ANALYSIS

The motif of COLOUR emphasizes the disparity between the illusions and realities of pursuing
prosperity.
- the colours green, white and yellow are ironically used with Gatsby, Jordan and Daisy,
symbolizing, on the surface, the apparent goodness of the American Dream, and underneath,
the resulting compromise and destruction of their moralities.
GREEN
- Gatsby stares at the light at the end of Daisys dock he holds onto his memory of their past
romance, his love for her develops into an obsession; however, Daisy cannot accept anything
below her wealth, hence Gatsby attempts to meet her high social standards
- The light is described as green as green is the colour of money: he believes that through
wealth, he will be able to actualize his romantic, idealistic view of life with Daisys love:
Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us.
(pg 171) Gatsby is convinced in the power of money to impress Daisy and win back her love,
and the green light thus represents his hope for his ideal future, something that he continually
pursues year by year
- However, green also reveals the moral consequences of his pursuit that becomes a corrupting
obsession
- Green is a symbolic colour of envy and also sickness so this green light not only shows the
glamorous illusion of the American Dream, but also its dismal reality
- Like an illness, Gatsby is deluded and fixes his mind on one single idea, Daisys love
- He is engulfed in his illusions of his pastoral history, and consequently uses ill means for
equally ill gains, and thereby compromises his innocence and values
- His extravagant material possessions his fortune, car, mansion, frequent glamorous parties
are all built upon the single hope of Daisys affection
- He earns his prosperity by bootlegging liquor, and in the process associates himself with
unquestionably shady figures Meyer Wolfsheim, having human teeth in his cuffs
- He is jealous of Tom, or green with envy, and his corruption is further revealed by the fact he
demands Daisy even when she is married
- His superficiality is another illness; absorbed in materialism, Gatsby renews Daisys love only
on the foundation of his possessions: He hadnt once ceased looking at Daisy, and I think he
revalued everything in his house according to the measure of response it drew from her wellloved eyes. (pg 91) His relationship with Daisy is empty and lacks real meaning; not only
does Gatsby love just a memory of her, but also Daisy only finally accepts him when he has
enough money
- Gatsby, believing prosperity to be the only way to Daisys heart and his happiness, thus loses
his moral compass, becoming corrupt, jealous, and superficial
- the symbol of the colour green has two contrasting connotations : it symbolizes the illusion of
prosperity the hope for a happier future and also its reality, the disintegration of morality
that results
WHITE
- the illusion of purity and innocence represented by the colour white are ironically used with
characters who in reality, have moral blemishes
- when Daisy and Jordan are first introduced to Nick, they wear extravagant white dresses and
reminisce of their white girlhood (pg 24);
- white is the lack of colour, an unsoiled state that connotes moral purity - Jordan and Daisy
propagate images of being innocent, good, and untainted and Daisys excessive charm
furthers this image of virtue
- however, their dresses are merely clothing, something they can put on and off easily

- the purity associated with the white colour is a mere facade for their actual corruption
- as critic Daniel Schneider argues in his essay, Color Symbolism in The Great Gatsby,
Fitzgerald wants to underscore the ironic disparity between the ostensible purity of Daisy and
Jordan and their actual corruption.
- both are tainted by the privileges of the upper echelon of society; not only is the use of white
ironic, white, being free from any other colour, also represents emptiness Jordan and Daisy
lack meaning in their lives because their worlds have conditioned them to be superficial and
hollow
- Jordan has a careless, reckless attitude towards life: She was incurably dishonest. She wasnt
able to endure being at a disadvantageshe had begun dealing in subterfuges [in order] to
keep that cool, insolent smile. (pg 41)
- cheating and winning at golf and casually dismissing a car accident, Jordan lacks concern for
any personal responsibility: her disregard for emotions and lives signifies her fading moral
compass
- Her status and wealth give her enough security, so she is able to be spoiled and take life for
granted
- Likewise, Daisy dresses, acts, and speaks according to what her high class expects, being
egotistical and always in the center of attention
- [Daisys voice] was full of money...high in a white palace the kings daughter (120). Adding to
the white imagery, her purity and innocence is only an illusion: because she is able to fake her
innocence, she never assumes fault for wrongdoing
- she is emotionally numb, and lacks morality; she avoids responsibility for killing Myrtle with
Gatsbys car, not even stopping, and allowing Gatsby to take the blame
- The colour white ironically represents the purity of wealth with Jordan and Daisy, who are
revealed to be corrupted
YELLOW
- Yellow is used as the colour of the lie of prosperity and the truth of moral decay
- Many of Gatsbys possessions and parties are described with yellow images, which on a literal
level is the sheen of gold
- Yellow colour represents the luxury of wealth: his gold tie and yellow cocktail music his
glamour or flashiness attracts others to his parties
- However, yellow is the literal colour of physical decay, and thus also represents the dissolution
of morality in the face of the American Dreams consumerism correlates to Love Song of J.
Alfred Prufrock, the urban landscape is depicted with a yellow fog that rubs its back on
windowpanes symbolizing the aging and decay of both time and Prufrocks mind; and it is
important to note that Prufrocks industrial landscape mirrors the Valley of Ashes because both
represent dissatisfaction and gloom
- in the 1920s, the car was the ultimate status symbol, the greatest material possession; and
Gatsbys car is yellow
- The car is another example of Gatsbys extreme prosperity material wealth, but it is the thing
that strikes, kills and then irresponsibly flees from Myrtle an actual physical manifestation of
the bleak consequences of having moralities broken by pursuing the American Dream
- Also Gatsby fails to let Daisy to take responsibility for Myrtles murder, which compromises his
integrity and need for truth, thus corrupting him
- Likewise, Daisy and Jordan are described as being physically yellow; Daisy is the golden girl
and Jordan has a golden shoulder when their actual bodies are represented as yellow, this
continues to further both the physical image of wealth and the internal reality of their moral
decay

- Dr Ecklebergs glasses described with a yellow rim; even though an omniscient force is
watching, it seems that his sight has decayed because there is a lack of consequence for
immorality
- The colour yellow is used as an illusion for the promise of happiness in the allure of material
wealth, but it is ironically used in order to reveal the moral corruption that results
WHITE/YELLOW
- Furthermore, the combination of yellow and white symbolism further emphasizes the illusions of prosperity,
contrasted with the realities of broken moralities

- Daisy is aptly named; a daisy is a flower with white petals outside, and at its centre, is a yellow core: she is pure on
the surface, but corrupt underneath

Daisy displays an innocent air, but it is only an illusion, a mask for her destructive nature
She is a murderess, who avoids responsibility for her moral crimes
As well, the differing societies in The Great Gatsby are also aptly named as the East and West Egg
Eggs are white outside, but the yolk inside eggs are yellow as well, pure on the surface, corrupt underneath
both worlds are consumed by the pursuit of the American Dream
almost everyone seeks the glory, happiness and satisfaction of wealth and status, yet this pursuit results in moral
decay and sin flourishes