The American Dream book
For each day of GG discussion, find one piece of evidence of the desturction of the American Dream, and one piece of evidence that gives us hope for the resurrection of the dream in any one of its three pursuits: material success, spiritual fulfillment, and harmony with nature. For tomorrow, you need to bring in the bound, empty book. I will show you examples of fancy books. On day 3 this week and on each GG day thereafter, bring in two articles (showing destruction/rebirth) break into groups, quickly share and then show the best evidence for both deterioration and rebirth.
The Great Gatsby / Worksheet
What symbols or values do you think of when you recall the westward migration of the early settlers?
What are the stereotypical difference between the East Coast and the Midwest?
A. F. Scott & Zelda Fitzgerald's Background
B. Symbols
colors/ green, white, yellow, pink
Names: James Gatsby, Nick Carraway, Daisy Bucchanan, Tom Bucchanan, Myrtle Wilson
Places: East Egg, West Egg, Valley of the Ashes, Manhattan
Eyes of Dr. T.J. Ecklburg
Owl Eyes
Pearl Necklace
C. Structure
Episodic
Detective Story
D. Themes
Gatsby as symbolic of the American Dream
Corruption of American Dream as symbolized by movement from West to East
Corruption of American Dream as symbolized by Gatsby's dream of Daisy
Corruption of America as symbolized by the characters
E. Text Crawling
€ What do we learn about Nick from his description of himself?
€ What do we learn about Tom, Daisy & Jordan? Find key bits of dialog or narration which define these characters. What does the picture of Gatsby reaching out to a green light symbolize?
€ What is the Valley of Ashes & what does it symbolize? What do the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg symbolize?
€ Describe Myrtle and explain Tom's attraction to this "thickish" woman. What illusions do she and her sister hold? Why doesn't Tom allow Myrtle to speak Daisy's name? What happens after Nick leaves the apartment?
€ How would you characterize the guests who come to Gatsby's party? How would you characterize the party? What symbol does the man with owl-eyed spectacles remind you of? What does he represent? What do we learn about Gatsby from his discovery? What is implicit in Gatsby's using the term "old sport"? What do we learn from Jordan's confession that she finds large parties "so intimate" and finds "no privacy" at small parties? Owl Eyes gains a further significance in the accident. Explain.
€ What do we learn about Jordan Baker? What's the pun? Why doesn't Nick mind dishonesty in women? What is significant about the dialog on p. 1374?
€ How would you characterize the people from East Egg and West Egg merely based on their last names?