what is the valley of ashes

The Valley of Ashes is a location in F. Scott Fitzgeralds novel "The Great Gatsby" that represents the dark side of American society in the 1920s. It is a depressing industrial area of Queens that is located between West Egg and Manhattan. The valley is not actually made out of ashes, but seems that way because of how gray and smoke-choked it is. This grayness and dust are directly related to the factories that are nearby—their smokestacks deposit a layer of soot and ash over everything. The valley of ashes is bounded on one side by a small foul river, and when the drawbridge is up to let barges through, the passengers on waiting trains can stare at the dismal scene for as long as half an hour. The valley of ashes represents the separation between the older American aristocracy, which once exclusively occupied East and West Egg, and the new urban Americans. The valley of ashes is mentioned in Chapter 2 of the novel, where Nick describes what this place is like at length before he goes there to meet Toms mistress Myrtle.