The Great Gatsby
Interpretation and
Significance
The Great Gatsby can be viewed in one of three
ways:
 A veiled autobiographical account of Fitzgerald’s
life
 A bitter criticism of the American Dream
 An allegory teaching the sinfulness of greed
I. Autobiographical Novel
“To Zelda, As Always”
I. Autobiographical Novel
A.
B.
C.
D.
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald 1896-1940
Born in Minnesota, grew up in New Jersey
Princeton dropout with immense literary talent
Served in WWI military, but war ended before he
could be deployed
I. Autobiographical (cont.)
E. Met Zelda Sayre while serving in military
1.
2.
Zelda is rich, upper class southerner
Zelda breaks off initial engagement when Fitzgerald can’t bring in
enough money
F. Publishes This Side of Paradise
1.
2.
Immediate literary success.
Zelda takes him back; they are wed
I. Autobiographical (cont.)
G. Socialite Ex-Patriots, they lived a lavish lifestyle and
Fitzgerald was frequently broke.
H. Tensions between Fitzgerald and Zelda increased
1.
2.
3.
4.
She is schizophrenic, hospitalized at Hopkins
He is an alcoholic, moves to Hollywood
He drinks himself to death; dies of a heart attack after eating a candy
bar
She dies when her mental hospital catches on fire and she is locked in a
room awaiting electroshock therapy
Fitzgerald As Gatsby?
Both men are haunted by
women they could never
make happy, women whose
greed destroyed them.
II.Criticism of American
Dream
“Gatsby had
committed himself to
the following of a
grail.”
II. American Dream
A. Grail is an unattainable,
elusive mythical object.
B. Desire for the grail has driven
countless men to ruin and
death.
C. Fitzgerald uses the search for
the grail as a metaphor for the
pursuit of the American
dream. It is elusive,
unattainable, and mythical.
III. Moral Allegory
A. Allegory: a story meant to convey a moral lesson
(like a parable of sorts).
B. The reader is meant to share in Nick’s “unaffected
scorn” for the world he sees.
C. God watches humanity, judges but does not
intervene
T. J. Eckleberg’s disapproving eyes,
symbolic of God.
IV. Symbolism
• Great Gatsby is most commonly discussed in terms
of its inventive use of symbolism.
Key Symbols in the Text
A. Eyes of T. J. Eckleburg
1. God’s judging, disapproving perspective on humanity.
B. The Green Light
1. Longing and desire for those things which are most elusive.
C. The Valley of Ashes
1. Empty, lifeless valley becomes a symbol for the empty, soulless people who
traverse it.
D. Gatsby’s Rolls Royce
1. How appropriate that a symbol of Gatsby’s wealth becomes an instrument
of death.
E. Pearl Necklace/Dog Collar
1. Tom gives Myrtle a dog collar as a gift, but a pearl necklace to Daisy.
Myrtle is nothing but a pet to him; a plaything that he can mistreat. It
emphasizes his greed; people are like possessions to him.
Some Key Quotations in
the Text
• “Gatsby paid a high price for living too long with a single
dream.“
• “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back
ceaselessly into the past.”
• “I am one of the few honest people I have ever met.”
• “[her voice] is full of money.”
• “You see, I think everything’s terrible anyhow…I’ve been
everywhere and seen everything and done
everything…sophisticated, God, I’m sophisticated!”
• “Can’t repeat the past? Why, of course you can!”
• Gatsby “had committed himself to the following of a grail.”
• “They’re a rotten crowd…you’re worth the whole damn
bunch put together.”
Gatsby And Its
Relationship To Major
Literary Periods
• Age of Reason
o Gatsby, like Ben Franklin, believed in self-improvement, but his failure is
that he allows his imagination to control him.
• Romanticism
o Overindulgent imaginations of characters reveal dark side of humanity.
• Realism
o Grim reality is revealed, as is uselessness of Romanticism. All of the
“dreams” of the characters are crushed, and they are left dead, sad, or
alone.