To Gatsby, the green light stands for the unity with Daisy, him dreaming of their lives together but never understands that the water is not the only thing separating them from being together. .
Fitzgerald weaves throughout the novel the color gold, signifying the idea of "old money" and class. This symbol contrasts greatly with the color green portraying "new money". Before the 1920's, people used gold as a means of buying and selling. After the national currency became established, green money soon replaced gold. Gold represented authenticity and stability, while the idea of new money seems cheeped with green, flimsy bills. This contrast divides Daisy and Tom with their "old money", and Gatsby with his "new money." Even in Gatsby's house the sight of gold goes almost unnoticed. "Except where the dresser was garnished with a toilet set of pure dull gold" (97), or when Gatsby wears his "gold tie" to impress Daisy. He tries to emulate the image of old money. The thought of Gatsby's toilet being dull and only having a golden tie demonstrates his facade of wealth. He fails to establish the same heritage of success since no one can confirm his rise to fortune. On the other hand, Daisy's very image represents that of gold. As Daisy speaks her voice is "full of money- that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it, the jingle of it, the cymbal's of it high in a white palace the king's daughter, the golden girl" (127). For Gatsby, Daisy epitomizes his desired lifestyle of wealth. The fact that Daisy has wanted nothing in her life is conveyed through her voice. Nick becomes aware of the magnetic quality of Daisy's voice, while Gatsby struggles to obtain her, seeking the "old money" lifestyle, but never quite achieving it, making him strive for the distorted figure of it. .
Revealed through many characters, yellow exemplifies the idea of falsity and corruption in the Great Gatsby.