The Cars
It takes two to make an accident. -Jordan Baker
Throughout the Novel...
"On week-ends his Rolls-Royce became an omnibus, bearing parties to and from the city between nine in the morning and long past midnight, while his station wagon scampered like a brisk yellow bug to meet all trains." (39)
“It takes two to make an accident.” (58)
"I’d seen it. Everybody had seen it. It was a rich cream color, bright with nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hat-boxes and supper-boxes and tool-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that mirrored a dozen suns." (64)
"The 'death car,' as the newspapers called it, didn’t stop; it came out of the gathering darkness, wavered tragically for a moment, and then disappeared around the next bend. Michaelis wasn’t even sure of its color — he told the first policeman that it was light green." (137)
“It takes two to make an accident.” (58)
"I’d seen it. Everybody had seen it. It was a rich cream color, bright with nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hat-boxes and supper-boxes and tool-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that mirrored a dozen suns." (64)
"The 'death car,' as the newspapers called it, didn’t stop; it came out of the gathering darkness, wavered tragically for a moment, and then disappeared around the next bend. Michaelis wasn’t even sure of its color — he told the first policeman that it was light green." (137)
Relevance
Cars were an important status symbol in the early 20th century. With Ford's "Model T" and the assembly line, it was part of the American Dream to have a car. The importance of the cars in the novel is that they are status symbols. Myrtle's death by the yellow car, thinking the driver was Tom, creates irony in that section of the novel. What she was hoping for had killed her. The same would hold true for Gatsby.
The car crashes are representative of carelessness and selfishness, since Gatsby drives away from Myrtle's body and also in Gatsby's parties, which are indicators of the attitude of the generation. They are into the materialistic and are self-centered.
The car crashes are representative of carelessness and selfishness, since Gatsby drives away from Myrtle's body and also in Gatsby's parties, which are indicators of the attitude of the generation. They are into the materialistic and are self-centered.
Reference (Pre-1925)
"But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs." (1 Timothy 6:9-10)