The Great Gatsby - Symbolism for Character Development of Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan

<Tab/>The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a novel based on symbolism. Symbols throughout the novel aid in the development of all the characters, in particular Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan. Three major symbols assist in those characters' development: the car symbolizes wealth, power of the upper class, and chasing dreams; the consumption of alcohol symbolizes revealing the truth; and New York City represents freedom to do what one …

…develop the character of Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan throughout the novel. The use of symbols, rather than having long descriptions, makes the novel more interesting to the reader. They develop characters more thoroughly, comprehensively, and give clues to the reader that words alone cannot. <Tab/> Suggestions: - conclusion could be a bit longer, but my teacher didn't mind [ keep last sentence as last sentence though, I think its good ;-) ]