Symbolism In The Beautiful And Damned By F. Scott Fitzgerald

In Fitzgerald’s works one of the most important characteristic of his style is use of symbols. The beauty and liveliness of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s writing is more conspicuously pen down when it comes using colours for symbolism. Through Fitzgerald’s point of view colour symbolism mirrors the inside reality of 1920’s the Jazz Age. In Fitzgerald’s The Beautiful and Damned, symbols play an integral part in the novel. This chapter of academic research will emphasize various colours used for symbolism in the novel. Samkanashvili states that Fitzgerald works like a painter and makes his writing very visual she adds that using colours gives a clearer picture into characters and their experiences (31).

Economic Prosperity and Moral Detroit

Fitzgerald’s novel The Beautiful and Damned narrates a story of Anthony Patch, a grandson of millionaire Adam Patch who dislikes his grandson because he does not work hard enough to prove himself as an heir of his wealth. Anthony waits for his grandfather to die so he can become heir of Patch wealth. In a process of getting wealth he marries a golden girl Gloria Gilbert. Both indulge themselves in marry making hence meet their end in a complete self destruction.

Fitzgerald begins the novel by stating “The victors belong to the spoils”. From the very beginning writer sets the tone of deterioration which is said by the protagonist of the novel. The text starts gloomy tone where narrates refers to “The Holy Ghost” (Fitzgerald 3) this sets the ill tone which is carried throughout the novel. Life of Adam Patch is summed up in colours Fitzgerald states his small eyes in dark-bluish, gray to white and from pink to yellow (13). Colours like blue, pink, gray, white and yellow shows different stages of Ad...

... middle of paper ...

... irony the American Dream which Anthony and Gloria started to pursuit it was all beautiful full hopes and imposing promises both of them are young, beautiful and full of passion but as they starts the journey together to achieve their dream they lost the true meaning of the American Dream which made them damned completely and the illusion of money might bring all the happiness ends for them. As far as the psychological mind set of characters is concerned throughout the text Fitzgerald has used bright striking colour like red, green, yellow with gray, blue and dusk. This combination of the colours gives an inside into characters cognitive state that no matter how much they are surrounded by the glam and glitters of the Jazz Age they are all gloomy, lonely and miserable from inside. The dreams and hopes which they had all shatters into an intangible illusion.