Blue In The Great Gatsby

Blue, in its many variations, is prevalent all over the world--in the color of the sky, the feathers of a bluejay, and even in the music genre “the blues.” No matter what form it may be in, blue serves as a color symbolic to people of all ages, being the traditional color to represent, in the simplest of terms, sadness. Mentioned numerous times throughout the The Great Gatsby, there is no question that the color blue serves as more than simply a descriptor. Similarly to other colors, such as yellow and white, blue is symbolic of more than it appears to be, especially when in the context of describing characters. In the classic novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses the color blue to convey that seemingly joyful people are often …show more content…
She appears to be a carefree, joyful woman, content in her marriage with the wealthy Tom Buchanan, when in reality, their relationship is unstable. In a particular scene, Nick Carraway is at the Buchanans’ house to reunite with them over dinner. Nick reflects back on an instance in which Daisy reveals her bruised pinky, stating, “We all looked -- the knuckle was black and blue. ‘You did it, Tom,’ she [Daisy] said accusingly” (Fitzgerald 12). Aside from black and blue being used in the traditional form meaning “bruised,” Fitzgerald strategically places the word blue in relation to Daisy, revealing her troubles underneath the ditzy mask she wears. The blue pinky is symbolic of the abusive relationship between Daisy and Tom, as Tom was the one who bruised her pinky by force. Although Daisy acts cheerful through the rest of the dinner, there is the underlying fact that she is unhappy and abused, as conveyed by the pinky. In another scene, Daisy arrives at Nick’s house, unaware that she is being setup to meet Gatsby. As Nick greets her, he notes, “A damp streak of hair lay like a dash of blue paint across her cheek, and her hand was wet with glistening drops as I took it to help her from the car” (Fitzgerald 85). This “dash of blue paint” is particularly notable because its description matches the tear shaped dash of blue on the cover of The Great Gatsby, further suggesting a deeper meaning. The “blue paint” …show more content…
Through usage of the color blue within The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald reveals that often, those who appear the most content are concealing their more desperate feelings. Daisy Buchanan, Jay Gatsby, and Myrtle Wilson are all prime examples of this theme. Through the description of her “black and blue” pinky and “blue paint across her cheek,” it is revealed that Daisy, underneath her joyous appearance, hides a damaged part of herself that suffers under her troubled relationship with Tom. Extravagant and wealthy, Gatsby is hinted to be truly unhappy through the usage of blue imagery, which includes his blue shirts and blue lawn, in the aspect that he wants something that he cannot have: Daisy. Even Myrtle Wilson, spritely wife to George Wilson, is hinted to be dissatisfied with her marriage, as in her first book appearance, she wears a blue dress. This theme can be applied to life both in the past and the present; sometimes those that seem the most content are, in actuality, the most discontent in their lives. Overall, it is evident that although blue is seen in many places in the world, one of its most meaningful representations is remembered in the classic novel The Great