While at Tom and Daisy Buchanan’s house, Nick, a young man who has recently moved from the Midwest to the East, learns of a mysterious man who goes by the name of Jay Gatsby. After coming back to his home, Nick sees a man who he believes is Gatsby. When he moves closer to attempt an introduction he observed that Gatsby, “stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far I was from him, I could have sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward-and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far way, that might have been the end of a dock” (20). Archetypally, the color green represents both new life and envy. In the novel the green light represents Gatsby’s wanting for a new life with Daisy and Gatsby’s envy of Tom, as he wants to be be in a relationship with Daisy instead of Tom being in a relationship with Daisy. Gatsby reaching out to this green light, which is at the end of Daisy Buchanan’s dock, symbolizes Gatsby reaching out to Daisy in hopes of getting her back. Later on in the novel, Nick discovers why Gatsby was reaching out to Daisy 's dock, resulting in Nick arranging a …show more content…
When people focus on the past instead of enjoying the future, they will waste their lives on a goal that cannot be achieved. Gatsby’s entire life revolved around Daisy and winning her love back, but even when he made the ultimate sacrifice of taking any blame that Daisy has and putting in on himself, he still could not gain her affections. The past will always be just out of reach and unachievable, so it is whether one decides to let go of the past and enjoy the future or to dwell on the past and ignore the future that they will achieve a life of happiness and