Introduction to The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Contextual Background WWI ended in 1918—disillusioned because of the war, so many expatriates remained in Europe The Roaring 20’s—back home in America, ”madcap” behavior and materialism The Jazz Age—jazz broke the rules of music and thus thumbed it’s nose at the past The New Woman (Feminism)—women demanded the right to vote, to work outside of the home, symbolically cut her hair into a boyish “bob,” and bared her calves in short skirts of the fashionable twenties “flapper”

Author background— F. Scott Fitzgerald F. Scott Fitzgerald Mini Biography by Bio.com

Criticisms and Reviews Gatsby's initially poor sales were, at least in part, the result of some initially poor reviews. Though at the outset Fitzgerald's novel had its share of fans—the New York Times's Edwin Clark called it "a curious book, a mystical, glamorous story of today," one that "takes a deeper cut at life than hitherto has been enjoyed by Mr. Fitzgerald"; the Los Angeles Times's Lillian C. Ford called it "a revelation of life" and "a work of art"— many of their fellow critics found themselves less enchanted by Fitzgerald's effort. H.L. Mencken, writing in the Chicago Tribune, scoffed that "Scott Fitzgerald's new novel, The Great Gatsby is in form no more than a glorified anecdote, and not too probable at that...Certainly not to be put on the same shelf with, say, This Side of Paradise.” The New York Evening World called the book “a valiant effort to be ironical,” but “his style is painfully forced.” The daytime version of the paper ran a headline that called Gatsby “a dud.” Isabel Paterson, Canadian-American journalist, wrote, “What has never been alive cannot very well go on living; so this is a book for the season only.”

Major Characters Nick Carraway—narrator, works in bonds, Daisy’s cousin, Tom’s acquaintance from college Daisy Buchanan—upper class, old money, Tom’s wife, Nick’s cousin, Jay Gatsby’s love interest Tom Buchanan—upper class, old money, Daisy’s husband, having an affair with Myrtle Wilson Myrtle Wilson—lower class, having an affair with Tom Buchanan George Wilson—lower class, married to Myrtle Wilson, owns gas station/auto repair shop Jay Gatsby—upper class, new money, loves Daisy Buchanan

Themes The Decline of the American Dream The Carelessness of the Upper Class Appearances vs. Reality Moral Corruption

5 Things to Annotate 1.Modernism characteristics and leftover characteristics of Naturalism and Regionalism 2.Archetypes and Motifs (Characters and Symbols) 3.Details about the society characters live in, cultural aspects of NYC and Eggs, Historical references (You may need to Google some of the allusions—DO IT!! We will be asking about these in class.) 4.Fitzgerald’s rhetoric and the voices of his characters (Compare and contrast characters: Big picture? Balance? Purpose? Antithesis?) 5.Inferences: What is Fitzgerald expressing about Americanism? Identify what you conclude to be implications of ideals of Fitzgerald’s thoughts of the American Dream.