Death and a Valley

The Valley of Ashes, a terrain that is full of industrial ashes just south of the Eggs. This terrain is a place that is described by death from the fist time it is described: “A fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens; where ashes take forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and finally, with a transcendent effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air” (22). The Valley represents death, pain, lifelessness, and darkness. It is the place where the death of Myrtle Wilson occurs, and the reason that Gatsby is murdered. It is also the place that is where Tom has his affair, chocking his marriage like a parent that places a pillow to their baby.

            The Valley of Ashes also represents the idea that the rich create and oppress the poor. The industry (the rich) creates the ashes that oppress the poor working class.  The fact that it is also a valley, the lowest point of a valley is another reason that the author shows this oppression.

            The Valley is full of symbolism, but those were some of the main ones that I could think of.