Assignment 106

Symbolism in The Great Gatsby

Name: Emisha Ravani

paper: 106 The Twentieth Century Literature 1900 to World War ||

Roll no: 07

Enrollment no : 4069206420210031

Email id: emisharavani3459@gmail.com

Batch : 2021-2023(M.A sem 2) 

submitted to: S. B. Gardi Department of English, maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji bhavnager University

What Is Symbolism?

Symbolism is a literary device wherein words, people, markings, locations, or abstract ideas represent something beyond their literal meaning. The use of symbolism is not confined to works of literature; examples of symbolism appear in every corner of our everyday life. Road signs, logos, and emojis all employ symbolism, evoking ideas or moods.

Symbols are like magical carpet bags with unlimited storage space, where you can pack masses and masses of meaning and tuck them neatly into your narrative. Take poetry, for example. It's the shortest literary form and arguably relies the most on symbols. It's a very condensed form and can take a lot of work to unpack exhaustively. Virtually each word can be examined for its symbolic value. So very short works can, through symbols, convey enormous content.

Symbols allow for implicit layers of meaning in works to resonate on a thematic level. You can tell things explicitly, or indicate things dramatically, but the symbolic elements of narrative, even if we don't work to unpack them, speak to our unconscious or dreaming minds. The network of symbols in a particular work is sort of like its soul, or maybe its essence.

Types of Symbols

A symbol most commonly presents itself as a word, a figure of speech, an event or a character. There are a number of different ways a symbol might appear in a piece of literature, suggesting an array of different meanings. A symbol can take the form of a color, for example, red for passion or danger. The spring season might symbolize a new beginning. Types of weather conditions, such as fog, might represent the inability to think clearly. Other forms of symbolism include animals, the human body and objects.

Symbols and the Physical World

Symbolism can represent something that is happening in the physical world. For example, a lightning bolt might strike a tree while a murder is taking place, and the lightning hitting the tree could be a symbol of the killing. Similarly, a flower might symbolize youth, while an old, dying oak tree might symbolize old age.

Symbols Vs. Non-Symbols

The reader should not take everything in a literary work as symbolic. A plastic bag does not symbolize anything on its own. If, however, the bag is described as being gently blown around by the wind, drifting with no clear direction, it may symbolize wandering, or drifting aimlessly.

Symbol Cliches

Using symbolism can be as basic as inserting a symbol that can be connected to an action or event taking place in the plot. This is easy to do and adds to what the writer is trying to say, but using it too often can turn a good story and potentially good writing, into a series of obvious, unsubtle clichés.

Symbols as Part of Literature

Another slightly more difficult, but often more effective use of symbolism in literature can be seen when the writer has made the symbol a vital part of the work, not just a quick addition. Take the example of a man struggling with a dying relationship. The story could start in summer and slowly progress into winter as he grows colder and more distant with his partner. The changing of the seasons, from a warm, happy summer to a cold and frozen winter might symbolize his ever-darkening relationship.

Lightning might symbolize a violent act, such as murder, in literature.

In any piece of literary work, symbolism can be used to add or represent meaning that goes beyond what is literally being said. The actions and events within the plot can be looked at on one level, while literary symbols within the writing can be considered on another level.

 

Many students do not realize that the ability to identify symbols is important beyond the confines of their classes. The knowledge improves speech and writing and aids not only in interpretation of literature, but with interpretation of the world at large. Learn how to understand when an author is using a symbol, and how that symbol exemplifies the theme of the piece.

Distinguish between plot and theme. Plot refers to events that take place in the work, whereas theme refers to what the author attempts to convey by writing about them. For example, the plot of "Star Wars" could be expressed as follows: "A boy whose home and family were destroyed by the ruthless Galactic Empire teams up with a band of rebels to disable said empire's ultimate weapon." The themes in "Star Wars," on the other hand, could be anything you want them to be. Here's a relatively indisputable one: "The passionate will triumph over the dispassionate."

Read your story through from beginning to end. Repeat as necessary until you fully understand the plot. Then write the plot just as above: a single sentence summarizing the work. Based on that sentence, think about what the themes could be. Jot down as many as you can think of, even if they contradict one another. Feel free to write them in the form of morals. If it is not immediately apparent what the author wants you to believe, you may write them as two ideas in conflict with each other. Using the "Star Wars" example, you could write "passionate versus dispassionate" in place of "the passionate will triumph over the dispassionate."

Scan the story again. This time, tag (underline, highlight or jot down on a separate piece of paper) nouns that turn up more frequently than others. Examples from "Star Wars" might be "dark" and "galaxy."

Elaborate on inherent connotations. Let's look at the word "dark." Since before humans picked up pens, they've been afraid of what lies beyond their immediate vision. To a caveman, venturing out alone into the dark meant becoming susceptible to predators; to an author--even a contemporary one--you can be fairly sure that "dark" means something sinister, evil or isolated. If you're lucky enough to have tagged any of these freebies, look at them closely in relation to your theme. The theme in the example was, "The passionate will triumph over the dispassionate." You should immediately see the link between "evil" and "dispassionate," but don't stop there. What about "dark" as another word for "isolation?" Are the dispassionate isolated? Is Darth Vader--the "Dark Lord" himself--isolated? You could make a good case for it, based on the events of the movie. Try to do the same with your story. Don't assume that any tagged word is relevant to your theme in just one way.

Extend keywords in the theme to discussion points. On the other hand, the words you've flagged may not have such obvious connotations. Look at the word "galaxy." Nothing comes to mind, right? So let the theme you wrote down earlier help you. In "Star Wars," the rebels obviously represent the passionate and the Empire the dispassionate, but how is the galaxy related to these parties? You haven't yet addressed what there is to be passionate about. The Empire wants control of the galaxy, and the rebels want freedom to use the galaxy as they wish. Does that remind you of any resources right here on your home planet? Land? Wealth? In order to fully understand the symbol, replace the word "galaxy" with the word "resources." Try the same exercise with the words you've tagged in your story. Based on the theme you've written, what broader meaning could these words have? What could they represent that is essential not only to the plot, but to all human life? Keep in mind that Step 4 still applies: There is not one right answer.

Read the story one more time, mentally replacing your tagged symbols with the word(s) or concept(s) you believe they represent. Are there any that fall apart when you pay close attention to their context? Don't be discouraged. Simply repeat the exercise using another of your ideas.

Whether they're ruthless tornadoes or torrential hurricanes, storms can add atmosphere and conflict to a personal narrative or story. The use of vivid description is a crucial tool for bringing these weather phenomena to life on paper and moving your plot forward. Using figurative language and active verbs can help you place readers right in the middle of the rain, wind and thunder.

Mighty Metaphors and Storm Similes

A simile is a type of description that makes an explicit comparison between two things using the words "like" or "as." A metaphor, by contrast, is a direct comparison that does not use these words. You can use these devices to create surprising descriptions of your storm. If you're describing a hailstorm, for example, you might use a simile to write, "The hailstones clattered to the ground like marbles spilled from a box." To use a metaphor, you might write, "An avalanche of hailstones fell from the sky."

The Sound of Storms

In real life, the sounds of nature are often key indicators of approaching storms. You can bring these sound effects to your descriptions by using onomatopoeia, a device where words mimic the sounds of their meaning. For example, if a thunderstorm figures prominently in your story, the thunder could "rumble" or "boom," rain could "patter" against the windows" and wind could "rush" across a field. Try making a list of all the sounds the storm in your narrative might involve and brainstorm onomatopoeic words to describe them.

The Character of Storms

If a storm is central to your story's conflict, you might consider having the weather literally take on a life of its own. Personification occurs when a writer gives human characteristics, such as actions and emotions, to an inanimate object. If your characters are trapped in open water during a hurricane, you might write, "The angry waves smacked against the side of the boat." Although water can't feel anger, the description of the waves as "angry" adds emotional texture and characterization to the storm.

Vivid Verbs

Because bad weather can often get out of control, describing a storm is not the time to skimp on verb usage. Weak verbs, such as "was" or "were," drain your descriptions of energy rather than infuse them with detail. Using specific, active verbs for the storm's motion gives readers a more detailed image of the story's events. For example, the sentence, "The dark sky was lit up by lightning," is a good start, but revising it to include an active verb can make the description even more forceful: "Lightning flashed across the sky."

Literary devices are important to anyone who uses or studies words in a creative context. Ill-used literary devices can make a story or other literary work seem weak, flat or underdeveloped. Well-used literary devices have the opposite effect, helping writers create dynamic, strong and interesting stories.

Allusion

An allusion is a reference to a well-known person, event, place or phrase. The writer assumes the reader will understand the allusion, which may be crucial to the plot. Genre writers -- those specializing in fiction such as romance, mystery or science fiction -- may allude to places and characters from within their genre, while writers for a general audience tend to use allusions that do not require specialized knowledge by the reader. Examples include: "He's as brave as Han Solo" and "She was as lovely as Helen of Troy."

Ambiguity

Ambiguity gives multiple meanings to a sentence or phrase, such as Mercutio's line in "Romeo and Juliet" after he is fatally wounded. He says, "Call on me tomorrow and you shall find me a grave man," meaning he could be sad or, more likely, in his grave. Writers often use ambiguity to underscore the complexity of an issue or to help the character at hand confuse his or her opponents. Ambiguity can be useful in mystery stories, where a character may take a phrase to mean one thing although the speaker means something else.

Foreshadowing

Writers use foreshadowing to tell readers what to expect. This may come in the form of events or phrases that hint at actions to come later in the plot. Foreshadowing can be obvious or very subtle, creating suspense because the readers aren’t sure what to expect. For instance, a writer may focus on describing a weapon in the setting of a room, foreshadowing the fact that it will be used later.

Imagery

Imagery is arguably one of the most important literary devices. Writers use imagery to describe scenes, settings and characters to help readers visualize what is happening in the story. Imagery can be as simple as describing a character's physical surroundings or delve into more complex descriptions of the character's emotions and thoughts. For instance, T.S. Eliot uses imagery to describe the London fog in "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" when he writes, "The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window panes ... licked its tongue into the corners of the evening."

Metaphor

Metaphor is a form of figurative language that compares two things that are unrelated in an effort to give imagery and meaning to one of the things. Metaphors often state that one thing is another; for instance, "Her skin was ivory and her hair was flowing silk." The woman is not actually made of ivory and silk, but those words describe the woman's skin and hair, furthering the image.

Conflict

Conflict in a story is a struggle between two opposing characters or forces. Conflict often composes the main part of the plot or theme in a narrative. Conflict can involve two struggling characters, a character against society, natural forces, the supernatural or an internal conflict. For instance, in "Romeo and Juliet" the conflict is between the feuding Montagues and Capulets.

Climax

The climax is the turning point of a work, often the point of the greatest action, suspense, tension or emotional intensity. The author may use climax to describe the final battle of a work, reveal a mystery or show whether or not the main character is successful at his or her endeavors. For instance, in the movie "Clue" the climax comes near the end when those responsible for all of the deaths are revealed.

Symbols in The Great Gatsby

The Green Light

The green light on Daisy Buchanan's East Egg dock that Jay Gatsby can somewhat see from his dock across the water in West Egg is a symbol of the unreachable. It symbolizes the title character's yearning for what is in his line of sight but remains out of his reach. After all, many things divide East Egg from West Egg beyond just a body of water, including class, social status, power, and more.

Green is one of the colors in The Great Gatsby that conveys symbolic meaning. It's important that this light is green, as green is the color of the "new money" that Jay now has and hopes will help him win Daisy's love.

Gatsby's Extravagant House

The enormous mansion that Gatsby purchases with his newly gained wealth symbolizes the extravagance of the Jazz Age along with its emptiness. While he hopes that his ability to purchase the mansion will help him win Daisy's love, it's ultimately Daisy's cousin, Nick Carraway, who spends the most time with Gatsby. Nick lives next door to Gatsby.

The house provides a venue for Gatsby to show off his great wealth to the beautiful people but doesn't provide him with acceptance into the upper crust of society or the love of his golden girl, Daisy Buchannan.

Nick's Mantle Clock

There is a mantel clock in Nick's house. When Nick invites Daisy and Gatsby to tea at his house, the clock is a focal point during the interaction. Because Gatsby and Daisy had not seen each other for five years, the clock symbolizes the passage of time.

During the gathering, Gatsby almost knocks the clock off the mantel, which of course would have caused it to break. This symbolizes his desire to return to a previous time, the time when he and Daisy had been together, back to before she married Tom Buchanan, but when Gatsby did not have money. The clock also symbolizes Gatsby's hope for the present — that he now has what it will take to win Daisy's love.

Gatsby's Parties

While Gatsby's mansion is all but empty most of the time, he does frequently host glamorous parties. The parties occur so frequently throughout the book that they are actually a motif. The parties symbolize the glamourous lifestyle of the Roaring Twenties, the flashy spending of someone with "new money" seeking to impress those who will never accept him, and the corruption of the American Dream.

The parties are empty and meaningless, just as the guests are vain and empty inside. Most don't even know who Gatsby is but attend week after week to partake in the extravagance they believe represents the American Dream.

Gatsby's Automobiles

Cars have long been considered status symbols. With that in mind, the fact that Gatsby has a collection of cars shouldn't be surprising. They're yet another symbol of extravagance and emptiness, as one person can't possibly need as many cars as the title character owns. Of course, Gatsby's purchasing habits aren't about meeting his basic needs. His cars are not just a means of transportation.

The color yellow is used in the book multiple times, including with regards to Gatsby's bright yellow Rolls Royce. Yellow is an important symbol, because it's almost gold, but not quite. Daisy and Tom come from "old money" — the true gold of "real" wealth. Yellow symbolizes that even though Gatsby has money, it's not quite the same as what the upper class, born-into-money characters have.

The T.J. Eckleburg Billboard

The neglected billboard originally erected to promote Dr. T.J. Eckleburg's optometry practice serves as a symbol of corruption and a lack of values. The dominant element of the billboard is a person's eyes emphasized by a pair of eyeglasses, staring down at the motorists who zoom by on their way to doing whatever they want, without consideration for morality or ethics.

The book's characters drive past the billboard en route to engage in infidelity and other immoral acts. No matter where they go or what they do, the eyes are watching, yet no one seems to care. One character, Wilson, whose wife was having an affair with Daisy's husband, even equates the eyes on the billboard to being watched by God.

Work cited:

Shore, Victoria. “What Is the Purpose of Symbols in Literature?” Pen and the Pad, 17 Feb. 2022,. 

White, Mary Gormandy. “7 Significant Symbols in the Great Gatsby.”