Colby Arel

Mr. Smith

Junior English

November 15, 2022

In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleberg is used to

illustrate the ever watching eyes of God throughout the story. The eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleberg

first appear when Fitzgerald introduces the valley of ashes and is describing how life is in

this area between the homes of the characters and New York “But above the grey land and

the spasms of bleak dust which drift endlessly over it, you perceive, after a moment, the

eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg. The eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleberg are blue and gigantic -- their

retinas are one yard high. They look out of no face but, instead, from a pair of enormous

yellow spectacles” (Fitzgerald, 27) the meaning of the eyes is associated with a watchful

gaze that is witness to all of the events that go on in the valley of ashes. Fitzgerald’s purpose

is to have these eyes be a symbol that represents the watchful eyes of God that see all of the

wrongdoings of the characters in the story whether or not they think that they can be seen.

The way the eyes are portrayed display an ever knowing and wise expression in the eyes

that are similar to how the eyes of god would be expressed. The eyes are witness to all of

the lies throughout the story and the double lives lived by some of the characters. This is

further demonstrated when Nick first is in the view of the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleberg. The first

instance where Nick views the eyes comes when he is traveling with Tom to New York City

for lunch, they stopped in the valley of ashes where they get out and they “walked back a

hundred yards along the road under Doctor Eckleberg’s persistent stare.” In this example,
the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleberg again reflects a witness to all that goes on in the Valley of

Ashes. In this situation, the eyes are witness to Tom Buchanon going to pick up a woman

who he is cheating on his wife with. Although Tom’s wife Daisy is unaware of this

relationship, the eyes are witness and represent the fact that God sees all that the

characters do and there will eventually be consequences for their actions. Fitzgerald’s

purpose with this symbol is to show throughout the book that through all the lies that are

told, the eyes are witness and the true story will always be known by God. The eyes witness

many events throughout the book and serve as a symbol that the truth will eventually get

out. Towards the end of the novel, the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleberg appear again, as Nick states

“I turned my head as though I had been warned of something behind. Over the ashheaps

the giant eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleberg kept their vigil but I perceived, after a moment, that

other eyes were regarding us with peculiar intensity from less than twenty feet

away.”(Fitzgerald, 131) The eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleberg illustrates the connection between the

actual billboard eyes that are in the valley of ashes and the eyes of God that have witnessed

all the wrongdoing that has gone on between the characters in the story. Fitzgerald’s

purpose is to show that the eyes of God were attempting to warn Nick of what was to come

on that fateful night of Myrtle's death. Fitzgerald’s use of the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleberg

highlights the presence of God, who witnesses all of the wrongdoings committed by the

characters of the story.