
- eyes represent a godly-like image
- people are considered to be blind to the realities of the world in the 20's
- the glasses illustrate how they are not seeing things clearly
"But above the gray land and the spasms of bleak dust which drift endlessly over it, you perceive after a moment, the eyes of Doctor T.J Eckleburg"(23)
tHE VALLEY oF Ashes
"This is a valley of ashes - a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat…"(23)
- represents the rotting of the American Dream
- Mostly to help communicate that the real world is not as glamourized just like Daisy's house
- generally those of the lower class live here
Police Dog
"I'd like to get one of those police dogs; I dont suppose you got that kind?" (27)
- dog represents ownership,captivity, and slavery
- the relationship between dog and man is master to servant
- this illustrates the relationship Myrtle and Tom have together
- After drinking, Tom shows a violent side of himself as he "broke [Myrtle's] nose with his open hand," (Fitzgerald p.37). Another mention of Tom's violent attitude is when Daisy exclaims that Tom hurt her by 'accident' in the first chapter. We can conclude from this that Tom is an abusive partner to both Daisy and Myrtle.When Myrtle would "like to get one of those police dogs..." (Fitzgerald p.27), it may suggest that she feels unsafe around Tom, and the police dog gives an essence of safety to her.
Colour SYMBOLISM
Grey/Darkness
- represents reality
- reoccurring colour in chapter 2
"And a gray, scrawny Italian child was setting torpedoes in a row along the railroad track." (26)
- represents reality
- reoccurring colour in chapter 2
"And a gray, scrawny Italian child was setting torpedoes in a row along the railroad track." (26)
Colour symbolism
Blue
- symbolizes illusions
- everything is not what it seems and this is represented by the colour of Doctor Eckleburg's eyes
- everybody strives for this american dream lifestyle but they don't see the downfalls of it either
-illustrated on how Eckleburg's eyes are a faded blue, the faded blue symbolizes the moral decay and the uprising of illusions
- symbolizes illusions
- everything is not what it seems and this is represented by the colour of Doctor Eckleburg's eyes
- everybody strives for this american dream lifestyle but they don't see the downfalls of it either
-illustrated on how Eckleburg's eyes are a faded blue, the faded blue symbolizes the moral decay and the uprising of illusions