The Valley Of Ashes

The Valley of Ashes was based on the Corona dump in Queens:

““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” - The Great Gatsby

Symbolism• Stark contrast from the lavish lifestyle

of East and West Egg

• Represents the decay of morality

• A place for the rich to throw their waste, excesses, and sins

• Reality in sharp contrast to the American Dream

• Myrtle Wilson, Tom’s mistress, lives there—sinful acts are shrouded in ash

Once a swamp and then an ash dump, the ground of the Iron Triangle in Willets Point, Queens, now feels like both. Its businesses have an

unacknowledged ancestor within one of the greatest works of American literature.

The Eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg

•The eyes see the sinful acts in the Valley of Ashes

•They watch over the characters

•Judgment? Does anyone care?