Journal #20 – The Great Gatsby Conclusion

Fitzgerald uses imagery and symbolism many times throughout the last few paragraphs of The Great Gatsby. He talks about Gatsby’s lawn, which has grown as long as Nick’s with no one taking care of it. Nick also talks about remembering Gatsby’s parties so vividly that he goes to New York to escape the music and laughter that he can still hear after all that time. Fitzgerald also paints a picture of a car going to Gatsby’s house, expecting a party, but when he finds nothing, he leaves. Nick also talks about a taxi driver who stops and points at Gatsby’s house every time he drives by, most likely talking about his death and the circumstances which surrounded it. This is a stark contrast to how things were when Gatsby was alive. People talked about him, yes, but his parties held a more positive connotation. Fitzgerald describes Gatsby’s house as a “huge incoherent failure of a house,” which is ironic, because of how glorious and wonderful the house seemed when Gatsby was still alive. Fitzgerald uses phrases like “white steps,” “raspingly along the stone,” and “shadowy, moving glow,” to illustrate how it felt to actually be in the story for the reader. From the first moment Gatsby looked into the green light, to the moment he died, he had come a very long way. This is like the Dutch sailors who “discovered” Long Island. They, and Long Island, have both come a long way.