In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald details the American society during the Roaring Twenties. Fitzgerald uses symbolism of T.J. Eckleburg 's eyes to convey the loss of spiritual values in America in order to show how society lost their religion and ethics during the Roaring Twenties. In addition, Fitzgerald entails the corruption of society, the eyes of an omnipotent God, and implies the carelessness and mistreatment of people towards each other through T.J. Eckleburg’s eyes. To begin with, Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby are both corrupt individuals. Tom Buchanan’s personality represents the higher social class of America in the 1920s. Notably, when Nick Carraway goes to visit the Buchanan family, Tom bluntly explains to Nick, “I’ve got a nice place here, showing off his opulent estate”(7). Tom is …show more content…
In The Great Gatsby the valley of ashes can represent the abandonment of the population in the city, and in turn the billboard symbolizes Thomas Jefferson looking down into the remains of the agriculture in society. The valley of ashes represents the poor life Gatsby left behind and by choosing not to return he has sealed his fate. Altogether, the eyes witness Myrtle’s affair with Tom Buchanan and her death when Daisy runs over Myrtle. The billboard’s eyes are linked symbolically with the eyes of a judging God who sees all sinners. After Myrtle’s death Wilson hints that while people may think their evil deeds go unnoticed, God is always watching. In addition, the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg is symbolic of Nick Carraway, throughout the novel he is judging each character though his father told him to reserve all judgements to himself. In conclusion, the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg represent the the corruption of society, the eyes of an omnipotent God, and implies the carelessness and mistreatment of people towards each
Reading through the novel The Great Gatsby, it becomes evident that Dr. Eckelberg symbolizes God and oversees events that occur. The characters in the novel refer to "the eyes of Dr. Eckelberg" often. Doctor T.J. Eckleburg symbolizes three things. He symbolizes the corruption of society; his eyes represent the eyes of an omnipotent God, and he implies carelessness and mistreatment.
Stories can be interpreted many different ways when one happens to be trapped in a section of their lives. Their point of views and emotions all greatly affect the way they think and react. Especially in Fitzgerald’s book, The Great Gatsby, people commonly act in their best interest rather than thinking about the impacts of their actions. The wealthy ones can easily do whatever they like without too heavily worrying about their consequences; however, the huge gap between the poor and the rich further encourage the rich to be blindness of their actions. Throughout The Great Gatsby, the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg symbolize the failure of the American dream, God watching over mankind, and serves as a warning.
There are many themes that are implemented in the Great Gatsby that Fitzgerald uses as a technique to juxtapose two contrasting topics. During this time of the Roaring Twenties, business and economy was booming, however there’s still a underlying hint of urban corruption and the gap between the rich and poor became greater. Through the technique of juxtaposition, Fitzgerald paints a detailed picture of society in the 1920’s and its cultural clashes. By comparing the characters living in the East and West Egg, Fitzgerald highlights the contrast between morality and corruption in society during the 1920’s. Additionally, his contrasting descriptions of Tom and Daisy’s house in the Valley of Ashes offers a juxtaposition of the rich and poor.
First and foremost, the Eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are representative of an omniscient God. The Great Gatsby begins chapter one with a description of “The eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are blue and gigantic – their irises 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 23). Fitzgerald describes the eyes of T. J. Eckleburg as if they are big and nobody can miss them. The enormous yellow spectacles let the readers know that Eckleburg has
Throughout the Great Gatsby, the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg are used repeatedly throughout the story as a god-like figure. The eyes of this billboard look out over the Valley of Ashes and watch quietly as demoralizing events occur: “God sees everything,”
The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a novel based on Gatsby’s dream and hope. In order to enrich the story, symbols are used to emphasize what the author is saying and they create a curiosity in the reader as they are frequently used throughout the story. These three symbols – green light, valley of ashes and the eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg are not connected to each other but each of them represents important things in the story.
Hugh Hefner once said, “I looked back on the roaring Twenties, with its jazz, 'Great Gatsby' and the pre-Code films as a party I had somehow managed to miss.” The parties of the Roaring Twenties were used to symbolize wealth and power in a society that was focused more on materialism and gossip than the important things in life, like family, security, and friends. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, portrays the characters of Tom and Daisy Buchanan as the epitome of the era. The reader sees these characters acting selfishly and trying to meddle with others’ lives. On the other hand, Nick Carraway, the narrator, acts more to help others and act honestly. Initially the reader sees Carraway’s views towards Jay Gatsby as negative as Gatsby’s actions are perceived as being like the Buchanan’s. As the novel moves forward, the reader notices a change in Carraway’s attitude towards Gatsby. Carraway sees Gatsby for whom he truly is, and that is a loving person who only became rich to win Daisy’s heart. But in this the reader also sees how corrupt and hurtful Gatsby’s actions were to the love of his life. Gatsby’s relationship with Daisy reveals that just as Gatsby’s dream of wooing Daisy is corrupted by illegalities and dishonesty, the “American Dream” of friendship and individualism has disintegrated into the simple pursuit of wealth, power, and pleasure.
Scott Fitzgerald was a writer who desired his readers to be able to hear, feel, and see his work. He made it his goal to be able to make readers think and keep asking questions using imagery and symbolism. The Great Gatsby was not just about the changes that occurred during the Jazz Age, but it was also about America’s corrupted society which was full of betrayal and money-hungry citizens. It was the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg that overlooked all the corruption that occurred throughout the Valley of Ashes. It was the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg that serves as a symbol of higher power who witnesses everything from betrayal to chaos in Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.
In The Great Gatsby, the Valley of the Ashes illustrate the inequality between its inhabitants and that of West Egg and East Egg, in terms of social standing and income, as well as the hopelessness of poverty resulting from the inability of its inhabitants to rise up the socio-economic ladder. Thus, the valley represents the failure of the Dream that America promises, which is the ideal of equal opportunities for all, associated with the New World.
The eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg are perhaps the most important symbol in The Great Gatsby. The eyes can be taken as the eyes of God or even as us, the observers. We are observing the characters in what they do and analyzing them as an example of what is wrong or what is right. In this case, we are observing Daisy Buchanan and Jay Gatsby. We are observing their conducts and deciphering whether their actions are wrong or right.
... on waiting trains can stare at the dismal scene for as long as half an hour” (24). The symbol is important to the story because it shows that no matter how fabulous a place looks there is always a dark side. Another symbol in The Great Gatsby is the eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg which symbolizes the eyes of God staring down in distaste of the corrupt city and how God has lost his connection with that city. The eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are described as this, “The eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are blue and gigantic-their retinas are one yard high” (23). F. Scott Fitzgerald mentions the eyes again soon after, “I followed him over a low whitewashed railroad fence, and we walked back a hundred yards along the road under Doctor Eckleburg’s persistent stare” (24). This symbol is important to the story because it shows that the flashy cities were not approved of.
The Great Gatsby: Unfaithfulness and Greed. The love described in the novel, The Great Gatsby, contains "violence and egoism not tenderness and affection." The author, F. Scott Fitzgerald, writes on wealth, love, and corruption. Two coupes, Tom and Daisy Buchanan and George and Myrtle Wilson, match perfectly with these categories. Both couples are different in the way they choose to live together, but are similar in a few ways. Unfaithfulness and greed are the only similarities the couples shared.
The eyes of T J Eckleburg represent the loss of moral and social values in America, the hollowness of the American Dream, and the corruption of people. T.J. Eckleburg’s eyes stare down at everyone around them, including the main characters that pass by it on their trips to New York City. In this way, the symbol of the eyes reveals the corruption of the American Dream through the people that the eyes are watching. The eyes ‘watch’ as Gatsby goes to luncheon with Nick to meet Wolfshiem, the dishonest man who helped fix the World Series. The eyes too have watched Tom go into the city...
World War I brought new views on religion to the United States, it ended just before the 1920s so these views were carried over. Some turned to god, while others turned away. Morals were changing in that people spent their time and money on completely different things now. Religion had been the basis of many people’s lives before this, making this way of thinking and acting brand new. In The Great Gatsby, Doctor T. J. Eckleburg’s eyes symbolize god and how traditional religion and morality are sinking away from everyday life.
In brief, the world of The Great Gatsby can seem as sordid, loveless, commercial, and dead as the ash heaps presided over by the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg. Indeed, this atmosphere is so essential that one of the alternate titles Fitzgerald considered was Among the Ash-Heaps and Millionaires. Fitzgerald using the valley of ashes, illustrates an environment where love has lost its place, which destroys hope for a family; the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg, clearly intended to represent those of God, emphasizes that this lack of love and filial piety in a sin against themselves as well as society and God.