Analyzing the Narrative Structure of "The Great Gatsby
The events of one summer in 1921 are narrated in
chronological order, from the perspective of Nick but several
years later. There are 9 chapters and most of them feature a
party. Nick also gradually reveals some of the backstory for
Gatsby, the Buchanans and Jordan, as well as his own.
Chart where these revelations/flashbacks occur in chapters
1-3. Working in small groups, discuss how this disruption of
chronological time creates suspense.
Complete this as an on-going independent task for each
chapter to give you an overview of the structure of the
novel.
AO2
The structure of this chapter is in three parts and we learn much more
about Gatsby:
1.
Nick lists Gatsby’s party guests: emphasises the darkness beneath the
wealthy, carefree and lavish lifestyle.
2.
Gatsby takes Nick to lunch with Wolfshiem. The connection with
Wolfshiem raises the suspicion that Gatsby may be a criminal.
3.
Jordan’s description of Gatsby’s past romance with Daisy. This portrays
another side of his personality and adds another layer of mystery.
AO1/2
I'm The Sheik Of Araby
Your love belongs to me
At night when you're asleep,
Into your tent I'll creep...
Tonight I'm dreaming of Araby,
That's where my dreams seem to
carry me
Soon you'll see within a caravan
An Arab man
Will take me over the desert…
That's why I long to be
Where all those happy faces
Wait for me,
Beside the fair oasis…
While stars are fading in the
dawn
Over the desert they'll be gone
His captured bride
Close by his side
Swift as the wind they will ride
Proudly he scorns her smile or
tear
Soon he will conquer love by
fear…
The stars that shine above
Will light our way to love
You'll rule this land with me
The Sheik Of Araby.
Much of chapter 4 is concerned
with the reconstruction of past
events. Choose two of these
events and rewrite them from the
perspectives of different
characters to show how they try to
construct the events differently.
Why do you think these
differences exist?
Are they solely concerned with
memory or do the characters
have different agendas?
AO1/2
Tuesday. Joe came barging into my room this morning at
practically
nine o’clock
.
Couldn’t
have been more furious. Started to fight, but
too
dead. Know he said he wouldn’t be home to dinner. Absolutely
cold
all
day; couldn’t
move
. Last night
couldn’t
have been more perfect. Ollie
and I dined at Thirty-Eight East, absolutely
poisonous
food, and not one
living
soul that you’d be seen
dead
with, and “Run like a Rabbit”¹ was
the
world’s worst. Took Ollie up to the Barlows’ party and it
couldn’t
have
been more attractive –
couldn’t
have been more people absolutely
stinking
. They had those Hungarians in green coats, and Stewie Hunter
was leading them with a fork – everybody simply
died
. He had
yards
of
green toilet paper hung around his neck like a lei²; he
couldn’t
have
been in better form. Met a
really new number
³, very tall,
too
marvellous,
and one of those people that you can
really
talk to them. I told him
sometimes I get so
nauseated
I could
yip
4, and I felt I absolutely
had
to
do something like write or paint. He said why didn’t I write or paint.
Came home alone; Ollie passed out
stiff
. Called up the new number
three times today to get him to come to dinner and go with me to the
opening of “Never Say Good Morning”¹, but first he was out and then he
was all tied up with his mother. Finally got Ollie Martin. Tried to read a
book, but couldn’t sit still.
Can’t
decide whether to wear the red lace or
the pink with the feathers. Feel
too
exhausted, but what
can
you do?
Dorothy Parker,
From The Diary of a New York Lady
(1933)
Chapter 3/4
Explore the chronological structure of "The Great Gatsby" as events unfold in 1921, narrated by Nick but reflecting on the past. Dive into the revelations, flashbacks, and mysteries that create suspense, particularly focusing on key chapters such as Chapter 4. Understand the characters, especially Jay Gatsby, through the lens of disrupted chronology and multiple perspectives.
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Presentation Transcript
The Great Gatsby HO72 Drama and prose post HO72 Drama and prose post- - 1900 (Component 02) 1900 (Component 02) Lesson 6 Lesson 6 LO: In this lesson you will: Explore the chronological structure of the novel Begin to track flashbacks and revelations Analyse and comment on the way Fitzgerald creates mystery and suspense
Narrative Structure Narrative Structure AO2 The events of one summer in 1921 are narrated in chronological order, from the perspective of Nick but several years later. There are 9 chapters and most of them feature a party. Nick also gradually reveals some of the backstory for Gatsby, the Buchanans and Jordan, as well as his own. Chart where these revelations/flashbacks occur in chapters 1-3. Working in small groups, discuss how this disruption of chronological time creates suspense. Complete this as an on-going independent task for each chapter to give you an overview of the structure of the novel.
Chapter 4 Chapter 4 AO1/2 The structure of this chapter is in three parts and we learn much more about Gatsby: 1. Nick lists Gatsby s party guests: emphasises the darkness beneath the wealthy, carefree and lavish lifestyle. 2. Gatsby takes Nick to lunch with Wolfshiem. The connection with Wolfshiem raises the suspicion that Gatsby may be a criminal. 3. Jordan s description of Gatsby s past romance with Daisy. This portrays another side of his personality and adds another layer of mystery. Key words: ambiguous, eponymous Task: How would you describe Jay Gatsby from all the information you have gathered so far? Use the model to write your own paragraph
The Sheik of The Sheik of Araby Araby I'm The Sheik Of Araby Your love belongs to me At night when you're asleep, Into your tent I'll creep... Over the desert they'll be gone His captured bride Close by his side Swift as the wind they will ride Proudly he scorns her smile or tear Soon he will conquer love by fear Tonight I'm dreaming of Araby, That's where my dreams seem to carry me Soon you'll see within a caravan An Arab man Will take me over the desert The stars that shine above Will light our way to love You'll rule this land with me The Sheik Of Araby. That's why I long to be Where all those happy faces Wait for me, Beside the fair oasis While stars are fading in the dawn What is the relevance of this popular Jazz song?
Writing Task Writing Task AO1/2 Much of chapter 4 is concerned with the reconstruction of past events. Choose two of these events and rewrite them from the perspectives of different characters to show how they try to construct the events differently. Why do you think these differences exist? Are they solely concerned with memory or do the characters have different agendas?
Who/What do we learn more Who/What do we learn more about? about? Tuesday. Joe came barging into my room this morning at practically nine o clock. Couldn t have been more furious. Started to fight, but too dead. Know he said he wouldn t be home to dinner. Absolutely cold all day; couldn t move. Last night couldn t have been more perfect. Ollie and I dined at Thirty-Eight East, absolutely poisonous food, and not one living soul that you d be seen dead with, and Run like a Rabbit was the world s worst. Took Ollie up to the Barlows party and it couldn t have been more attractive couldn t have been more people absolutely stinking. They had those Hungarians in green coats, and Stewie Hunter was leading them with a fork everybody simply died. He had yards of green toilet paper hung around his neck like a lei ; he couldn t have been in better form. Met a really new number , very tall, too marvellous, and one of those people that you can really talk to them. I told him sometimes I get so nauseated I could yip4, and I felt I absolutely had to do something like write or paint. He said why didn t I write or paint. Came home alone; Ollie passed out stiff. Called up the new number three times today to get him to come to dinner and go with me to the opening of Never Say Good Morning , but first he was out and then he was all tied up with his mother. Finally got Ollie Martin. Tried to read a book, but couldn t sit still. Can t decide whether to wear the red lace or the pink with the feathers. Feel too exhausted, but what can you do? Dorothy Parker, From The Diary of a New York Lady (1933)
