1. NATURALISM, MODERNISM, AND THE GREAT GATSBY
by James Vineyard
Sachse High School
ELA Department

2. NATURALISM from “Naturalism in American Literature,” www. guweb2
NATURALISM from “Naturalism in American Literature,”
A subsection of Realism
Humans are studied according to their surroundings
Characters are lower-class, ruled by heredity, passion, and instinct
Cannot exercise free will, as forces beyond character’s control limit options
Frequently in urban settings

3. NATURALISM Themes: The “brute within”
The fight for survival in an indifferent universe
Nature is an indifferent force acting on human beings
The forces of heredity and environment afflict humanity

4. NATURALISM Authors: Frank Norris Stephen Crane Jack London
Edith Wharton

5. STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS
A literary technique in which the author uses narrative that reflects the thought patterns of a character
Events are often disjointed, nonsensical, and non-chronological
Developed in late nineteenth century; utilized more in twentieth century

6. MODERNISM from “Perspectives in American Literature—A Research and Reference Guide,”
The first true twentieth century movement
Disruption of traditional syntax and form
International perspective
The artist is more heroic than the average person
The artist challenges tradition and breaks away from it

7. MODERNISM Democratic and elitist Traditional and non-traditional
Freer expression of sexual and political views
Dramatizes the plight of women
Creation of literature that reflects the urban experience
Alienation leads to self-discovery

8. MODERNISM
Themes:
Socialist influences: the good of the collective vs. the individual
The Jazz Age
Women’s suffrage
Prohibition
The stock market crash and Great Depression

9. MODERNISM Authors: Ezra Pound John Steinbeck F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Harlem Renaissance
Dorothy Parker
T.S. Eliot
William Faulkner
Ernest Hemingway

10. THE GREAT GATSBY Published in 1925 Examination of the Jazz Age
Criticism of adhering to false materialistic values
Cynical; an example of the bitterness of the Lost Generation

11. THE GREAT GATSBY Themes: The American Dream The individual vs. society
Appearance vs. Reality
The loss of innocence
Inability to attain material fulfillment

12. F. SCOTT FITZGERALD from “Novel Guide: The Great Gatsby,” www
F. SCOTT FITZGERALD from “Novel Guide: The Great Gatsby,”
Born in 1896 as Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald
Served in the army after leaving Princeton in 1917; discharged in 1919
Published This Side of Paradise when only 23.
Unable to become wealthy from writing; moved to Hollywood to write screenplays
Died at the age of 44 of a heart attack

13. F. SCOTT FITZGERALD

14. IMAGERY
The word pictures writers create to evoke an emotional response
Often tied to sensory details: sight, sound, taste, touch, smell
Prominent mode of communication in Gatsby

15. IMAGERY Common images in Gatsby: Eyes Sun/heat/fire Ashes Ghosts Music
Colors