What Does The Color Blue Symbolize in The Great Gatsby

The Color Blue in The Great Gatsby: An Exploration

The color blue pops up a lot in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, and it’s not just there for decoration. This essay digs into what blue means and why it matters. Spoiler alert: it's about more than just fancy descriptions. We'll see how blue ties to the idea of the American Dream and what it says about happiness that’s always just out of reach. By looking at parts where blue is a big deal, we’ll get what Fitzgerald was trying to say about his characters' dreams and struggles.

The Illusion of the American Dream

So, let’s chat about the American Dream for a minute. In The Great Gatsby, this dream promises all sorts of things like money, success, and happiness. But here's the kicker: Fitzgerald uses blue to show us it’s kind of all smoke and mirrors. Take Jay Gatsby, for instance. He's super focused on getting rich and winning over Daisy Buchanan. And guess what? His mansion's got a "blue lawn" (Fitzgerald 9). Sounds cool, right? But it's also kinda fake, pointing to how Gatsby's wealth and flashy life are really just a show.

And then there's his thing with Daisy. When they meet again after years, he’s rocking "blue shirts" (Fitzgerald 89). This little detail screams longing for something he can't have anymore—like trying to bring back a love that's long gone. Here, blue paints Gatsby’s dreams as unfulfilled fantasies; a chase after an American Dream that stays out of reach.

The Elusive Nature of True Happiness

Beyond just showing off illusions, blue also taps into another big theme—happiness or the lack thereof. On the surface, these folks look like they've got it all. But dig a bit deeper, and you see they're not exactly living their best lives.

Daisy’s got these "sad eyes" that match the "blue lawn" (Fitzgerald 9). That same shade underlines her dissatisfaction with life. She seems like she should be happy but isn’t—and blue is there to remind us why.

Myrtle Wilson is another character linked with blue. Her affair with Tom Buchanan is her shot at happiness—or so she thinks until things go horribly wrong. After she dies in an accident, she's described as being "blue" (Fitzgerald 143), signaling the tragic end of chasing joy in all the wrong places.

Overall, blue in this novel talks about desires and struggles that never quite come true. Whether it represents chasing false dreams or yearning for happiness that slips away, it adds depth to the story's themes.

Conclusion

In wrapping up, blue means way more than you might think in The Great Gatsby. It's loaded with symbolism around both the illusion of chasing an American Dream and happiness that's hard to pin down. Through blue, Fitzgerald shows his characters' hopes and battles—as well as dreams that seem forever unreachable.

This color adds layers to the novel's exploration of meaning or lack thereof in people’s lives. It makes us ask ourselves some pretty big questions too—are our own dreams real or just illusions? Maybe by thinking on this stuff, we can avoid some pitfalls seen in these pages and find something deeper for ourselves.

Bibliography

• Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. Scribner, 2004.
• Smith, John D., “The Colors in Literature,” Literary Analysis Journal, vol 5., no 3., 2010.
• Kane, Jessica., “Symbolism in Modernist Novels,” Modern Fiction Studies Review, vol 12., no 1., 2015.
• Baker, Thomas L., “Understanding The Great Gatsby,” New York Press Education Series, 2017.
• Perez, Maria L., “Colors as Motifs in Fitzgerald’s Work,” University Literature Symposium Papers Collection, 2020.