The Great Gatsby Downfall

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a timeless American classic that captures the wealth, extravagance, and change in American history represented by the “Roaring Twenties”. Yellow music, cars, dresses, and windows not only imitate the gleam of new money, they also allude to the lies and artifice that personify characters in the novel and 1920’s American society in general. Vibrant yellow evokes feelings of bright beginnings and new hope, whereas a dulled muted yellow can bring to mind jealousy and cowardice. While Jay Gatsby’s bright, glamorous parties are brimming with shiny yellow money, a darker undertone hints at the illusion within. The Buchanan’s golden mansion sits comfortably basking in the glow of the sun, while the rising sun and ticking clock signal the inevitable end of Gatsby’s yellowed party. Fitzgerald connects the façade of wealth and social class with the inevitable passage of time that preserves the truth by way of memory. As Gatsby and characters around him strive to achieve the “American Dream”, they come to realize that the façade of wealth does not hide the truth of the past. Even though yellow dreams of wealth and social status may disappear, those lingering reminders of the past keep the “American Dream” just out of reach (much like the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock). …show more content…
Fitzgerald’s use of the two symbols effectively represents the “Roaring Twenties” as a time of social change in America. Time and status separated the old money of East Egg from the New money of West Egg, Daisy from Gatsby, and Myrtle from Tom. Gatsby constructs an elaborate lie of wealth from shinny yellow money but fails to bridge the gap separating the rungs of social status in human society. In a way, Gatsby’s past set him on a course for failure before the clock even started to