Setting is the most important physical manifestation of theme in the novel, matching characters and classes to perfectly evoke the new social realities of the 1920"s. Each of the four important geographical locations in the novel – West Egg, East Egg, the Valley of Ashes and New York City – corresponds to a particular theme or type of character encountered throughout the story.

             The first chapter introduces us to two of the most important areas, West Egg and East Egg. Though each home to fabulous wealth, and though separated only by a small expanse of water, the two regions are nearly opposite. West Egg is like Gatsby, full of garnish extravagance, symbolizing the new rich springing up outside the established aristocracy of the 20"s. It is associated with Gatsby"s monstrous mansion and inner drive behind his self-made fortune. While, East Egg is associated with the monotony of the Buchanan"s inherited social position. East Egg is like the Buchanans, wealthy, possessing high social status, and powerful, symbolizing the old upper class that continued to dominate the American social landscape. The intersection of the two Eggs in Gatsby and Daisy"s romance will be the fault line that leads to the novels greatest catastrophe.

             The Valley of Ashes is like George Wilson, desolate, desperate and utterly without hope, symbolizing the moral decay hidden by the glittering surface of upper-class society. It is a symbol of absolute desolation and poverty; unlike the other settings in the book, it lacks a glamorous surface and lies fallow and gray halfway between West Egg and New York, representing the moral decay hidden by the beautiful surfaces of those settings. It is the only place in the novel that serves as a home to the poor, and is presided over by the unsettling, massive eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg. .

             This pair of monstrous and, spectacled eyes, gazing down from their billboard, is one of the most important images in the novel The Great Gatsby is full of image of sight and blindness, ".