Literary Devices

Symbolism — The green light at the end of Daisy’s dock
Quote: "Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us” (Fitzgerald 189).
Impact: The green light represents Gatsby’s hopes and dreams, particularly his longing for Daisy and the life he imagines with her. It also symbolizes the broader theme of the American Dream, beautiful, idealized, but always just out of reach.

Metaphor — Gatsby’s dream as a broken clock
Quote: "He had been full of the idea so long, dreamed it right through to the end... now, in the reaction, he was running down like an overwound clock” (Fitzgerald 97).
Impact: This metaphor compares Gatsby to a clock that has been pushed beyond its limit, showing how his relentless pursuit of the past has left him emotionally exhausted. It emphasizes the futility of trying to recreate a perfect moment in time.

Foreshadowing — Gatsby’s insistence that the past can be repeated
Quote: "Can’t repeat the past? he cried incredulously.. Why of course you can!” (Fitzgerald 116).
Impact: Gatsby’s stubborn belief that he can relive and perfect the past foreshadows his downfall. It shows how deeply he is trapped in illusion, setting the stage for the novel’s tragic ending.

Imagery — The Valley of Ashes
Quote: "A fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens...” (Fitzgerald 27).
Impact: This vivid imagery paints a bleak, lifeless industrial wasteland, symbolizing moral decay, poverty, and the corruption hidden behind wealth. It contrasts with the glamour of Gatsby’s world and grounds the novel’s critique of the American Dream.

Allusion — Reference to Trimalchio
Quote: "It was when curiosity about Gatsby was at its highest that the lights in his house failed to go on one Saturday night—and, as obscurely as it had begun, his career as Trimalchio was over” (Fitzgerald 119).
Impact: Trimalchio is a character from Roman satire known for throwing lavish parties. This allusion compares Gatsby to a figure who uses wealth and spectacle to impress others, underlining the emptiness behind Gatsby’s showy lifestyle and the illusion of success.