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“Over the ashheaps the giant eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg kept their vigil but I perceived, after a moment, that other eyes were regarding us with peculiar intensity from less than twenty feet away.” (p. 131) At this point in the story Myrtle sees Tom, Jordan, and Nick talking to Wilson. She assumes Jordan Baker to be Tom’s wife. This sets off a chain reaction which ultimately ends in the death of Gatsby. If T.J. Eckleburg is to be portrayed as some kind of God-like figure, this passage shows he is more of a spectator. It reminds me of the philosophy that says God was the first cause. Once he got the ball rolling, he either took off or sat back and observed. T.J. Eckleburg might even just represent the idea of God, but this part shows that God has little to do with the decisions and outcomes of the world. We are responsible for our own destinies. By: Jacqueline Zdon
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