The Great Gatsby: Top Ten Theme Quotes (plus analysis...)

The Great Gatsby: Top Ten Theme Quotes (plus analysis…)

The American Dream:

• “I hope she’ll be a fool - that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.” Daisy expresses this view early on, highlighting the shallow values of the American Dream which favour appearance and ignorance above intellect and understanding.

• “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us.” The green light represents Gatsby’s dreams, his hope for the future, his vision of the American Dream - but it’s also always just out of his reach, symbolising the elusive nature of this dream.

Money and Materialism:

• “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy - they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness…“ Tom and Daisy’s actions encapsulate Fitzgerald’s thoughts on the corrupting influence of wealth and the absence of moral accountability for the rich.

• “Her voice is full of money.” This quote describes Daisy’s voice and symbolises the allure of wealth and the American Dream - it’s a siren song that Gatsby can’t resist.

Love, Desire and Relationships:

• “He knew that when he kissed this girl, and forever wed his unutterable visions to her perishable breath, his mind would never romp again like the mind of God.” This reveals Gatsby’s romantic idealisation of Daisy, how he puts her on a pedestal as the embodiment of his dreams.

• “There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy tumbled short of his dreams - not through her own fault but because of the colossal vitality of his illusion.” Gatsby has an idealised image of Daisy in his mind, so much so that the real Daisy can never live up to it - highlighting the theme of illusion versus reality in love and desire.

Time and the Past:

• “Can’t repeat the past? Why of course you can!” Gatsby’s words reflect his steadfast belief in his ability to reclaim his past with Daisy, which is central to the plot, and also reflects the larger theme of the futile struggle against time and fate.

• “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” The novel’s final line beautifully encapsulates the power of the past to shape and influence characters’ present and future, and the struggle of the human condition against overwhelming forces like time and fate.

Isolation and Alienation:

• “I was within and without, simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life.” Nick’s perspective shows the duality of being part of society while also feeling a sense of detachment and isolation – reflecting a broader theme of feeling ‘within and without’.

• “A sudden emptiness seemed to flow now from the windows and the great doors, endowing with complete isolation the figure of the host.” This view of Gatsby at his party shows him to be alone and isolated even in a crowd, reflecting his deeper emotional isolation and longing for real connection.