P: Nick is an
Intrusive narrator
who looks back on
his past
E: "In my younger
and more vulnerable
years my father gave
me some
advice...Whenever
you feel like criticising
anyone...just
remember that all the
people in this world
haven't had the
advantages that
you've had.""
A: This flashback "In my younger
years" suggests he is unreliable. He is
looking back on the past and his
memories will be distorted by the
things he has witnessed throughout
the book. Also, why is his father telling
him this? This dialogue makes the
readers question the how reliable Nick
is as later he contradicts himself
saying that he is "inclines to reserve all
judgements". His father may be telling
him this because he knows Nick judges
people for being lower then him. Also,
structurally, this builds Nick's
characterisation for later on in the
narrative.
Symbolism
P: The symbolism
of the green light
highlights Gatsby's
dream.
E: "He stretched out
his arms towards the
dark water in a
curious way...I could
have sworn to seen
him trembling...and
distinguished
nothing except a
single green light."
A: Connotes envy, sick,
jealousy, hope. By him
reaching out and
"trembling" shows how bad
he wants to achieve his
dream. This hope keeps
Gatsby alive and fighting
for Daisy. It also adds to
the mysteriousness of
Gatsby. Reflects the
American Dream
Setting
P: The setting shows
how class were
divided in society
E: "I lived at
West Egg, the -
well, the less
fashionable of
the two"
This foreshadows how Gatsby will
never end up with Gatsby. In West
Egg, there are people who are rich
from making their own money and
they didn't inherit it. East Egg is
fashionable but faking its appealing
surfaces hides the realities. This
portrays the different status of
Daisy and Tom depict they will
never be together, foreshadowing a
tragic ending
Foreshadowing
P: the description of
Gatsby's mansion,
mentioning the pool
foreshadows the death
of Gatsby's death
E: "Spanking new
under a thin beard
of raw ivy, and a
marble swimming
pool...it was
Gatsby's mansion"
A: Includes the description
of the swimming pool to
highlight it's importance.
The swimming pool has
great significance at the
ending. The extravagant
image that Fitzgerald
presents the readers with
of Gatsby's mansion
suggests that this story can
be classed as a romantic
novel. How much Gatsby
'loves' Daisy. Gatsby's
mansion is often reflected
back to by Fitzgerald
throughout the narrative.
Chapter 2
Setting
P: The setting
highlights the
division of class
E: "This is the valley of ashes - a
fantastic farm where ashes
grow...and grotesque
gardens...ashes take the forms
of houses and chimneys and
rising smoke."
A: The valley of ashes is a place of
poverty and is a dumping ground. It
can be seen as the physical dumping
ground of dumping waste but also
the literal dumping ground where
people dump their problems. The
upper class ignore the reality of the
valley of ashes. Fitzgerald also uses
lexis of destruction. "ashes"
"smoke" and "grotesque"
Characterisation
P: Tom's is
conveyed as being
a racist and his
nature is violent
E: "Making a short deft
movement, Tom
Buchanan broke her nose
with his open hand"
A: Structurally, this
foreshadows later events. It
highlights Tom's personality
and how he is going to react
to later events. This also
builds his characterisation.
This also further highlights
the division of class as it
depicts how the upper class
treat the lower class.
Narrator
P: The way Nick describes
Tom. Is he reliable?
E: "Tom glanced
impatiently around the
garage"
A: Nick's narration of Tom can
be seen to be extremely bias.
This is because in the previous
chapter, Nick declares that
Symbolism
P: The eyes of TJ
Eckleburg can be
symbolise God.
E: "The eyes of TJ
Eckleburg are blue
and gigantic...Doctor
Ekleburg's
persistent stare"
A: The eyes are referred to as
"gigantic" which makes the
readers feel as though they are
the eyes of God constantly
watching society. These eyes
watch everything go wrong and
they watch upon the
destruction of lives. The eyes
judge society and the morals of
the people. These can also be
seen as the most sinister eyes
in throughout the narrative.
Wilson sees the old optician
advert as the eyes of God, this
could also symbolise that a
society that needs "vision
correcting" in order to see its
faults.