Fitzgerald is occupied with the notion of illusion and reality. Consider how this concern is expressed in the novel The Great Gatsby

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Fitzgerald is occupied with the notion of illusion and reality.  Consider how

this concern is expressed in the novel

        The Great Gatsby's extensive and frequent references to illusion and reality mirri Fitzgerald's concerns.  Illusion, by dictionary definition, is 'The condition of being deceived by a false perception or belief', the opposite of reality which is 'The totality of all things possessing actuality, existence, or essence'.  These were extremely important in the jazz age of the 1920's because many traditions and laws were ignored, creating an illusion of freedom and prosperity.  Fitzgerald expresses his concern for this notion in many ways.

        Fitzgerald uses Nick as a narrator to convey his own ideas about illusion and reality.  He is a perceptive narrator who although faced with many illusions of people's characters he sees the reality for what it is, such as when he became friendly with Gatsby but insisted that he disapproved of him from beginning to end" because he saw through the illusion of Gatsby as a person.  Also we know that Tom and Nick had been good friends in college but Nick readily admits the reality of Tom and Daisy as being careless and selfish people.  As a reader of the novella, we are under the illusion that we meet the charaters as Nick tells us and learn about them as he does, but the reality is that Nick is talking after the summer is over, he is telling the story backwards.  Therefore he knows the outcome of the story before we do. " After two years, I still remember".  This illusion is created so that we trust and agree with his initial evaluations of character, therefore feeling closer to Nick and adopting his attitudes and feelings towards characters.  

        Illusion and reality are also expressed through symbolism in the novella.  Colour is used symbolically to try to make characters seem to be what they are not, and covering up the reality of who they are.  For example, when we first meet Daisy and Jordan were "both in white" symbolising purity and innocence.  This illusion is used to cover up the truth of the person inside : we later find out Jordan is a cheat and Daisy is an adulterer and muderer  The critic Daniel J Schneider picks up in this, "Except in gatsbys extravagant imagination, the white does not exist pure: it is invariably stained by the money".  Another example is when Gatsby dresses up in gold and silver clothing to make himself appear rich, successful and wealthy, which he is, yet he is not as he appears to be because he is morally corrupt.  

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        The broken clock on the mantlepiece of Nick's home is also important, symbolising the theme of time.  Later in the novella Nick tells Gatsby "You can't repeat the past" to which Gatsby replies "Of course you can".  Here Gatsby is under the illusion that if he becomes what Daisy wants then he can 'turn the clock back' to when Daisy was in love with him.  The reality is that this simply cannot happen, Daisy is now a married woman with a young daughter, yet Gatsby's "love" for Daisy is so strong he cannot see this.  

        Another significant symbol is ...

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