Sunday, September 30, 2012

Study Guide for Great Gatsby Test (Friday!)


Short Answer – Be able to answer the following questions in short, complete sentences

Why does Tom hit Myrtle in New York City?
Where is Gatsby’s mansion located?
Where does Gatsby’s reunion with Daisy take place?
What is Jordan Baker’s occupation?
What is Nick’s home state?
Why did Gatsby drop out of college?
Where is the Valley of the Ashes?
Who is Tom’s extramarital lover?
How are Daisy and Nick related?
At the end of the novel, who does Daisy chooses to be with?

Character Analysis – Be able to give a detailed analysis of the following characters: 
Nick
Gatsby
Daisy
Tom 
Jordan

Be able to answer the following essay questions

Discuss Gatsby’s character as Nick perceives him throughout the novel. What makes Gatsby “great”?
What is Nick like as a narrator? Is he a reliable storyteller, or does his version of events seem suspect? How do his qualities as a character affect his narration?
What are some of The Great Gatsby’s most important symbols? What does the novel have to say about the role of symbols in life?
How does the geography of the novel dictate its themes and characters? What role does setting play in The Great Gatsby?

Be able to identify the speaker and situational significance of the following quotes:

“‘He’s a bootlegger….One time he killed a man who found out that he was nephew to Von Hindenburg and second cousin to the devil.’”

“Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.” 

"I hope she'll be a fool -- that's the best thing a girl can be in this world."

"He thinks she goes to see her sister in New York. He's so dumb he doesn't even know she's alive."

"Angry, and half in love with her, and tremendously sorry, I turned away."

"Her voice is full of money."

“They were careless people [. . . ] they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness [. . .] and let other people clean up the mess they had made.”

"'They're a rotten crowd,' I shouted across the lawn. 'You're worth the whole damn bunch put together.'"

"'You always look so cool,' she repeated. She had told him she loved him, and Tom Buchanan saw."

"Can't repeat the past? Why of course you can!"

------------

Here's a great site that has questions for each chapter:
http://www.teachervision.fen.com/literature/resource/2924.html

And here's a site that talks about the chronology of events in the novel:
http://www.skyminds.net/american-literature/the-ordering-of-events-in-the-great-gatsby/

Friday, September 21, 2012

Color Symbolism in The Great Gatsby

For your assignment on color symbolism in The Great Gatsby, here are some incredibly helpful links (hint hint):

The Great Gatsby Index (look up color name for references and page numbers)

Comments on Color Symbolism in GG

Commentary on Use of Color in GG (no page numbers)

Essay About The Complex Range of Color Symbolism in GG

Monday, September 17, 2012

Summative Test Details

Summative Test: Thursday, September 20th

Format:
1. Literary Terms: Define in a complete sentence
2. Significant Details: Use specific details from essays/Gatsby to identify significance in complete sentences
3. Short Answer: Answer plot questions regarding essays and Gatsby

Topics:
1. Literary Terms:
  1. plot
  2. setting
  3. speaker/narrator
  4. audience
  5. characterization: direct & indirect
  6. flat character
  7. round character
  8. personification
  9. point-of-view
  10. motif
  11. symbol
  12. irony: verbal, situational, dramatic
  13.  theme
  14. mood
  15. diction
  16. tone
  17. conflict
  18. epiphany
  19. foreshadowing
  20. imagery
  21. paradox
2. Essays (from The Writers Presence):
  1. Cofer, “Silent Dancing” (68)
  2. Carver, “My Father’s Life” (60)
  3. Tan, “Mother Tongue” (232)
  4. Sedaris, “Me Talk Pretty One Day” (212)
  5. Staples, “Just Walk On By” (217)
  6. Kothari, “If You Are What You Eat...” (132)
  7. Mengestu, “Home At Last” (170)
3. The Great Gatsby (Ch. 1-6)

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Link for Kothari Essay


Read Geeta Kothari's "If You Are What You Eat, Then What Am I?" here:
http://winzeler.weebly.com/uploads/8/5/4/4/8544379/if_you_are_what_you_eat.pdf


(Still searching the web for a link to the Mengestu essay...)

Assignment for Kothari & Mengestu Essays

Both Geeta Kothari's essay "If You Are What You Eat, Then What Am I?" and Dinaw Mengestu's "Home At Last" use explanations and anecdotes concerning food to explore how what we eat can establish and shape cultural identity. 

In a response of 150-200 words, compare how food is used by these authors to examine the predicament of feeling stuck between two cultures. Use specific examples from each essay to explain how what we eat is connected to the external and internal struggle for acceptance.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Gatsby Project

Hey guys,

Don't forget that if you misplace your hard copy of the Gatsby project, you can always find a link to a PDF version in the links to your right (click on the image to enlarge it).

SR

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Resources for Great Gatsby BETTER than CliffsNotes!

By the end of this week we'll be two-thirds the way through The Great Gatsby--wooo! But for those of you who like a little help as you're reading along (or majorly need a review), here are a few resources that provide some food for thought (WARNING! Contain some spoilers!):

Reading Chapter 1 Critically:



Discussing Metaphors in Chapter 2:



Newsreel-style Recap of Chapter 3:



Detailed Reenactment of Chapter 4 (if only you'd had this for your quiz last Friday!):



And for those of you who are too lazy to read even SparkNotes, I give you..... SparkNotes on video!


Samples of Great Gatsby Video Projects

Should you select the YouTube video option for your Great Gatsby project, here are some excellent examples of what you have to contend with out there on the interwebs:

1. Daisy's Lullaby
Featuring such smooth lines as “These Eggs are scrambled / You’re full of lies. / Oh, these love triangles / Under T.J.’s eyes.”




2. The Great Gatsby Rap (The Valley Of Ashes)
Nice summary of Gatsby's destructive obsession with Daisy. Favorite line: “How much do I hate being rich? Zero.”  




3. Great Gatsby Rap Video
A great introspective piece on the American Dream: “The prettiest people do the ugliest things.” Indeed!




4. Who Am I? Call Me Jay Gatsby
Definitely the catchiest option I found. Laughed super-hard at them rolling around atop a Ford (And doesn't the guy playing Tom look like Tupac?): “My name is Jay Gatsby, and I’m reppin’ West Egg.” Heck yeah, old sport.



5. Great Gatsby Rap Battle 
Decent modern interpretation of the confrontation between Tom and Gatsby: "I stick to makin' money, you stick to playin' polo." (Ends kind of abruptly, though.)  


6. Hook Me Up With Daisy
And possibly the scariest video tribute I found comes from these guys who, with their bizarre growling, prove that nothing is safe from the pop culture maelstrom that is “Call Me Maybe.”


....Let's hope yours can beat that one, at least. 

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

MLA Format for Your First Paper

Here's a great site that lays out all the basic guidelines for MLA straightforwardly. It also has an example first page in MLA format, for those of you visually inclined:

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

Remember: Instead of an actual title, you should quote the college essay prompt you selected, as seen below (thank you, Carbo!):