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Megan Tumpey
Mrs. Dill
English III
20 March 2014
Mirror, Mirror
The settings of masterfully-written novels often provide insight to the stories themes and
characters. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Nick Carraway recounts the mystery and
wonder of his old neighbor, Jay Gatsby. Gatsby is in love with Daisy, a beautiful, aristocratic
woman with whom he had a relationship years before. He devotes his entire existence to gaining
the money and status to please her, but his efforts and blind love for Daisy eventually lead to his
own demise. In The Great Gatsby, settings play crucial roles in developing the vibrant characters
and the plot. The setting can hint at the mood of a scene, as it does when Gatsby, Nick, and
Jordan join Tom and Daisy for lunch; tension and passion as well as the weather intensify.
Furthermore, an authors description of a setting can project the inner feelings of a character. For
example, when Gatsby returns to Louisville after Daisy has married Tom, the city was pervaded
with a melancholy beauty (Fitzgerald 160). Both Louisville and Gatsby possess this
melancholy beauty when Daisy is absent from their lives. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott
Fitzgerald utilizes multiple settings to mirror the personality traits of his literary creations.
The location and architecture of East Egg directly reflect the personalities of the inhabitants.
East Eggs glamorous, aristocratic residents display flawless etiquette and social grace; however,
East Eggers are heartless, unrighteous people. Nick is disgusted with them and their way of life,
claiming, They were carelesssmashed things upthen retreated to their money (Fitzgerald
187-188). The East Egg partiers display haughty derision through their behavior at Gatsbys
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parties, where the air is alive with chatter and laughter, and casual innuendo and introductions
forgotten on the spot, and enthusiastic meetings between women who never knew each others
names (44). The towering mansions in East Egg are the epitome of social class separation and
hauteur as well. Both the East Eggers and the houses care solely about appearances and have no
tolerance for members of another class. All the estates are grand and ostentatious, including Tom
and Daisys mansion. The house is immaculate and white, reflecting Daisys wardrobe
throughout the novel. Fitzgerald mirrors his aristocratic characters personalities through his
description of East Egg.
New York City shares many of East Eggs traits. The citizens of both locations exhibit moral
decadence and little adherence to virtue. Since the citizens lack morals, scandal is a common
occurrence in these settings. For example, Daisy hides her love for Gatsby from Tom in their
East Egg home, while Tom conducts an affair with Myrtle Wilson in a New York City
apartment. Nick refers to the couples secret home as being situated in a long white cake of
apartment houses (Fitzgerald 32). The apartment is Tom and Myrtles hypothetical wedding
cake, since they cannot legally marry. Newspapers found within the apartment also reveal
important information about the unfaithful characters; for instance, the Town Tattle
foreshadows that, somehow, Tom and Myrtles relationship will be exposed. Another publication
Simon Called Peter also illustrates Myrtle and Toms relationship; Simon Peter left behind his
life and vocation and became a disciple of Jesus, just as Myrtle desires to leave behind her life
with George Wilson to marry Tom. The third newspaper present is a magazine of Broadway
scandals, reflecting the indignity of Tom and Myrtles affair. Toms New York apartment and
the newspapers within it reflect the moral decadence of its East Egg occupants.
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Fitzgerald develops Nick and Gatsbys personalities through the features of West Egg. People
with new money inhabit West Egg, while the people with old money who live in East Egg.
Gatsbys mansion is a factual imitation of some Htel de Ville in Normandy [with] a marble
swimming pool and more than forty acres of lawn and garden (Fitzgerald 9). Since Gatsbys
home resembles a hotel, his party guests come and go with little regard, just as travelers treat a
hotel. Almost all of the partiers were not invited-- they went there. They got into automobiles
which bore them out to Long Island and somehow they ended up at Gatsbys door (44).
Furthermore, Gatsbys library is filled with books that are bona fide piece[s] of printed matter
(50). Owl Eyes draws the conclusion that Gatsby is a regular Belasco. Its a triumph. What
thoroughness! What realism! (50). However, Owl Eyes is wrong; Jim Gatz created a new life by
becoming Gatsby and therefore is not as authentic as Owl Eyes believes. He then uses his
wealth to allure Daisy. Nicks cottage also mirrors his character. The house was an eye-sore, but
it was a small eye-sore and it had been overlooked (9-10). Both Nick and his house are
respectable and middle-class. In addition, one can infer that Nicks cottage is the former home of
a caretaker since it is situated in a millionaire neighborhood. Nicks home represents his
propensity to help solve others problems. Thus, West Eggs features mirror those of Nick and
Gatsby.
Along with the Eggs, the Midwest reflects the personalities of Fitzgeralds literary creations.
Nick, Gatsby, Jordan, Daisy and Tom are all from the Midwest. The Midwest represents
decency and the basic ethical principles of honesty, while the East if full of deceit (Great
Gatsby). The East corrupts them; consequently, Nick begins to judge people and Toms ego, as
well as Gatsbys, lead to Gatsbys death. Furthermore, Nicks Midwestern family runs
a hardware business that [his] father carries on today (Fitzgerald 7). Nicks personality
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imitates this business through his inclination to assist Gatsby and others. The five characters are
foreigners in Long Island; they possess some deficiency in common which [makes them] subtly
unadaptable to Eastern life (184). Nick realizes his inability to adapt and returns to the Midwest.
Nicks decision reveals the Midwestern influence on the main characters.
F. Scott Fitzgerald uses the valley of ashes to mirror the moral degeneration of its residents.
Nick vividly describes the valley of ashes as a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat in
ridges and hills and grotesque gardens, where ashes take the forms of house and chimneys and
rising smoke and... of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air
(Fitzgerald 27). Fitzgerald uses this unique setting to represent the ethical decadence of the
valleys residents. For example, even though George Wilson is a repairman, he is unable to mend
his broken relationship with his wife Myrtle; consequently, he disregards all his morals and
murders Gatsby. Like a blanket, ashes and dust cover his shop and suffocate his morals.
Life in the valley of ashes deeply affects Myrtle Wilson. She desires a life of wealth and
comfort, but instead she is stuck in a desolate wasteland and is married to a poor, simple-minded
repairman. Although she abhors it, the valley of ashes reflects her situation. She is as incapable
of escaping her marriage to Wilson as the valley is of changing its landscape. Also, it is probable
that Myrtle is as barren as the wasteland, for although she has been married to Wilson for years
and has also had intimate relations with Tom, she has never gotten pregnant.
In the beginning of the novel, Nick revealed that Gatsby turned out all right in the end; it was
what preyed on Gatsby, what foul dust floated in the wake of his dreams that temporarily closed
out my interest in the abortive sorrows and short-winded elations of men (Fitzgerald 7). The
foul dust that clouds Gatsbys mind symbolizes the valley of ashes, a vast dead valley that
bursts geographical barriers to include both Eggs as well as New York and, by extension, the
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United States (Seiters). The dust that fills the valley of ashes clouds Gatsbys mind and George
Wilsons conscience. The valley of ashes mirrors the decay of morals in the East. The valley is a
place of death; however, one piece of hope exists. According to Nick, the world is a place where
God is dead, and man makes a valley of ashes; he corrupts ecology, corrupts the American
Dream and desecrates it. The only Godlike image in this deathlike existence are the eyes of Dr.
T.J. Eckleburg on a billboard advertising glasses (Great Gatsby). The God-like figure
observes the wasteland and its inhabitants. After Myrtles death, Wilson confesses that he told
her: God knows what youve been doing, everything youve been doing. You may fool me but
you cant fool God!... God sees everything (Fitzgerald 167). Eckleburgs eyes represent God
and a last hope for a setting where only ashes exist. As moral standards disappear, God witnesses
the characters degradation. The valley contains an ash cloud that represents the smothering and
decay of morals; the billboard represents God watching it all. Through physical description and
religious symbols, the valley of ashes is a mirror of the moral decay of the East.
F. Scott Fitzgerald artfully created the settings in The Great Gatsby to mirror the characters
personalities. East Eggs glamor reflects Tom and Daisys haughty, immoral natures. Its grand
estates and mansions emit an aura of heartless indifference, as do the citizens of East Egg. In
West Egg, all the buildings and people are welcoming and alluring, if slightly gaudy. West
Eggers like Nick and Gatsby are morally pure and kind, creating literary foils of the East Eggers.
Nick and Gatsbys houses are physical projections of their personalities. Gatsbys enormous,
gaudy mansion reflects his outward charm and his futile efforts to attract Daisys love, while
inside both he and the house are empty and lonely. Similarly, Nicks cottage reflects his caring
personality. New York City is full of scandal and deception, which are the foundation of Tom
and Myrtles relationship. The newspapers found in their apartment give further insight to their
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affairs instability and immorality. The Midwest reflects the decency and moral righteousness
that the main characters initially possess. However, once they move to the East, Tom, Daisy and
Jordan become corrupted and full of deceit (Great Gatsby). Only Nick and Gatsby are able
to escape; Gatsby is killed, and Nick returns home because he realizes that all the Westerners are
unadaptable to Eastern life (Fitzgerald 184). Additionally, Nicks family business is mirrored
in his tendency to fix others problems. Through the barren landscape of the valley of ashes,
Fitzgerald illustrates the moral degradation of humanity. The ash clouds that smother the land
also suppress the vitality and morality of the valleys denizens, as in the cases of Myrtle and
George Wilson. Through F. Scott Fitzgeralds ingenious use of the Eggs, New York City, the
Midwest, and the valley of ashes, the settings in The Great Gatsby mirror the personalities of his
literary creations.




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Works Cited
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Scribner Paperback Fiction, 1995. Print.
Seiters, Dan. "On Imagery and Symbolism in The Great Gatsby." Bloom's Literature. Facts On
File, Inc. Web. 17 Mar. 2014.
"The Great Gatsby." Novels for Students. Ed. Diane Telgen. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 64-86.
Literature Resources for Students. Web. 17 Mar. 2014.