Analysing the most important symbol in The Great Gatsby

There are lots of symbols in Fitzgerald's 'The Great Gatsby', but probably none as important and weighty as Doctor T. J. Eckleburg's eyes. In this video, I explain all you need to know about how this reference contributes to our understanding of the characters and the story.
TIMESTAMPS:
00:53 - Context of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg's eyes in the novel
02:33 - Analysing Doctor T. J. Eckleburg's eyes in Chapter 2
06:26 - Analysing Doctor T. J. Eckleburg's eyes in Chapter 7
10:10 - Analysing Doctor T. J. Eckleburg's eyes in Chapter 8
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[@juhneess]

Wow. I decided to read, "The Great Gatsby" for pleasure about 15 years after NOT reading it in high school (when I was supposed to 😂) and wow! Your analysis is bringing so many things to light for me. It is truly making my enjoyment of the novel increase exponentially! Thank you so much for such concise explanations along with the referential text for guidance. It truly has helped!

[@JenChan]

That's amazing for me to hear, and I'm so pleased to hear that this has been interesting! Thank you for the wonderful feedback xxx

[@sarkis6365]

I have a motif project on the eyes and I stumble upon this while studying for a test lol

[@pearl9830]

I always thought that the eyes on the cover weren't written into the book as the eyes of T.J.Elckleburg (they are female eyes that make up a female profile), but into this description indirectly describing Daisy: "Unlike Gatsby and Tom Buchanan, I had no girl whose disembodied face floated along the dark cornices and blinding signs..." This is almost an exact description of the cover, and it is relating to Daisy.

[@Snomp]

High quality and very informative video. I’m so surprised at all the effort put into these videos but only getting a little recognition, keep it up!

[@JenChan]

Thanks so much for the lovely comment - I appreciate it 🥰Van Gogh (and many other great artists/writers) didn't get recognition until after his death, so I'm already doing quite well by those standards lol....!!

[@Arrian1111]

This novel is my eldest son's favourite book. I'm watching a version of the film at the moment in which the camera constantly pans to scenes of both the eyes, and the green light. Perhaps you have some insight into this. I'm about to embark on the book myself, after watching the film, which is a luxurious illustrated version that I bought for my son some time ago. Thanks for your work!

[@jin_cotl]

I don’t have a project in this but this was very interesting

[@TheTarotDJ333]

Amazing analysis!!! 👁🌞👁

[@JenChan]

Thank you and appreciate you for watching! Hope this has been helpful for you :)

[@Mariah.B11]

In Great Gatsby, is the following line from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar actually quoted? - "Beware the ides of March ... " Maybe it's quoted in movie version?

[@2good.to.be.4gotten]

Could you please explain why you chose Doctor T. J. Eckleburg's eyes to be the main symbol in the novel? Personally me would say that the mail symbol is the Green Light.

[@autisticandproudsnephew3636]

I personally believe that the eyes are the most important symbol due to the way in which they represent how people have become so obsessed with wealth, products and services to the point of imparting the idea of God onto advertisments. However that is just my personal opinion and the green light is without a doubt an important symbol. By the way, feel free to argue your point. I read the novel to prepare for going into A Level Literature but haven't actually been taught it in a classroom yet, and thus may have missed something important. Even if I haven't it may still be helpful to see a person's differing perspective on the book.

[@nemomillet]

Very nice and useful video, thank you! Greetings from France

[@JenChan]

You're so welcome, Nemo! Thanks for watching. And greetings to you too - I love France 😀

[@93nicd]

Great analysis, thank you. Has anyone commented on the symbol, significantly it’s faded quality, being a visual representation of Nietzsche’s “God is dead”? I’m due to teach Gatsby for the first time this academic year - any tips?

[@JenChan]

Oooh - the Nietzsche parallel sounds potentially interesting; please share more? I've not thought about it from that angle, but would love to consider it as another interpretative approach. As for tips to teach Gatsby: I'd probably encourage the students to close read sections that are especially descriptive, because I feel this novel has become so 'overdone' (with Leo DiCaprio's film adaptation adding to this) that most bring cliched assumptions to the work ('it's about the American Dream') and as a result miss out on the nuances of Fitzgerald's artistic finesse.

[@93nicd]

@@JenChan That’s some great advice, thank you :) I’m picking up this text for the first time this coming academic year, having taught Wuthering Heights before. I specifically asked my students to hold off on the Leo film for now if they haven’t already watched it! As for the philosophical interpretation, the eyes could reflect the existentialist anxiety of contemporary philosophers (e.g. nihilism and later absurdism). IE the ‘moral vacuum’ of the novel’s world reflects a broader, post-war mood of moral uncertainty, and the ‘fading eyes’ plays into this. The fact that many of the characters are supposedly veterans of WWI could play into this idea as well. I am by no means an expert on reading through this lens (no pun intended) so it’s something I need to look at a bit more thoroughly before teaching!

[@JenChan]

@@93nicd That's a wonderful interpretation, and brings to mind the idea of 'Roaring Twenties' America being a bit of a moral 'wasteland' (interesting, too, if we consider that the Dr Eckleburg billboard is situated in a rundown location). There really are just so many interpretative angles to take with this novel, which I suppose is what makes it so great and timeless. I hope you have fun teaching it!

[@jenneacubero1036]

I just started this video but my break is almost over. Please forgive me if this was brought up. But, weren't the eyes on the cover supposed to have been Daisy's? Also did anyone else noticed the women within the eyes too?

[@drizzle452]

I’ve actually never read this in school but it initially seemed to me that God’s eyes only applied to the classes below the “eggs”…or at least the facade of a God. It also struck me that in a post modern world of amorality, the American dream fell short of attainability. Nick even suggests that the East was a corrupted world upon reflecting his move back to the midwestern region of traditional values.

[@JenChan]

That's nuanced reading - I like your observation about God's eyes. Could you find the quotation / moment from the text where it suggests the hierarchical distinction?

[@jenneacubero1036]

It's ironic...in "Gatsby", God watches people while in a certain Zora Neale Hurston story, the people watch God.

[@nicolemusic2242]

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