gatsby55-0-7

Chapter 1-2: If these chapters were short stories, what would be their theme? (What insight do they give to human life? What do they tell us about how people act?) Have you noticed any symbols? What do you think they represent? What are you thinking about the characters we've been introduced to so far?
 * //The Great Gatsby//** F. Scott Fitzgerald

The first chapters theme would be just high society the reason being that throughout the chapters he just talked about how rich people were and what they did with said money. They basically tell us that humans are greedy and we are creatures that only look for satisfaction in life and dont care about the other man. What it tells us about how people act, it tells us like I said that people are only out there for numero uno and nothing else theyre out to get money and women. **Is there something within the culture that tells us that or something from the story specifically? Are you referring to Tom here?** The symbols I've noticed are that usually big things are associated with rich people like in the case of mertyl that she didnt want a small puppy but she wanted a german shperd or police dog and her furniture is big for an apartment and i dont know for sure but i think the reason she is a bigger woman is at the time there were the cooperate fat cats and i think Fitzgerald wanted to symbolize that through her. **Even if you don't know for sure, it's a good idea, so you don't need to include that you might not know in your essay.** i also think that white with Daisy symbolizes un-corrupt goodness shes not fake she doesnt put on a face because of money she stayed the same. well i think that Nick is the middle man of the story because you dont hear anything bad about him but im sure he has done things. I think that Daisy is the "Angel" of the story because she always wears white and you dont really hear anything bad about her yet. And her foil is Tom because he is always up to something bad and if you notice throughout the story he is always wearing darker colors. And finally there is mertyl who i think represents corruption in the story because she is married to a nice guy but she still gets creature comforts from tom shes neither good or bad just corrupt. **I like your analysis of the characters here. Could you say more about how Mertyl is corrupt? Why does the fact that she's corrupt make her neither good nor bad?**


 * Jacob-

I think you have some good ideas and it would be really awesome if you could expand on them. As always, citing the text would be helpful to see where your ideas are coming from and what exactly in the text is helping you draw those conclusions.

Therese**

[|Those Crazy Parties]
Well, so far we've seen three crazy parties that Nick has shared with us. What stuck out to you about each of them? What do each of them tell us about the characters we've met and how they relate to each other? They all had alot of booze and bit... women but the first one was weird cause you didnt get to see what happend in it so it was kinda a mystery. The second one was the same but the third you actually got to see inside the partay and see wat was goin on and why they were gettin so crunk in dat piece. **Nick still talks about the first two parties and gives details on them as an outsider. Do you think that his perception of the parties changes when he gets inside and meets Gatsby?** You only met gatsby and the drunk dude and one was drunk and the other wasnt so that was the only real difference. **We only met Gatsby and Owl Eyes at the party, but the question asks more about the characters in general, so what does the party say about Nick or Jordan and what does it say about Gatsby?**

Jordan is talking to Nick when she says, “And I like large parties. They’re so intimate. At small parties there isn’t any privacy” (Fitzgerald 52). How does this quote reflect each of the gatherings in the first three chapters? There are so many people there that no one person can listen in on others conversations in other words there were alot of people in dat piece i mean thousands or upper hundreds. **That's true and accurate, but also, what does it say about the dinner at the Buchanan's or the small dinner party with Myrtle and Tom's apartment and Jordan's attitude toward small gatherings like those?

Jacob,

You have some good ideas, you just need to say more about them and refer back to specific passages in the text.

Therese**

//The point-of-view that a novel is told in frames the entire story. How would// The Great Gatsby //change if if it were told in another character's perspective (like Jay Gatsby's point-of-view?) Why do you think Fitzgerald chose Nick to be the narrator?
 * Chapters 1-4**

Apply Marxist Criticism to the first four chapters of// The Great Gatsby//. How is wealth portrayed in this book? How does the characters' wealth affect their lives and their choices? PLEASE, USE EXAMPLES FROM THE TEXT TO SUPPORT YOUR ANSWER.//

//Fitzgerald makes use of timepieces in several parts of chapter 5. What do these clocks and watches represent? Explain why these symbols are especially important in this chapter. Find one to three quotes that would serve as an example of a timepiece being a symbol, and explain what they represent.//
 * Chapters 1-5**

//The American Dream shows up as theme in many writings and discussions over// The Great Gatsby//. How do you define the American Dream? Does it have any influence in your life? Is the American Dream attainable to everyone in the United States? Find one to three quotes from the text that you believe makes a connection to the American Dream and explain why.// The clocks represent what time that Gatsby and Jordan spent apart and they stopped because they got back together symbolizing that they have found each other and that they’re time will start over again. (This is a really good analysis. Can you point to where this is in the book? **The American dream is settling down with a non-dirty girl and having kids who aren’t crazy and they will have good grades. Yes it does because every girl that I look at dating wise is not a dirty girl because dirty girls leads to trouble. It is if you know how to work and have a good work ethic because with a good work ethic you can attain anything you want. I don’t wanna look for any quotes.** (Your analysis of what the American Dream is is really good. But you need to look more at why these things make up the American Dream. Why are kids and a family part of the American Dream? Is there someone in Gatsby living the American Dream?)

Jacob-

Even if you don't want to look for quotes, it makes your argument stronger and shows that you put a lot of thought into what you're saying. There are tons of things in the novel that show the American Dream and who has attained it. Have all the characters attained the American Dream?

Therese

**Chapter 1-6 ** //There is sometimes a question about who exactly the protagonist is in The Great Gatsby. Is it Nick or Gatsby? Who then would be the antagonist? Explain your answer using at least three events from the story to defend your thinking.//

the protagonist is nick because the whole story is centered like how they talk about his past and they also talk about basically everything he does and how they also talk about him the most even though the book is named after Gatsby. Tom is the problem cuz hes a bad guy and hes having an affair and he also has a mistress in a flat in new york and he also is bad because he really doesnt love his wife he hits her. and basically symbolizes the bad stuff that comes with money and power like having a mistress and being a mean guy. **This is really a good analysis of Tom and what makes him the bad guy, but what makes Nick the protagonist? Is it just because they talk about him a lot? Or do they talk about him a lot in a positive light? Would it still be possible for Gatsby to be the main character even though Nick is the one that's talked about the most?**

//What theme(s) are becoming apparent in The Great Gatsby by this point in the book? Support your answer with at least three examples in the text up until this point.//

The theme of the story is that money can go either way with people, it can either make you crazy with power and abuse the power to the extent of evilness in the case of tom. or it can make you appreciate what you came from and make you do nice stuff with your money like throw extra cool parties with a ton of people that he doesn't even know and just have food and alcohol everywhere for all to enjoy in the case of gatsby. **How do you know that it's the theme? Where in the text indicates that money is a theme? Is it more than just money that is the theme?

Jacob-

Again, you have really good ideas, you just need to work more closely with the text and back up what you're saying with quotes.

Therese

Chapter 1-7** //Who is the most dynamic character in this book? How (and how much) do they change? Would he/she be considered round or flat? Support your thinking with examples from the text. **The most dynamic character in the book is Gatsby because he changes from a quiet cool guy to a shy guy and finally his hood side comes out when hes talkin to tom and yellin at him. He is a round character because you see many sides and emotions from him and he really shows them alot more than the other characters.**// (This is really good, but again, you didn't quote from the text. Your analysis is good, but when do we see either side of Gatsby? Are there some times that are more representative of his character than others? Where in the text to your examples come from?)

//Who would be considered a foil in The Great Gatsby? Why would the author use these characters to show differences? By applying structuralism and looking for binary opposition, what values are considered important in this book? **The foil is Tom because he is the exact opposite of nick because hes mean big and scary and nick is calm little and a pretty cool guy. He shows that its not always the big guy to get the girl because he ends up losing his girl while nick is Mackin on Jordan and Gatsby is mackin on his wife. The important values in this book are sincerity because everyone in the book who is sincere is doin good so far and everyone who is lying and bein bad is losin loved ones and gettin attacked and yelled at.**// (Again, these are really good, but you need to support it with evidence from the text. How do we know that Daisy and Gatsby are mackin'? How do we know that Jordan and Nick are mackin'? CITE. Please?)

//Choose one of the following symbols and explain what they represent. Then find three quotes in the text where this symbol appears – use MLA formats to avoid plagiarism. • Ashes and Dust • Cars and Drivers • Colors • Houses and Owners • Photography and Lenses • Flowers
 * Chapters 1-9**

Answer definitively what the theme of The Great Gatsby is. Find three quotes in the text to support your thinking.//