Name: Date: Per Unit 10: The Great Gatsby (I think you ll enjoy this unit, Old Sport!) LA 11 Mr. Coia Thurs 5/12 Checkout novel and explain unit guide 1920s Power Point lecture Select a Read chapter 1 in class HW: chapters 1-2 reading and questions Mon 5/16 Quiz on 1 & 2 Write #1: Some people think that money leads to happiness. Do you agree? Why or why not? What are the advantages or disadvantages of being wealthy? Discuss possible symbols in the novel Reading time HW: chapters 3-4 reading and questions Wed 5/18 Quiz on 3-4 Write #2: Have you ever wanted to relive a moment from the past to redo it? Describe the situation. How and why would you change it? Valley of Ashes Myrtle s change/ Spiderman HW: chapters 6-7 reading and questions Fri 5/20 Quiz on 6&7 J. Peterman ad for Gatsby shirts Write #3: Write about how you think the novel will end. Car switching scene Writing Focus: Including quotations in our writing. Pick a possible topic and write one paragraph using a quotation to help your essay. HW: chapters 8 & 9 (finish novel); reading and questions Tues 5/24 Quiz on 8 & 9 Video: Daisy s Lullaby Discussion on the American Dream and the novel Read Jay Gatsby a Man for Our Times Post-reading questions Work on essay HW: Essay rough draft Thurs 5/26 Rough draft due Peer editing on paper Gatsby: Type a one-sentence summary for the bulletin board Playing The Great Gatsby video game HW: Final essay due Tues 5/31 Final essay due today Turn in text Begin The Great Gatsby video HW: Study for exam Thurs 6/2 Finish The Great Gatsby video Similarities/differences? What aspects did you like/dislike about the movie version? Mon 6/6 Short Story: The Life You Save May Be Your Own by Flannery O Connor Wed 6/8 Short Story: Everything Stuck to Him by Raymond Carver Fri 6/10 Short Story: Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway 1
Gatsby Essay Topics Mr. Coia 600-750 words 50 points Ideas for Gatsby paper: How is Jay Gatsby a man for our times today? (use the essay from class as a model) Analyze and evaluate The Great Gatsby in terms of the ideal of The American Dream. In what ways is the novel a criticism of this ideal? Be sure to include the concept of the platonic image of himself. Compare the major female characters in the novel: Jordan, Daisy, and Myrtle. How does each act toward men? What seem to be their motivation and goals? How are they treated by men? Trace the role of religion, God, or theology in the novel. The saying, The clothes make the man seems to relate to our study of Gatsby. Show how Fitzgerald uses clothing (and the changing of costumes) to tell us more about his characters. About Tom and Daisy, Nick says, They were careless people, Tom and Daisy they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made (180-181). Explain this passage in light of the entire novel. Fully explain the symbol of the green light. The light is mentioned several times in different contexts (when Nick first sees Gatsby, when Gatsby met Daisy again, on the last page). If you choose this one (as many others have before you), you must impress me with something new and interesting. You must say more than just it represents Daisy. Remember: Follow format Include a minimum of two direct quotations from the text Two hyphenated adjectives Attached your rough draft, the one with student comments, to the back of your final 2
The Great Gatsby Chapter 1 1. Notice how many times Fitzgerald uses the words hope, or dream. What could this mean to the story? 2. Nick starts the novel by relaying his father's advice "Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had." List Nick's advantages given in the first two or three pages. 3. Pay attention to time. What is the day and year during the first scene at Daisy's house? 4. Describe Nick. What facts do you know about him, and what do you infer about him? What kind of a narrator do you think he will be? 5. How is Jordan Baker described? Who is she? 6. How does Nick react to Jordan? 7. What does Tom's behavior reveal about his character? 3
The Great Gatsby Chapter 2 1. Describe the "valley of ashes." What does it look like and what does it represent? 2. Describe Mr. Wilson and Myrtle. Do they seem to fit into the setting? 3. What more have you learned about Nick in this chapter? Is he similar or different than the people he spends his time with? 4. Describe the violent act Tom committed against Myrtle. What does this reveal about him? 4
The Great Gatsby Chapter 3 1. Pay attention to Nick's judgments. What do they reveal about his character that he does this (especially in relation to his opening comments)? 2. Describe Gatsby the first time Nick sees him. 3. What rumors have been told about Gatsby? Why does Fitzgerald reveal rumors rather than fact? 4. What does Nick think of Gatsby after meeting him? 5. How is Gatsby different from his guests? 6. Why does Nick choose to share his thoughts and feelings with Jordan? 7. Nick thinks he's one of the few honest people he knows. Why? Do you think he is honest? 5
The Great Gatsby Chapter 4 1. List all of the rumors told about Gatsby. 2. Why does Fitzgerald list all of Gatsby's party guests? What purpose does it serve? 3. Why does Gatsby tell Nick about his life? Do you believe Gatsby? Does Nick? 4. What role does Meyer Wolfsheim play in the novel? What ethnic background is he? Why is there so much focus on his nose? 5. What does Jordan's story of Daisy's marriage reveal about Daisy s past? 6. Why did Gatsby want Daisy to see his house? 6
The Great Gatsby Chapter 5 1. Why does Gatsby deliver so many goods and services to Nick's house? 2. Describe the effect of rain on the scene when Gatsby and Daisy meet. 3. Why does Gatsby offer Nick work? How does Nick feel about this? 4. Explain the significance of the green light as discussed in this section. 5. Why does Gatsby get so many phone calls? What does this say about him? What is the one in this chapter about? 7
The Great Gatsby Chapter 6 & 7 1. How truthful was Gatsby when he relayed the story of his life to Nick? Why does Fitzgerald tell the story of Jay Gatz now? 2. Describe the meeting of Tom and Gatsby. What does this meeting reveal about them? 3. When Nick told Gatsby that "you can't repeat the past", Gatsby replied, "Why of course you can!" Do you agree with Nick or Gatsby? 4. Describe Daisy and Gatsby's new relationship. 5. Compare George Wilson and Tom. What did each man learn about his wife and how did they each react? 6. Describe the fight between Gatsby and Tom. What do these men think of each other? How are they similar and how are they different? 7. Why is the music playing in the hotel ironic to the scene at hand? Chapters 6 & 7 continued on next page 8
Chapters 6 & 7 continued 8. Do you think that Tom knew Daisy was driving the "death car"? Why or why not? 9. At this point, how would you end the novel? 9
The Great Gatsby Chapter 8 1. How does Fitzgerald achieve a melancholic mood in the beginning of this chapter? 2. What is Gatsby desperately waiting for in this chapter? Will it happen? 3. Who is Dan Cody and what is his significance in Gatsby's life? 4. How does Nick's statement "You're worth the whole bunch put together" show a change in Nick from the beginning of the novel? 5. How does T. J. Eckleberg affect Mr. Wilson? 10
The Great Gatsby Chapter 9 1. Why did Nick take care of Gatsby's funeral? 2. How was Jay Gatz's childhood schedule consistent with the adult Gatsby's behavior? 3. Who attended Gatsby's funeral? How and why is this significant? 4. What is the purpose of Nick's last meeting with Jordan? 5. Why does Nick call Tom and Daisy "careless people"? 6. Briefly explain the final sentence of the novel in context of the entire story. 11
The Great Gatsby: Post Reading 1. Does this novel have villains and heroes? Why, why not? If yes, who fits into these categories and why? 2. Why are we still reading a book written in the 1920's? What gives a book its longevity? What themes still have meaning today? 12
The Great Gatsby Character Chart Name: Name of character Quotation that describes this character (page #) Inferring characteristics Draw a picture or symbol that describes Jay Nick Daisy Tom 13
The Great Gatsby Character Chart Name of character Quotation that describes this character (page #) Inferring characteristics Draw a picture or symbol that describes Jordan Myrtle George 14