What Does The Clock Symbolize In The Great Gatsby

Symbolism Analysis: Gatsby’s Clock Have you ever wanted to turn back time and relive the past? In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald tells a story of a man named Gatsby who was once poor and became wealthy in order to get Daisy, a girl who is a part of the “old money” society. He attempts to accomplish this goal by establishing a friendly relationship with Nick, who is Daisy’s cousin. Unfortunately, Gatsby’s goal of getting Daisy and reliving the past backfires and vanishes forever. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald teaches readers, through the symbol of the clock, that spending too much time thinking about the past will ultimately lead to a life of despair, destruction, and unattainable dreams. When Daisy and Gatsby meet for the first time in five
The broken clock counters the belief that everyone can achieve the American Dream. Additionally, it foreshadows that Gatsby’s dream of restoring his relationship with Daisy is temporary. Even when the clock is temporarily broken, time is still ticking and life is still going on. Having the clock fall and break is Fitzgerald’s way of telling the readers that it is nearly impossible to achieve the American Dream and there is no choice but to “beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past” (Fitzgerald 180). Therefore, Fitzgerald uses the clock to convince readers that the American Dream has been corrupted and destroyed; it not only causes corruption but also destruction. The clock scene in The Great Gatsby, gives us one of the main points that Fitzgerald is trying to make—that spending a lot of time thinking and regretting the past leads to a life of dismay, suffering, and shattered aspirations. In the novel, the symbol of the broken clock is very significant because it stresses Fitzgerald’s message and it teaches readers the importance of moving forward in life and the consequence of not leaving the