Illusions vs Reality and Gatsby's Books

As discussed in class, the Valley of Ash represents many things, such as a place of absolute poverty, hopelessness, and sin. It is also interesting how the Valley of Ash is placed in between New York, a place where Gatsby seems to be the most successful, dreaming up several glamorous plans, such as meeting Daisy for the first time in years, and the West Egg, Gatsby's home where he forces himself to constantly remind himself of his reality without Daisy. Thus, New York represents a place of dreams and illusions, while the West Egg represents a constant reminder of reality. The Valley of Ashes represents the middle ground that exists between illusions and reality, foreshadowing the illusions that Gatsby creates about his own past. The eyes of Dr. TJ Eckleburg on the billboard are first described to the reader in a manner in which it is not clear that the eyes do not actually belong to a person. Fitzgerald creates an illusion for the reader, describing the eyes as "gigantic" and "looming" without referencing the billboard for more than three sentences, causing readers to create their own image of these strange eyes. However, Fitzgerald quickly returns to reality by writing that the eyes are on a billboard. These eyes act to foreshadow the illusions that, like Fitzgerald, Gatsby creates himself over a long period of time and will suddenly fall apart.

Gatsby's own books in the West Ham also indicate the lies that he created about himself. Owl-Eyes says that Gatsby "didn't cut the pages", suggesting that the multitude of books in his library are for show only - Gatsby doesn't have any intention of actually reading the books. Furthermore, the books are held in a "high Gothic library, paneled with carved English Oak", showing Gatsby's aristocratic background. However, Gatsby may not actually be from such an aristocratic background, suggesting that Gatsby's self-made foundation, like the Gothic library and the books inside, may simply be a large sham.