The Great Gatsby• Chapter 1:- We will begin with a quiz!

In what year is The Great Gatsby set?

a) 1925b) 1924c) 1923d) 1922

Where is Nick from?

a) Californiab) New Yorkc) The Mid-Westd) Florida

How are Daisy and Nick related?

a) They are brother and sisterb) They are marriedc) They are step-siblingsd) They are cousins

Why does Nick move to New York?

a) To become a lawyerb) To learn about the bond businessc) To attend colleged) To attend medical school

Where were Nick and Tom educated?

a) Yaleb) Harvardc) Princetond) Duke

What is Jordan Baker’s occupation?

a) Softball pitcherb) Secretaryc) Philanthropistd) Golfer

Voice (point of view)Unreliable Narrator : Nick Carraway

• How would you describe his narrative?

• How would you describe his writing style ? (A02: Language, form and structure)

• Describe his personality. What do we know so far about his life, his interests, his past?

• Is he judgemental? • How does he want us to perceive

his character?• (pg 7 m. 8 9 10)

• The areas of East Egg and West Egg in Long Island find isolation not just geographically, “separated only by a courtesy bay” (9), but more significantly in spirit.

• The East Egg consists of the already established wealthy class that has been part of the aristocracy for generations.

• The West Egg, in contrast, attracts the “nouveau riche,” those that had more than likely been born under less comfortable circumstances and who suddenly find themselves well-to-do. The "new money" try desperately to situate themselves on to that level of wealth that the people of the East Egg perch on, but ultimately realize the difficulty of doing so.

• The denizens of the East Egg will never accept them as equals; they consider the West Egg inhabitants severely lacking in sophistication. They come to these parties only to ridicule the festivities around them. They adhere to the notion that true classiness stems from upbringing alone and can not be mastered if one starts too late in life.

Aspects of Narrative: Setting

• What is the significance of the setting?

• 1920s New York

Using setting to characterise the Tom Buchanans

• Extract: read pg 11-12

Homework (due on Tuesday)

Produce mind-maps for each of the characters introduced so far:•Nick•Tom•Daisy•JordanYou must include appearance, personality, relationships etc and LOTS OF QUOTATIONS!

Character• Character in this sense refers not just to the people in the

story but, much more importantly, to their character traits and how they are revealed: this is known as characterisation. Characters in fictional texts are usually described early on, as part of the establishment of the text.

• In narrative poems a couple of features are often enough to pin down not just what the character looks like, but what the character is like in a broader sense. Just as a name can conjure up ideas about a character’s moral qualities, so can a description of their appearance. Authors can also signal aspects of character by giving their creations distinctive speech manners, or mannerisms. Sometimes these can be used to represent social class.

Characters and characterisation

• The representation of people – why did the author create these characters in this way?

• Names• Appearance• How are the characters created?• Direct speech?• Characters as symbols/representative ‘types’?

CHARACTERS: Tom Buchanan

• pp. 12-13

Daisy Buchanan

• P. 14• P.21

Jordan Baker

• P. 16, 17, 23

Gatsby

• GatsbyExtract pg 25

• Character grid

Time and sequence

• How does Fitzgerald structure chapter 1?

(opening section, the point at which the main events begin, page breaks and pauses)

Plenary

• What are the main themes of the story so far?

Homework – AO4 Context

• Find textual evidence or refer to parts of chapter 1 that link to the significance of the era in which the story is set.

- Money, wealth, status, boost in the economy, end of war, celebration, race. ( The roaring twenties. The american dream.)

AS English Literature B

The Aspects of Narrative exam

• The exam you are going to sit is in two sections. Each section lasts for 1 hour. Yes mathematicians, that means the exam is 2 hours long.

The exam is designed to focus on four assessment objectives. These are as follows:

AO1 – Articulate creative, informed and relevant responses to literary texts, using appropriate terminology and concepts, and coherent, accurate written expressionIn other words, how well you can write and structure an argument

AO2 - Demonstrate detailed critical understanding in analysing the ways in which structure, form and language shape meanings in literary textsIn other words, closely analyse the use of form, structure and language in the text(s) you are writing about

AO3 - Explore connections and comparisons between different literary texts, informed by interpretations of other readersIn other words, how texts compare to one another, and how you interpret the texts

AO4 - Demonstrate understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are written and receivedIn other words, the context in which the text was written and received

Section A• Section A of the exam requires you to focus in detail on one

of your set texts. The choice is yours as to which of the 4 texts you choose to write about in this section, since there is one question on each text set by the board. You can answer on either a novel or a poet, it doesn’t matter.

• Section A is itself split into two questions. You have to answer both parts of each question, spending around 30 minutes on each mini essay. Each part is assessing particular skills, so it’s important to be aware of what these are before you start. Since these are mini-essays, you don’t have time to fart about – get straight to the point. This means you don’t even always need an introduction, unless you think it’s necessary. Just two to three focused body paragraphs and a brief conclusion should do it.

Section A, question 1• Question 1 is entirely focused on AO2, how the writer uses

form, structure and language in their text. You don’t need to worry about the other assessment objectives here. That doesn’t mean to say that you can completely ignore how to write coherently, but it should get you thinking about how to focus. These questions will ask you a specific question about one or two chapters or poems from your set text. They will name the chapter(s) or poem(s) they want you to write about. There are 21 marks on offer here.

• The secret to doing well at these questions is to be really focused on form, structure and language, and to provide a really close reading of what you are writing about.

Let’s recap on what form, structure and language mean:

• Form – the kind or type of text, i.e. novel or poem, but also the kind of novel or poem it is (genre, ballad, lyric poem, etc) and how It makes use of or challenges the conventions of its genre.

• Structure – how the text is organised and put together. Why has the author structured the text or part of the text in the way they have? What are they seeking to achieve or convey?

• Language – why has the author made the linguistic choices they have? This is particularly important with poetry in terms of imagery, but it is also important in novels in terms of characterisation, amongst other things.

What do these questions look like?

• Here are a few sample questions:• What methods does Hardy use to create settings in

The Darkling Thrush and At Castle Boterel?• Write about the ways Rossetti tells the story in

Winter: My Secret.• Compare the narrative of Appendix I with the

narrative of Appendix II in Enduring Love.• Write about the ways that Fitzgerald tells the story in

Chapter 7 of The Great Gatsby.

Mark band descriptors

• Band 6 - Evaluation• Band 5 - Analysis• Band 4 - Explanation• Band 3 - Some understanding• Band 2 - Some awareness• Band 1 - Very little grasp

How are these marked? What are the examiners looking for?

Band AO PerformanceDescriptors

Typical answers might be characterised by the followingdescriptions

Band 6(19-21)

AO2 Evaluation of how the author’s narrative methods work

• Several points fully developed and evaluated; structure/voice evaluated; excellent illustration

• integrated evaluation of the story and authorial method

Band 5(15-18)

AO2 Analysis of how the author’s narrative methods work

• several points fully developed and analysed; likely to be good analysis of structure/voice; well illustrated

• very good sense of the writer constructing the story

Band 4(11-14)

AO2 Explanation of howthe author’s narrative methods work

• several points developed and explained; likely to be some explanation of structure/voice; clear illustration

• clear explanation of how the writer constructs the story

Band 3(7-10)

AO2 Some understanding of how the author’snarrative methodswork

• several points developed; points likely to be more than just language; development is likely to be straight-forward with some illustration

• beginnings of a connection between authorial method and the story

Band 2(4-6)

AO2 Some awareness ofhow the author’snarrative methodswork

• several points mentioned; likely to be at word level, but could be other methods; possibly some vague or simple illustration; or 1 or 2 points identified with some discussion/ some simple illustration

• some awareness of the over-arching story with some awareness of the writer’s craft

Band 1(1-3)

AO2 Very little grasp ofhow the author’snarrative methodswork

• 1 or 2 points mentioned; likely to be at word level; possibly some vague or simple illustration

• some bits of plot or character are mentioned

Form, structure and language: aspects of Narrative

• Scenes and Places• Time and Sequence• Characters and characterisation• Voices in texts• Points of view• Destination

Scenes and places

• Where is the chapter / poem set?• The country? The city? Houses? Rooms? • The period?• What do the scenes and places SYMBOLISE?• Pathetic fallacy / objective correlative?

Time and Sequence

• What period of time does the chapter cover?• During what period in history is the text set?

How is this suggested in the text?• Chronology (Beginning? Ending? Is it a linear

narrative? Are there flashbacks? Time frames – different timescales within each other?)

• How is the chapter structured?• How does the chapter fit within the novel as a

whole?

Characters and characterisation

• The representation of people – why did the author create these characters in this way?

• Names• How are the characters created?• Direct speech?• Characters as symbols/representative ‘types’?

Voices in texts

• Direct speech and attribution• Indirect speech• What does the narrator sound like?• How is the voice created?

Points of View

• Ideology?• The impact of the narrator?• Proximity to the action• Shifting perspectives• Competing viewpoints?

Destination

• Reading as a journey (what do we learn/experience along the way?)

• Where are these texts going? • What different interpretations are possible?

A question from the June 2011 exam

• 29. Write about some of the ways Fitzgerald tells the story in Chapter 1.

• 30 mins

Scenes and Places

• How does Fitgerald characterise the difference between the Middle West and the East on pages 8-12?

• How does Fitzgerald establish Nick’s fascination with East and West Egg – and Gatsby in particular - on pages 10-12?

• How does Fitzgerald use setting to characterise the Tom Buchanans on pages 11-25?

• Gatsby’s lawn and the dock

Time and sequence

• How does Fitzgerald make use of structure in chapter 1 of the novel? (Consider: the opening section, where he chooses to begin the story, page breaks and pauses)

• Begins with a generalised reflection of Nick about himself, introduction to Gatsby’s mansion but not Gatsby, visit to Tom and Daisy’s, return home and mysterious sighting of Gatsby

Characters and characterisation

• How is Gatsby introduced in chapter 1 and what is interesting about this?

• How is Tom Buchanan characterised in chapter 1?

• How is Daisy Buchanan characterised in chapter 1?

• How is Jordan Baker characterised in chapter 1?

Voices in texts• How does Fitzgerald establish a voice for Nick Caraway

in this opening chapter? What is revealed by this?• Narrative perspective/ voices: first person narrator,

self-conscious story-teller and author • Use of choric voices and rumour, voices of Tom, Daisy,

Jordan, naive reflections of the participant narrator, etc.

• Educated prose, moralising sententiousness of the start, use of poetic prose, use of dialogue, intertextual references, references to American history, use of dates, places descriptive detail, sensual description of the women, use of colour, use of irony, significance of names

Points of View

• What use does Fitzgerald make of point of view in chapter 1? (consider: ideology, different viewpoints, class, morality etc)

• In what ways is Nick established as an unreliable narrator in chapter 1?

Destination

• Conclusion: what overall impact has the chapter had on you?

• What themes has it helped to set up?• What issues has it raised?• Where does it leave us?

Homework

• Read chapter 2