Gatsby Perspective Essay
LEARNING GOAL:
You will demonstrate an understanding of perspective, bias, and characterization by examining an event or scene from The Great Gatsby.
ASSIGNMENT / PLANNING:
You will recreate a scene from The Great Gatsby from the perspective of Jay Gatsby. With few exceptions, the entire novel is told from Nick Carraways point-of-view, and although we are promised that hes honest, its important to consider how the perspective shifts when events come from someone elses eyes.
Choose a significant event or scene from any part of the novel up to the end of Chapter Six.
Consider who is involved, where it occurs, who speaks, who listens, who acts
Rewrite the event/scene from Jay Gatsbys perspective. Use first-person point-of-view from this characters eyes
Consider Gatsbys thoughts, reactions, and emotions. He may verbalize some, or he may internalize others, (which he would think to himself for the benefit of the reader)
Think about how details may change with the perspective shift
Ideas for events or scenes might include, (but are definitely not limited to):
The party in Chapter Three where Gatsby suddenly appears or as he watches people
The drive with Nick in Chapter Four or the meeting with Wolfshiem at lunch in Chapter Four
Proposing the plan to meet up with Daisy to Nick in Chapter Five
The reunion of Gatsby and Daisy in Chapter Five
The party in Chapter Six where Gatsby meets with Tom and Daisy
SUCCESS CRITERIA:
Follow these criteria to ensure success on the assignment
Perspective of Gatsby is clearly demonstrated, and includes a main event/scene (or interpretations of such) as it unfolds before his eyes
Other elements, such as conflict, characters, setting, and plot, are revealed in your writing
The tone and style is consistent with that of the novel
The length is about 400 words, and includes a mix of dialogue, description, and narration
The writing has been edited for spelling, grammar, and clarity, and is typed/double-spaced.
