The Great Gatsby HO72 Drama and prose post-1900 (Component 02) Lesson 1 LO: In this lesson you will: Gain an overview of the era in which the Great Gatsby is set Explore some of the events in history which affected Fitzgerald’s work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pda3jOQyVZE audio book

The period You have been given a selection of images. AO3 You have been given a selection of images. What do these images suggest about the age? Read Nicholas Tredell’s historical context handout and annotate the images with key words. Listen to jazz here

Setting Published in 1925 Set in 1922 Discuss different covers

The Epigraph Usually, authors will quote another famous author, philosopher, or someone like that in the epigraph. But not Fitzgerald. He quotes himself. The epigraph in Gatsby is fake. “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!” – Thomas Parke D’Invilliers Thomas Parke D’Invilliers is not a real person. He’s actually a character in Fitzgerald’s first novel, This Side of Paradise. Gatsby did everything short of wearing a “gold hat” for Daisy. He “bounced high” by making himself noticeable and throwing extravagant parties just for her. Finally, she noticed. a phrase or form of words written in memory of a person who has died, especially as an inscription on a tombstone. What do you think the relevance is of a fake epigraph?

Alternative Titles Below are some of the working titles for The Great Gatsby. Decide what the significance of each might be – which aspect of the story (narrative) does it focus on (foreground)? Did Fitzgerald choose the right title? Why did he choose The Great Gatsby? Trimalchio in West Egg The High-Bouncing Lover Gold-hatted Gatsby Among the Ash Heaps and Millionaires On the road to West Egg Under the Red, White and Blue Trimalchio was the protagonist in Satyricon, by Petronius. He was a freedman who gained prestige and power through sheer tenacity and hard work. The term "Trimalchio" has become shorthand for the worst excesses of the nouveau riche.

The Film https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSOgWVlAMsg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgcuBOVMGsg Note down your brief impressions Wider research: the book has been made into a film 5 times. Research other films. Note differences in presentation.

The Period Jazz age Inter-War Roaring 20s AO3 Below is a list of some of the names given to the period approximately between 1918-1939 and the generation who became adults in it: Jazz age Inter-War Roaring 20s La Génération du Feu Generation of Fire) World War 1 Generation Bright Young Things Pre-Depression Era The Flapper Era Lost Generation Golden Twenties Golden Age of Hollywood Prohibition Era Give out each of these as a separate sheets, annotate with what the era might have been like

Annotate your ideas Mood/tone Themes Impression of the people On the different names, annotate with your ideas about what the era may have been like. Consider: Mood/tone Themes Impression of the people Impressions of the period.

F Scott Fitzgerald AO3 Read the handout you have been given. What kind of world did Fitzgerald live in? How might this have affected his work and what he chose to write about. What do you consider to be the most influential events and why? Independent Learning Task: Visit my blog and watch the BBC programme on the life of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Make careful notes and create a timeline of key moments in his life such as his education, marriage, publication of works. Extra challenge: Write a summary of Fitzgerald in your reading journal and note similarities to Gatsby as you read the novel.

The Novel We will now take turns to read aloud from the opening; Note your initial impressions (especially in the context of biographical information already explored). Consider how you will represent the chapter in your Reading Journal. Highlight key quotations and annotate the text with ideas/questions

Echoes of the Jazz Age AO3 Read the article which first appeared in Scribner Magazine in 1931 in which Fitzgerald reflects on the period with which he had become so closely associated. The Great Gatsby was published 6 years before the article at the height of the ‘Jazz Age’. Talk about the relationship between the novel and the article, for example: attitudes towards the period voice choices of language the relationship with the reader

Check your learning Using the first person narrative perspective. Write your impressions of today’s lesson. Prep for next lesson Read chapter 1 of the novel.

Homework AO3 Each group will research (books and internet) the context of Fitzgerald’s life: Major literary works (with brief summaries) Prohibition The American Dream Hollywood The Jazz Age The Roaring Twenties Technological advancements/commercialism Each group will give brief presentations to the rest of class (and lead discussions, not simply read from PPT!). Each group will provide a revision handout with brief notes on their topic and upload their resources powerpoints to Edmodo.