First, "The Great Gatsby" relates to the motif of sports in terms of the cheating aspect that is presented in every sport mentioned in the novel. Obviously, one of the larger themes of the novel deals with cheating -- almost all of the characters in the novel participate in some sort of cheating or lying. First, Tom Buchannan is a polo player and is associated with cheating because he is constantly cheating on his wife with Myrtle and other women in his past. Meyer Wolfshiem, who is Gatsby's link to the criminal underground, is credited with fixing the 1919 World Series. Finally, Jordan Baker, a professional golfer, we are told cheated in a tournament and was disqualified.
Race and ethnicity is also a constant motif throughout the nove. We know from the very first chapter that Tom is a total bigot and dislikes and looks down upon anyone who is not like him -- rich and white. Additionally, the character of Meyer Wolfsheim is also important when looking at this motif becuase, first, he is presented as a cheater and, second, is always described in terms of his nose -- both being a commentary on his religious background and stereotyping it.
In The Great Gatsby, how do the motifs of violence, colours, race, and sports relate to Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby?
Tom has violent tendencies. When Nick accompanies Tom and Myrtle to an afternoon party in the city, Tom breaks Myrtle's nose as she keeps repeating Daisy's name. If there is a color associated with Tom it is green, the color of money. Green is symbolic for different reasons in the novel, but with Tom, the symbolism has to do with money. Tom has racist theories on civilization and expresses them proudly. When Nick first visits Tom and Daisy (and Jordan) in Chapter One, Tom describes some racist literature he's been reading:
“Well, these books are all scientific,” insisted Tom, glancing at her impatiently. “This fellow has worked out the whole thing. It’s up to us, who are the dominant race, to watch out or these other races will have control of things.”
Tom still shows signs of his powerful athleticism having once been "one of the most powerful ends that ever played football at New Haven."
Gatsby is not prone to, or comfortable with, violence. However, his naive and idealistic actions do involve violence. Remember that Gatsby is involved with Meyer Wolfsheim, doing business in bootlegging and possibly illegal drug trade. Violence can, at least occasionally, accompany this kind of illegal business. But Gatsby is on the business side of things and distances himself from the dirty part of the business. Gatsby's action do also play a part, indirectly, in Myrtle's death. So, he has associations with violence but he does not embody violence the way that Tom does.
The color green is also significant for Gatsby for similar and different reasons. Gatsby is interested in money, as Tom is. Acquiring wealth is a way to better himself and to put himself in a position on par with Daisy's social status and Gatsby's idealistic vision of her. Later in...
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the novel, Gatsby remarks that Daisy's voice is "full of money." Of this, Nick remarks:
That was it. I’d never understood before. It was full of money—that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it, the jingle of it, the cymbals’ song of it. . . . high in a white palace the king’s daughter, the golden girl. . . (Chapter 7)
But green also has a more general symbolic meaning for Gatsby. Gatsby stares at the green light at the end of the dock near Daisy's house and, for Gatsby, that light becomes a symbol of Daisy herself. In fact, Gatsby conflated his ideal vision of Daisy with the idea of money, two things which signify wealth, achievement, and a prize with some deeper meaning such as a Holy Grail.
In the last chapter, Gatsby's father shows Nick Gatsby's regimen he had when he was a boy. The regimen included dumbbell exercises, wall-scaling, studying, baseball and sports, etc. Given that Gatsby, as an adult, continued to improve himself to the point where/when he would be worthy of Daisy's affection, it is safe to assume he continued the same or a similar kind of self-improvement, including mental and physical exercises.
In The Great Gatsby, how do the motifs of violence, colors, race, and sports relate to Daisy and Jordan?
Violence: Daisy herself is not a victim of violence, but Myrtle Wilson dies a violent death when Daisy accidentally runs over her while driving Gatsby's car, and Gatsby dies a violent death as a result of his involvement with Daisy. The violence motif does not relate to Jordan.
Colors: Daisy and Jordan both wear white dresses in Chapter 1 when Nick first sees them. They lie on a couch under a white ceiling in a room with white French windows covered by pale curtains. When she was young, Daisy dressed in white and drove a little white car. Her face is frequently described as being pale. White is a Fitzgerald motif that is associated with "the coolness" of wealth and privilege.
Race: Daisy's husband Tom is a racist. He expresses his racist views very clearly in Chapter 1, especially when discussing a book he has recently read, The Rise of the Coloured Empires.
Sports: Jordan is a professional golfer; that is her only pursuit in life, and she has been known to cheat by moving her golf ball to set up a better shot. Nick vaguely remembers her name being associated with a scandal. The sports motif relates to Daisy in that she is married to Tom, a former college football player. Tom is still husky and muscular, but he takes offense when Daisy calls him "hulking."
In The Great Gatsby, how do the motifs of violence, colours, race, and sports relate to Daisy and Jordan?
The motif of violence would relate to Daisy because she is a product of both physical and mental abuse by her husband, Tom. It is clear from the first chapter of the book that Tom does become violent with his wife. When speaking with Jordan and Nick at the dinner table on that first night that Nick visits their home, Daisy points out an injury on her finger and holds nothing back by telling Nick and Jordan that it was Tom who did it to her. The reader can only assume that he continues this type of violence throughout their relationship. Jordan would relate to the motif of sports because she is a professional golfer. The other mention of a sporting event in the novel is when Meyer Wolfsheim is introduced and he is given credit with fixing the 1919 World Series. Jordan Baker continues this motif of cheating in sports when it is revealed at one of Gatsby’s parties that Jordan was disqualified from her golf tournament for cheating.
In The Great Gatsby, how do the motifs of violence, colours, race, and sports relate to Daisy and Jordan?
- Violence- Daisy is quite possibly the victim of violence at the hands of her husband. Although it is not expressly stated in the novel that Tom abuses Daisy, he certainly demonstrates his penchant for abuse on Myrtle. Daisy herself commits a brutal act of violence when she runs Myrtle down in Gatsby's car. Jordan also perpetrates violence on others. She admits to hitting other cars when driving, and she herself is ultimately careless with the emotions of others.
- Colors- Daisy is associated with the color green (the light at the end of the dock, the "money" in her voice). She's also connected with the color white, suggesting an ironic sort of purity...the purity with which Gatsby still views her. Jordan too is connected to white and beige-essentially neutral colors. She herself is empty and distance from others, which is what these colors imply.
- Race- Not really sure what to do with this one...apart from Tom, no one in the novel seems to have overtly racist tendencies. However, Daisy and Jordan are both upper-class white women, giving them an advantage over others socially and economically. This social status is partially why Daisy married Tom rather than Gatsby.
- Sports-Literally, Jordan is a professional athlete. She's a golfer, but she was caught cheating during a game. Metaphorically, life is a sport to Daisy and Jordan. They see others as merely pawns in their game, and truly believe everything they do is ok, with no regards for the consequences.
In The Great Gatsby, how do the motifs of violence, colors, race, and sports relate to Jay Gatsby?
In the novel the motif of violence would relate to Gatsby in that he has an underlying violent side to him throughout the novel that he does not actually show to the reader until he has the argument with Tom toward the end of the novel. Up until that point, Gatsby seems to be a very calm person if you look at him in a non-judgmental way; but if you think of how Gatsby has made his money and what he is wiling to do to get Daisy, it is clear that he clearly has an evil and possibly violent side to him throughout the novel – he just does not display that violence as Tom does.
Colors are significant throughout the novel for Gatsby. First, the color of his possessions; his car is a flashy green color and his clothes are whites and pinks – colors that are sure to stand out and make a statement. Gatsby uses the colors of his possessions to get people, particularly Daisy, to notice him and to basically say, “Hey, I’m rich.” The color green is also symbolic for Gatsby; not only is it the color of his car but the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock is a major symbol representing his envy for what Tom has (Daisy) and his yearning for wealth in order to get Daisy. Other than his connection to Meyer Wolfsheim, he really does not relate to the motifs of sports or race.
What do the motifs Colours, Violence, Race, and Sports have to do with Daisy Buchanan and Nick Carraway in The Great Gatsby?
For an examination of the way race factors into the novel, there is a scene early on when Nick first meets up with Tom and Daisy. During this afternoon tea, Tom encourages Nick to read a book about the advancement of the black race and the threat that it poses on American society. This was a time during which the Harlem Renaissance had begun to make Black artists, in particular, a household phenomenon. The music of the Jazz age comes from the African American tradition. Music permeates the novel because music permeated the era. It was acceptable to associate with black son that level, but not to allow them access into the social circle to which Daisy belongs and into which Nick skirted along the periphery.
Violence is most readily apparent in the scene during which Daisy strikes and kills Myrtle, but Nick is also exposed to violence when Gatsby takes him to meet with Meyer Wolfsheim and Wolfsheim relates the story of the man who is eating dinner, steps outside to "take care of something" and is shot dead. This, apparently, is not an uncommon occurrence if you are a part of the underground/bootleggers circle. Nick is shocked by this violence. Also, Nick is affected by violence when he goes with Tom to the city (when Tom takes Myrtle) and Tom ends up striking Myrtle for mentioning Daisy. Nick also sees the aftermath of violence both with Myrtle's death and Gatsby's death. Up until this particular summer, Nick had been sheltered from the violence that human kind is capable of, and seeing it up close changes him (as well as makes him decide that he wants no part of it). Daisy, on the other hand, is unaffected by the violence. She is a member of the rich - those who are untouchable and can break things only to rely on their wealth to get them out of trouble.
The best mention of color that I can think of immediately is the light that is at the end of the dock. Daisy is on one end of the light and Nick (as well as Gatsby) is on the other end. That green glow is significant - green is often associated with jealousy as well. Also, the color of the car is a factor. Tom is driving Gatsby's yellow car on the way in to town, but it is Daisy who is driving the car when Myrtle is killed. The yellow is what makes the car memorable.
Sports - Jordan is a golf player, and she is, in some ways, more defined by her sport than by anything else. She is a champion, a pro, and, as such, out of Nick's league. Tom plays polo. Nick is not a sports player at all. The other references to sport include the rigging of the world series by Wolfsheim.
What do the motifs Colours, Violence, Race, and Sports have to do with Daisy Buchanan and Nick Carraway in The Great Gatsby?
I must admit I have some difficulty finding ways that the motifs of colours (without a very specific investigation of the text) race and sports have a great deal to do with Daisy and Nick. The violence one is also a tad difficult, but can possibly be explicated as follows:
Daisy is a person who practices violence on all the people around her but in a mental way rather than a physical one. She is willing to manipulate people to get whatever she wants, she will lie or lead anyone on and in the end destroys Gatsby by allowing him to take the fall for her crime.
Nick on the other hand in some ways is entirely free from the violence of the novel, mental or otherwise. You could likely make the argument that he is affected by it as the most astute observer of the action of the play. He is affected in terms of the impression he has and his emotional loss at the failure of Gatsby to find the success he is looking for.
But I will admit to finding it rather difficult to connect the other motifs, particularly sports. I will be curious to see how some others can connect that to the two characters.