The aim of today's session was to make sure that students are aware of how to approach the essay question:
HOW DOES FITZGERALD TELL THE STORY IN THE FIRST CHAPTER OF THE NOVEL?
The whole session explored possible content for the three paragraphs and conclusion. It became clear during the session that 'AUTHOR'S AIM' is an area that will need CLARITY.
POTENTIAL STRUCTURE:
LANGUAGE.....Remember, author's aim could be linked to the powerful and dramatic use of metaphorical association. The nature of the dramatic imagery in the opening chapter suggests that this will be a novel that explores serious emotional issues.
STRUCTURE.... The representation of Gatsby is seemingly contradictory. The first page offers a heroic representation of Gatsby yet the final sequence of the opening chapter represents Gatsby in a very enigmatic and almost supernatural manner. Fitzgerald heightens the sense of dramatic expectation with this mysterious representation. The reader may be intrigued to discover how this mysterious character could possibly evolve into the unique influence that Carraway presents to the reader in the opening section of the chapter. The conclusion almost suggests that this could be a ghost story!!
FORM...We discussed why Fitzgerald offers his narrative through the filter of a shy, vulnerable, passive, and isolated character. It could be argued that Fitzgerald presents Carraway in a similar manner to his representation of Gatsby. Carraway describes his home as being 'the ragged edge of the universe' but this retrospective first-person narrative is being written by Carraway after returning home from New York! Fitzgerald presents Carraway in a manner that could be compared with the enigmatic and ambiguous representation of Gatsby. Fitzgerald's representation raises a series of questions: Why did Nick return to the Mid West? What happened in the four years after the War? Why does Fitzgerald have Daisy raise the issue of his engagement? This ambiguous introduction to the narrative voice, as with Gatsby, is possibly aimed at creating a sense of narrative tension as the reader is being encouraged to navigate through the narrative to solve the narrative puzzle presented by Fitzgerald in the opening chapter.
CONCLUSION... briefly explore the significance of the opening chapter in the context of the whole novel.
REMEMBER....THE ONLY ASSESSMENT OBJECTIVE STUDENTS NEED TO ACCESS IS 'ANALYSE HOW THE AUTHOR USES LANGUAGE, STRUCTURE AND FORM TO SHAPE MEANING.'
THEN WE ALL WENT HOME!
HOMEWORK: The essay needs to be positioned inside my digital pipe before Friday 31st October. I need to mark all these essays before our next lesson on Tuesday 4th November.
STUDENTS ALSO NEED TO BE READING THE NOVEL AND CHECKING THE RELEVANT RESOURCES POSTED TO THIS BLOG.
This blog entry remains a key resource. SOAK UP THE WISDOM:
http://becuriouslit.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/year-12-lesson-fourfivesix-19th23rd26th.html
GOOD LUCK CHIMPS.
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