Unattainable Dreams in The Great Gatsby

The roaring 20’s fostered a time of independent thinking and a break from tradition. People began to go against convention and fantasize about a world living in the moment of the successful American dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s publication, The Great Gatsby, was an ironic treatment of the idea of success in America. The excessive use of Fitzgerald’s color imagery shows how the American dream inspires hope, yet is unattainable. Fitzgerald uses the color blue to illustrate the dreams of an unachievable side of reality. Gatsby, an East Egg entrepreneur, makes a fortune for the purpose of attaining the love of Daisy, a West Egg girl born into wealth and status. The blue lawn represents the separation of Gatsby and Daisy: “He had come a long way to this blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it” (Fitzgerald 121). The separation of old and new money prevents Gatsby from having Daisy. The luxurious parties Gatsby throws prove that even with wealth, his true happiness is unattainable. His parties go long into the night: “There was music from my neighbor’s house through the summer nights. In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars” (25). Even though many people attend Gatsby’s parties, his happiness is found in Daisy, not his wealth. Gatsby’s life revolves around his unattainable dream. His staff exemplifies his attempt to attain his dream: “A chauffeur in a uniform of robin’s egg blue crossed my lawn early that Saturday morning with a surprisingly formal note from his employer” (27). Gatsby puts his hope of winning Daisy in his wealth; unfortunately, his wealth serves as a reminder of his unattainable happiness. Fitzgerald uses the color green to symbolize hope. The green light at the end of Daisy’s dock represents Gatsby’s past reminiscence, present reality, and future realization. The emerald glow reminds