Gatsby’s Webquest

Gatsby as a Savior:

Passages from Chapter 6

 

PASSAGE ONE:

The truth was that Jay Gatsby, of West Egg, Long Island, sprang from his Platonic
conception of himself. He was a son of God—a phrase which, if it means anything, means just that—and he must be about His Father's business, the service of a vast, vulgar, and meretricious beauty. So he invented just the sort of Jay Gatsby that a seventeen year old boy would be likely to invent, and to this conception he was faithful to the end.

 

• The bold-faced words are words that have religious significance. Thus, these words/phrases either carry religious connotations or allude to religious doctrines. Examine the hyperlinks for all of the bold-faced words. Discuss Fitzgerald's message about each bulleted point below by considering what is being conveyed about Gatsby through diction.
  
  • Platonic
    

    
     

    
     

    
     

    
     

  • conception
    

    
     

    
     

    
     

    
     

  • son of God
    

 

 

 

 

• His Father's business
  

 

 

 

 

• conception
  

 

 

 

 

• faithful
  

 

 

 

 

• Next, examine the diction that contributes to further Fitzgerald's development of Gatsby. What is the denotation? What is the connotation?
  
  • vast
    

    
     

    
     

  • vulgar
    

    
     

    
     

  • meretricious
    

CRITICISM (adapted from several internet sources):

When Nick finally describes Gatsby's early history, he uses this striking comparison between Gatsby and Jesus Christ to illuminate Gatsby's creation of his own identity. Several scholars believe that Fitzgerald was influenced by Ernest Renan's The Life of Jesus so much so that he paralleled this text in The Great Gatsby. Renan's book presents Jesus as a figure who decided to make himself the son of God, then brought himself to ruin by REFUSING TO RECOGNIZE THE REALITY that denied his self-conception. This is a suggestive comparison because Gatsby also transforms himself into the ideal that he envisioned for himself (a "Platonic conception of himself") as a youngster and remains committed to that ideal throughout his life.

 

PASSAGE TWO:

Gatsby saw that the blocks of the sidewalk really formed a ladder and mounted to a secret place above the trees—he could climb to it, if he climbed alone, and once there he could suck on the pap of life, gulp down the incomparable milk of wonder. His heart beat faster and faster as Daisy's white face came up to his own. He knew that when he kissed this girl, and forever wed his unutterable visions to her perishable breath, his mind would never romp again like the mind of God…Then he kissed her. At his lips' touch she blossomed for him like a flower and the incarnation was complete.

 

1. Examine the hyperlink attached to the word "incarnation." What concept does this word further develop? Why?
   

 

 

 

1. Identify the noteworthy diction. Be sure to analyze five words. Discuss the denotation and connotation of each word. Click on the word "denotation" to be directed to Merriam Webster's website.
   

   
    

   
    

   1. WORD:
      
      1. denotation—
         

         
          

      2. connotation—
         

         
          

         
          

   2. WORD:
      
      1. denotation—
         

         
          

      2. connotation—
         

         
          

         
          

   3. WORD:
      
      1. denotation—
         

         
          

      2. connotation—
         

         
          

         
          

   4. WORD:
      
      1. denotation—
         

         
          

      2. connotation—
         

         
          

         
          

   5. WORD:
      
      1. denotation—
         

         
          

      2. connotation—
         

         
          

         
          

   6. WORD:
      
      1. denotation—
         

         
          

      2. connotation—
         

         
          

         
          

1. What effect does this diction have on mood or character development?
   

   
    

   
    

   
    

   
    

 

PASSAGE THREE:

Each night he added to the pattern of his fancies until drowsiness closed down upon some vivid scene with an oblivious embrace. For a while these reveries provided an outlet for his imagination; they were a satisfactory hint of the unreality of reality; a promise that the rock of the world was founded securely on a fairy's wings.

 

1. Examine the hyperlink attached to the word "incarnation." What concept does this word further develop? Why?
   

   
    

   
    

   
    

   1. Identify the noteworthy diction. Be sure to analyze five words. Discuss the denotation and connotation of each word. Click on the word "denotation" to be directed to Merriam Webster's website.
      

      
       

      
       

      1. WORD:
         
         1. denotation—
            

            
             

         2. connotation—
            

            
             

            
             

      2. WORD:
         
         1. denotation—
            

            
             

         2. connotation—
            

            
             

            
             

      3. WORD:
         
         1. denotation—
            

            
             

         2. connotation—
            

            
             

            
             

      4. WORD:
         
         1. denotation—
            

            
             

         2. connotation—
            

            
             

            
             

      5. WORD:
         
         1. denotation—
            

            
             

         2. connotation—
            

            
             

            
             

      6. WORD:
         
         1. denotation—
            

            
             

         2. connotation—
            

            
             

            
             

2. What effect does this diction have on mood or character development?
   

   
    

   
    

   
    

Schedule for Last 9 Days

SCHEDULE FOR THE LAST 9 DAYS

**9th period will be held in E208**

Date	Location	Class Assignment	HW
TUESDAY 5/29	E308		Castle Learning Quiz (Great Gatsby Ch. 1-6)
WEDNESDAY 5/30	G305	Webquest for Chapter 6 of The Great Gatsby **Be sure you’ve read this chapter beforehand.	FINISH  THE GREAT GATSBY WITH NOTES!!
THURSDAY 5/31	E308	Review the CONSTRUCTED SHORT RESPONSES (Regents Exam  )
FRIDAY 6/1	E308	Review the CRITICAL LENS (Regents Exam)
MONDAY 6/4	E308	Review the listening and multiple choice questions of the Regents Exam
TUESDAY 6/5	E308	Review The Great Gatsby	STUDY FOR THE REGENTS!!!
WEDNESDAY 6/6	G305	In-class FINAL EXAM
THURSDAY 6/7	G305
FRIDAY 6/8	G305

HOMEWORK and VOCABULARY from 5/18

86.  ZEALOUS
87.  NEFARIOUS
88.  PRODIGIOUS
89.  OSTENTATION
90.  SERENDIPITOUS

Over the weekend, please finish CHAPTER 3 of The Great Gatsby. Also, please finish the first three rows of the worksheet.  We will work on the "Commentary on Society" row and the "Other" row in class on Monday.

HW and VOCAB for 5/16

1.  VOCAB TEST on words 1-80 TOMORROW!!
2.  Finish reading chapter 2 of The Great Gatsby, and fill in the remaining boxes from the chart (class work worksheet).
3.  Today's vocabulary:

84.  decadence (n)-- (1) Moral or cultural decline, esp. after a peak of achievement; (2) a luxurious self-indulgence

85. haughty (adj)--Arrogantly superior and disdainful

• hauteur (n) / haughtiness (n)--arrogance

Tom's Infidelity

Read the following article: http://voices.yahoo.com/the-truth-men-women-cheating-4872562.html?cat=41 Then, using The Great Gatsbyand your own personal philosophy, analyzetheconcept of infidelity.

Words 1-83 (Today's Words Included)...

The test on Thursday will cover the first EIGHTY (80) words.

1.      patronizing   

2.      repress        

3.      pragmatic       

4.      reticent   

5.      capricious    

6.      frivolous

7.      ignominious   

8.      squalor    

9.      subjective       

10. objective   

11. vulnerable    

12. anomaly

13. revere       

14. pretentious    

15. condescending   

16. alleviate   

17. uncanny    

18. conventional

19. vilify       

20. slander    

21. trepidation       

22. turbulence   

23. puritanical    

24. crucible

25. rapturous       

26. languish    

27. indulge       

28. hedonism   

29. convoluted    

30. abstention

31. misanthrope   

32. avarice        

33. recoil       

34. enervate   

35. meek        

36. averse

37. relinquish       

38. dissension

39. rue

40. disseminate

41. disdain

42. chastise

43. contempt

44. spurn

45. scorn

46. surreptitious

47. malice

48. stringency

49. iniquity

50. iniquitous

51. malevolent

52. malicious

53. valor

54. valorous       

55. amoral

56. maniacal

57. compelling—evoking interest, attention, or admiration in a powerfully irresistible way

58. daunting—seemingly difficult to deal with; intimidating

59. cunning—having or showing skill in achieving one's ends by deceit or evasion

60. aspersion— an attack on the reputation or integrity of someone or something

a.      The verb “asperse” means to attack the integrity of someone.

61. compunction—a feeling of guilt or moral scruple that follows the doing of something bad; remorse

62. absolution (n)—freedom from blame, sin, guilt; clemency; exculpation

1. verb—absolve

63. exculpation—(n) freedom from guilt or blame; clemency; absolution
1. verb-exculpate
64. limpid- clear, transparent
65. latent- hidden but capable of being exposed abigail's intentions were latent in the community

69. archetypal (adj)—
70. quintessential (adj)—
71. ambivalent (adj)—not having strong feelings of like or dislike; not affected; unsure; hesitant; of two minds
72. affluent (adj)—rich; wealthy

71. bombastic (adj)—pompous; pretentious

72. opulent (adj)—wealthy; lavish; luxurious
73.  supercilious (adj)—excessively proud; arrogant
74.  cajole (v)—coax; wheedle; flatter; sweet talkremoved (adj)—distant; detached; uninvolved
75. bigoted (adj)—racist; prejudiced; biased; xenophobiccomplacent (adj)—often without awareness of some potential danger or defect; self-satisfied
76. complacent (adj)—often without awareness of some potential danger or defect; self-satisfied
77. languid (adj)—lacking in spirit or interest; listless; indifferent
78. discomfit (v)— humiliate; to make someone feel uneasy
79. divert (v)—deflect; distract; change direction
80. disputatious (adj)—inclined to argue
81. intimation (n)—a hint; an insinuation; a suggestion; a warning
1. to intimate (v)—to suggest; to hint
82. enigma (n)—a mysterious or puzzling object/person; a person who is difficult to understand
1. enigmatic (adj)—puzzling; mysterious
83. pine (v)—to yearn for; suffer a mental and physical decline, esp. because of a broken heart

5: An Author's Legacy

Watch the following video:

Arthur Miller states that a great play must inform the people of their societies' problems.  It is true that authors--after death--leave their legacies behind, specifically what infuriated them about their societies.  Considering this philosohpy, decide upon the most powerful point Arthur Miller conveyed to people.  Argue your point by supporting it with evidence from the text.