1. The Great Gatsby  What does the novel mean?

2. The Great Gatsby Literary Elements

3. Style  The way a writer puts words together  Length and rhythm of sentences  use of figurative language  symbolism  dialogue  description

4. Style  A novel of “selected incident” – part stands for the whole  Full of images appealing to the senses – water imagery, color imagery  Reflective – Nick reflects on the meaning of the action/events he witnessed

5. Point of View  Limited first person / First person secondary  Realistic – we learn about characters in bits and pieces over time  Gatsby is more sympathetic because of Nick’s decision to become his friend.

6. Form / Structure  Who is to tell the story and in what order will events be told?

7. Form / Structure  First person narrative and gradual revelation of the past as the narrator learns more and more  Extreme selectivity – We have to read closely and piece together things from the few scenes Nick tells us about. We have to draw our own conclusions.

8. Symbolism  The valley of ashes  The eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg  The green light at the end of Daisy’s dock  The “owl-eyed” man  Gatsby’s boyhood schedule  Daisy and the color white  Gatsby and his gold tie and silver shirt

9. Theme  A theme is an underlying thought or idea that is contained in a literary work.

10. Theme  The American Dream  Each person can succeed based on their own skill and effort…the self-made man  In the 1920s this dream is corrupted by the vulgar pursuit of wealth, fame, glamour and excitement – a showy, empty form of success

11. Theme  The Meaning of the Past  The past holds something that both Gatsby and Nick seem to long for: a simpler, nobler, better time (values).

12. Theme  Hope  The green light  A reunion with Daisy  The belief that one can achieve their dream

13. Theme  Disillusionment  Gatsby’s belief that you CAN repeat the past  Nick comes East to find success, but quickly becomes disenchanted, disillusioned by the lack of morals/corruption.

14. Theme  Success  For Gatsby, success = Daisy and the only way to win Daisy is through $$$$

15. Theme  Morals  The morals of the people with great wealth seem to be less desirable, but many times are more socially acceptable than lower classes.

16. Setting Timeline  1890 – Gatsby is born  1892 – Nick is born  1899 – Daisy is born  1907 – Gatsby meets Dan Cody and sails with him for 5 years  1912 – Dan Cody dies  1914 – WWI begins  1915 – Nick graduates from Yale  1917 – Daisy & Gatsby meet in Louisville  1917 – U.S. enters WWI, Gatsby goes overseas  1919 – Gatsby meets Wolfsheim, just out of the Army  1919 – 18 th Amendment (Prohibition)  1922 – Reunited with Daisy!  1922 – Gatsby dies at the age of 32  1924 – Nick tells the reader the story of The Great Gatsby

17. Characterization Daisy Fay  Fay – fairy or sprite  Daisy – flower, fresh, fragile  Daisy promises more than she gives  Better to dream about than to possess  Let’s others take care of her  Uses her $ to protect her from reality  Zelda Fitzgerald

18. Characterization Tom Buchanan  Possesses double power - physical size and bankroll (strong and rich)  Arrogant, used to having his own way  Cares only about himself  What he does is justifiable to him (tells Wilson where Gatsby is)  Tom best represents the “foul dust”

19. Characterization Jordan Baker  A link between characters  Supplies Nick with information  Can easily go back and forth between East Egg and West Egg  DISHONESTY  Tough, aggressive, will do anything to win  The smart new woman of the 1920s – opportunist  Hard, boyish body, masculine name, cynical style, cut off from past / no family

20. Characterization Myrtle Wilson  An earthy, vital and voluptuous woman  She appeals to men  Is very jealous of Daisy  Dreams of escaping her current life to achieve her unfulfilled dreams

21. Characterization George Wilson  He embodies the valley of ashes  He has no energy, no faith  Lifeless, spiritless  Agent of death

22. Characterization Nick Carraway  Narrator  From a solid, mid-western family  Has values/morals  Honest, tolerant, understanding  Both admires Gatsby and disapproves of him  He is Gatsby’s friend – he understands him

23. Characterization Jay Gatsby  He has committed crimes to acquire wealth to win back the woman he loves – another man’s wife  We are asked to love Gatsby because of his dream  Others know him only through rumors because they don’t really care  Only Nick genuinely cares and from Nick we learn the truth  Is he great?

24. Fitzgerald’s Use of Color  Gatsby – gold tie, silver shirt, pink suit, white suit, green light, yellow car  Daisy – white, yellow, glowing face  Tom – Straw-haired, shining eyes, glistening boots  Jordan – white, gray, sun-stained  Myrtle – brown, cream, dark red  George – light blue eyes, pale hair, cement color