The Great Gatsby

1. The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

2. Tidbits F. Scott Fitzgerald 1896-1940 Named after great uncle Frances Scott Key From the midwest: St. Paul, MN Married to Zelda Sayre - m 1930 The dominant influences on F. Scott Fitzgerald were aspiration, literature, Princeton, Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald, and alcohol. Coined “The Jazz Age” The Great Gatsby was published in 1925

3. Title Significance of the title, The Great Gatsby: Focus on the “Great” as in a magician trying to perform magic, “The Great…” There is irony in describing Gatsby as Great

4. Setting • 1922 New York • Each setting reveals characters/values/personalities • East Egg – old money • West Egg – new money • Valley of the Ashes – working class, poor • New York City – used to define social status, money

5. Answers • Each setting reveals characters/values/personalities • East Egg – old money: Tom and Daisy Buchanan • West Egg – new money: Jay Gatsby • Valley of the Ashes – working class, poor: George &Myrle Wilson • New York City – used to define social status, money: Tom and Myrtle’s apartment, trips with Gatsby

6. Themes Outward appearance can be deceptive Wealth/love can breed careless and reckless behavior The attainment of a dream may be less satisfying than the pursuit of that dream The “American Dream” is corrupted by the desire for wealth The blind (total, obsessive, all-consuming) pursuit of a dream is destructive

7. Chapter 1 Characters: Nick Carraway: narrator