The Great Gatsby The Color White
F. Scott Fitzgerald wants readers to understand that the color white represents purity and innocence, but can also symbolize emptiness and illusion in The Great Gatsby.
Use the following sentence starter to begin your paragraph. Be sure that your paragraph is 5-7 sentences, explains how Fitzgerald develops the theme, and uses textual evidence to support your analysis:
In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates the theme that…
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In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates the theme that the color white represents both purity and emptiness. Throughout the novel, white is used to symbolize innocence and cleanliness, particularly in Daisy Buchanan's character. Daisy is often associated with white, from her clothing to her home's decor, to portray her as pure and untainted. However, Fitzgerald also uses white to illustrate the emptiness and illusion of the wealthy, such as when Gatsby's parties are described as "white palaces" filled with superficial and shallow people. This duality of white as representing both purity and emptiness reflects the superficiality and deceit that plague the characters in the novel. For example, when Daisy describes her daughter as "a pretty little fool" dressed in white, it highlights the facade of innocence and perfection that Daisy tries to maintain, despite her own flaws and the hollowness of her relationships. Overall, Fitzgerald uses the color white to emphasize the contrasts between appearance and reality, purity and emptiness, in the characters and their lives in The Great Gatsby.
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