The Great Gatsby Is Set in the Mid-1920S, a Prosperous Time at Home and Lesson3lesson Two 3 Abroad
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Examining an author’s life can inform and expand the reader’s understanding of a novel. Biographical criticism is the practice of analyzing a literary work through the lens of an author’s experience. In this lesson, explore the author’s life to understand the novel more fully. 1 F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Minnesota childhood and New York adventures inspire Lesson3Lesson One 3 events in Nick’s and Gatsby’s lives. As a child, Fitzgerald liked to imagine he was from British royalty and had been abandoned on his parents’ FOCUS: doorstep. A weak student, Fitzgerald was sent to boarding school. His parents hoped that this education would improve his prospects. Like the Biography characters in the novel, Fitzgerald took a train from his Midwest home in St. Paul, Minnesota, to New York City. Many of his short stories explore the effects that a physical departure from the Midwest could have on a person. ?? Discussion Activities Listen to The Big Read Audio Guide. Students should take notes as they listen. Ask students to discuss what they learned about F. Scott Fitzgerald from the Audio Guide. Distribute Reader’s Guide essays, “F. Scott Fitzgerald, 1896–1940,” “Fitzgerald and the Jazz Age,” and “Fitzgerald and His Other Works.” Divide the class into groups. Assign one essay to each group. After reading and discussing the essays, each group will present what it learned from the essay. Ask students to add a creative twist to make their presentations memorable. ?? Writing Exercise The novel begins with a quote from Thomas Parke D’Invilliers, a character from Fitzgerald’s This Side of Paradise: “Then wear the gold hat, if that will move her; / If you can bounce high, bounce for her too, / Till she cry “Lover, gold-hatted, high-bouncing lover, / I must have you!” What does this poem mean? Ask students to examine the intention behind this epigraph. Based on what they learned from the Audio Guide, why do they think Fitzgerald chose this quote? ?? Homework Read Chapter 1. Prepare your students to read roughly 20 pages per night in order to complete this book in ten lessons. As they read, students should consider these questions: Why is Nick telling this story? Why is Nick “confused and a little disgusted” at the end of the chapter? THE BIG READ • NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Cultural and historical contexts give birth to the dilemmas and themes at the center of the novel. Studying these contexts and appreciating intricate details of the time and place help readers understand the motivations of the characters. 2 The Great Gatsby is set in the mid-1920s, a prosperous time at home and Lesson3Lesson Two 3 abroad. The United States had joined World War I in 1917, three years after its eruption. The 1919 Peace of Paris established accord between nations FOCUS: that ended the war. Many considered American intervention the best way Culture and to a decisive and quick Allied victory. Prohibition at home led to a growing world of organized crime, as the sale History of alcohol went underground. Even the 1919 World Series was affected, as members of the White Sox (the team favored to win) decided to “throw” the series, creating larger profits for those gambling against the Sox. In Harlem, the northern migration of African Americans created an artistic expansion of literature, music, plays, political tracts, and visual art. And around the country, technology produced new opportunities for Americans, including radio, motion pictures, automobiles, and electric appliances. ?? Discussion Activities Listen to The Big Read Audio Guide. Maureen Corrigan explains that in this novel, “you can’t get at the truth.” Ask students the following questions: From what you heard on the Audio Guide, what do you think Corrigan means? Is there any indication, in the first twenty- one pages, that we will not “get at the truth”? Find samples of legendary jazz recordings. Play King Oliver’s “Chimes Blues,” which includes Louis Armstrong’s first recorded solo. Move on to Armstrong’s “Sugar Foot Stomp” and “West End Blues.” How does Armstrong’s music change from 1923 to 1928? Before you answer, listen to each piece again. How does this music capture the spirit of the 1920s? ?? Writing Exercise Have students read Handout One: Prohibition and Handout Three: Harlem in the Jazz Age. After reading these handouts and listening to The Big Read Audio Guide and/or Louis Armstrong’s music, students should write a one-page summary of the arts and culture of the era. In the first twenty-one pages of the novel, is Fitzgerald’s depiction consistent with what they have learned? Why or why not? ?? Homework Have students read Chapter 2. What does Nick learn about Tom at the end of Chapter 2? How does Tom’s treatment of Mrs. Wilson affect Nick? NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS • THE BIG READ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. The narrator tells the story with a specific perspective informed by his or her beliefs and experiences. Narrators can be major or minor characters, or exist outside the story altogether. The narrator weaves her or his point of view, including ignorance and bias, into telling the tale. A first-person 3 narrator participates in the events of the novel, using “I.” A distanced Lesson Three 3Lesson 3 narrator, often not a character, is removed from the action of the story and uses the third person (he, she, and they). The distanced narrator may FOCUS: be omniscient, able to read the minds of all the characters, or limited, describing only certain characters’ thoughts and feelings. Ultimately, the Narrative and type of narrator determines the point of view from which the story is told. Point of View The Great Gatsby is told in the first person by Nick Carraway. The novel begins from the point of view of an older Nick, reminiscing on the events of one summer. Nick’s perspective, entangled in the dramatic action, subjectively depicts a series of events. ?? Discussion Activities Ask students to list the things they’ve learned about Nick Carraway in the first two chapters of the novel. How might his background color the way he tells this story? How trustworthy is Nick? How might the perspective of Chapter 1 change if F. Scott Fitzgerald had chosen to narrate the story in the first person from Daisy’s “sophisticated” point of view? Have the class brainstorm the outline of this new chapter. ?? Writing Exercise Based on the previous activity, write a few pages of Daisy’s version of the story. Chapter 2 begins with the “valley of ashes” and the “eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg.” What do they reveal about Nick’s character and point of view? What do they reveal about the landscape? ?? Homework Read Chapter 3. What do we learn about Gatsby from Nick’s observations before we meet him? THE BIG READ • NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. The central character in a work of literature is called the protagonist. The protagonist usually initiates the main action of the story and often overcomes a flaw, such as weakness or ignorance, to achieve a new understanding by the work’s end. A protagonist who acts with great 4 honor or courage may be called a hero. An antihero is a protagonist Lesson Four 3Lesson 3 lacking these qualities. Instead of being dignified, brave, idealistic, or purposeful, the antihero may be cowardly, self-interested, or weak. FOCUS: The protagonist’s journey is enriched by encounters with characters who hold differing beliefs. One such character type, a foil, has traits that Characters contrast with the protagonist’s and highlight important features of the main character’s personality. The most important foil, the antagonist, opposes the protagonist, barring or complicating his or her success. Nick Carraway narrates the story, but it is Jay Gatsby who is the novel’s protagonist. Gatsby’s love affair with Daisy, her marriage to Tom, and Gatsby’s quest to regain Daisy’s affection provide the story’s narrative arc. ?? Discussion Activities Ask your students the following questions: What kind of person is Nick Carraway? How does he compare to narrators in other novels your students have studied? How might Nick’s narration color the way readers view the other characters? Is he a reliable narrator? Divide the class into groups. Assign each group two secondary characters: Daisy, Jordan, Tom, Myrtle, Wilson, Mrs. McKee, Catherine, Mr. McKee, or Gatsby’s party–goers. Ask students to review the first three chapters of the novel. Have each group list key attributes of its characters. Prepare a presentation that documents moments when these characters bring out reactions from Nick. What do these characters teach Nick about himself? What do we learn about Gatsby? ?? Writing Exercise Have students write two pages on the character they believe to be an antagonist to Nick, to Gatsby, or to both men. What qualities does this character have that make him or her an opposing force? How might encounters with the antagonist change Nick or Gatsby? ?? Homework Homework: Chapter 4. Ask students to consider Fitzgerald’s descriptions as they read. Find the three most vivid descriptions in Chapter 4. Are they effective? Why or why not? Why does Nick say, “There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy, and the tired?” NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS • THE BIG READ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.