How Does The Valley Of Ashes Symbolize In The Great Gatsby

Symbolism in literature is used to represent ideas and qualities by giving them deeper, more significant meaning beyond their literal sense. They also repeat throughout the story in different ways in order to exemplify the change in conflict and plot and to emphasize a theme. In The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author uses a plethora of different symbols for this purpose. He deftly uses the billboard, the Valley of Ashes, and the green light as symbols to advance his plot and enhance the quality of the novel.

The billboard, or the eyes of TJ Eckleburg was an important theme in The Great Gatsby. Positioned in the middle of a long, barren land was a giant billboard advertising an oculist shop. Pictured on the sign was a pair of

eyes without a face, the eyes of the Doctor, TJ Eckleburg. From the surface, this simple billboard seems to mean nothing more than an advertisement, however its meaning is developed throughout the novel. The billboard is first mentioned during Nick’s first impression of Queens. “The eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are blue and gigantic - their retinas are one yard high. They look out of no face but, instead, from a pair of enormous yellow spectacles which pass over a nonexistent nose” (Fitzgerald 26). Fitzgerald surrounds this symbol with a mysterious and eerie mood, and even confuses the reader by going into so much detail on what seems to be a simple ad. While the author could have just stated that there was an oculist shop ad, he chose to use imagery and make sure the reader could visualize it, making the reader realize its importance, and that it must stand for something. The description of the ad also exemplifies horror with the use of words like “gigantic,” “no face,” and “nonexistent nose.” Fitzgeralds intention was to introduce these eyes as a sad watcher of the city. The second time the billboard is mentioned, Nick is with Tom and Jordan when they drive past it and Nick suddenly remembers something Gatsby told him about the gasoline. This sudden realization happens as if Eckleberg warned him that the car is low on gas. During a conversation between the coffee shop owner Michaelis and George Wilson, the billboard eyes appear for the last time. “‘You may fool me but you can't fool God!’ Standing behind him Michaelis saw with a shock that he was looking at the eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg which had just emerged pale and enormous from the dissolving night” (170). The reader can now infer the meaning of the billboard, which is found to be very surprising and disturbing. Wilson does not go to church, however he wants God, or someone to worship, so he turns to the eyes of Dr. TJ Eckleburg, meaning that the billboards eyes are the eyes of a god watching over the city. The eyes of Eckleburg seem to observe everything wrong happening in the lives of the main characters. Nick seems to be an irrelevant character, since all he does is narrate the story, however it makes sense that he pays attention to the billboard, which watches over everyone, while he himself watches and describes everything happening.
Another important symbol in The Great Gatsby was the Valley of Ashes, which is a vast, industrial area in Queens covered in ashes and dust from the factories.

The first time Nick encounters the Valley of Ashes is again, one of his first impressions on Queens. “ This is a Valley of Ashes - a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and finally, with a transcendent effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air.” (26) Here, Fitzgerald uses imagery again to create more meaning out of the valley. He begins by describing it as a “fantastic farm,” however, the descriptions afterwards have nothing to do with the happy and green image usually associated with farms. Instead, the author uses words like “grotesque gardens,” “rising smoke,” and “powdery air”. He creates a disturbing mood by describing how a beautiful, natural landscape has been transformed into a disgusting field of ash. When Nick observes this valley, he is annoyed because he has to wait for the drawbridge to lead the barges through, however, Nick is clearly disconnected from the reality of the situation. The same factories that create the Valley of Ashes, gives money to the population of the West Egg. This moment symbolizes the disconnection between the rich, and their knowledge, or even consideration about where their wealth actually comes from. Fitzgerald also describes the

people working in the factories as “swarming,” “ash-grey,” men, making them seem irrelevant compared to the wealthy. A main theme of The Great Gatsby was the gap between the rich and the poor, and the Valley of Ashes symbolizes this theme. It stands for the poor and forgotten working class who give the rich their wealthy lifestyle, and it acts as a place of giving up and hopelessness.
The green light was one of the most alluring and mysterious symbols in The Great Gatsby.

The reader first encounters it when Nick sees Gatsby standing in his yard, arms outstretched, facing the opposite side of the bay where there is a small, green light. Literally, the green light is a lamp at the end of Tom and Daisy’s dock, and since Gatsby lives directly across the bay, he can always see it. This green light has symbolic meaning which changes throughout the story. In the beginning, it is hard to tell what exactly this light could mean, only a very mysterious mood is established around it, and Gatsby is outstretching his arms towards something he can not reach, both physically and symbolically: Daisy. Here, the green light symbolizes hope because Gatsby believes he will someday be with Daisy once more. He looks at the green light with hopefulness towards his future with her. Towards the middle of the novel, the meaning of the light changes completely. Instead of having to hope to be with Daisy, the next time the green light is mentioned, Daisy is actually standing with Gatsby. He no longer has to reach out across the bay to her. “‘If it wasn't for the mist we could see your home across the bay,’ said Gatsby. ‘You always have a green light that burns all night at the end of your dock’"(99). Gatsby almost seems to not realize the reality of the moment, because he is realizing that the green light is simply just an object across the bay, since his previous hopes had come

true. The last time the green light is encountered in the story, it is no longer an actual object, because Daisy and Tom have moved away, and Gatsby is dead. The light and its symbolic meaning remain in Nick’s memories, and it is mentioned with a sad mood. Overall, the green light symbolizes a positive future that ultimately fails to happen, which is why the mood is so upsetting at the end of the novel.
The use of symbolism in The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald was crucial to the theme, conflict, and plot of the novel. Fitzgerald uses symbolism to exercise meaning throughout the novel, while repeating the symbols in different ways to emphasize the change in the plot. The novel is well known for its symbolic meaning, and many close readers enjoy the analytical aspect of it. The three symbols; the billboard, the Valley of Ashes, and the green light are deftly used to to advance the plot and enhance the quality of the novel.