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The Importance of White in the Great Gatsby

By:   •  January 26, 2018  •  Essay  •  667 Words (3 Pages)  •  1,234 Views

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13 November 2017

The Importance of white

White suggest purity, goodness, and innocence, but it can also relate to cold, bitterness, emptiness, indecision and unfriendliness. Just as black absorbs all, white reflects all. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the color white is not just for imagery, it’s also used to signify things such as innocence or a false sense of innocence. Throughout The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald uses white to portray innocence and class. He uses white many times when talking about children and Daisy, since white represents innocence and purity, but he also uses white to describe places and “Old Money” to represents the top of the upper-class where Tom and Daisy reside.

The representation of White with innocence, is used many times in the novel. One specific place is where Daisy is talking about her childhood with Jordan," Our white girlhood was passed together there. Our beautiful white---" (Fitzgerald, p. 24). This is the first time Fitzgerald has used white to symbolize innocence. White is important here because white, is supposed to be a pure color, and Daisy is thinking about a time when she, was pure or untouched by the world. Daisy’s childhood is usually associated with white, to symbolize her girlish innocence. At this point in life she is not materialistic or concerned about money. She even has her daughter wearing white when she is introduced.

White and “Old Money”, also come together in Fitzgerald’s story. Towards the beginning of the story tom comes out as a racist when he says, ” The idea is if we don’t look out for the white race will be utterly submerged,”(Fitzgerald, p.17). When reading this quote the obvious interpretation of this would that Tom is racist, but if the white race is applied to “Old Money”, then it also has a different meaning. Fitzgerald has a hidden metaphor, referencing “Old Money as the white race, and ‘New Money’ as all others. Tom is afraid that all the people who have earned their money, will raise to their social level. White clothes are used sometimes associated with “Old Money or the upper class. Another place in the story where white is supposed to be, portrayed as the upper class when Nick is going to meet one of his neighbor so he dressed up in white flannels.

Corruption, white covers it all up, it reflects outwards so people can only see what you choose to

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