...author of novels and many short stories. He was also recognized as one of the greatest authors in the twentieth century. Fitzgerald’s Early Years Francis Scott K. Fitzgerald was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, on September 24, 1896. He was named after his famous distant cousin Francis Scott Key, who was the author of the National Anthem. His father, Edward Fitzgerald, and his mother were both Catholic and of Irish descent. However they both came from different societies. Fitzgerald’s mother came from a background where money was everything, such as: position and stability. And his father came from a background where discipline was the most importance. As a result all the attitudes and manners that were established in Fitzgerald’s character came from his father and all the concerns of stability in the society came from his mother. Between the years of 1898-1901 and 1903- 1908 he lived in Buffalo, New York. And this is when he attended Nardin Academy. However when his father was fired from his job, his family had to move back to Minnesota, where he now went to school at St. Paul Academy in St. Paul. He went to school there for three years. Although the reason for the family to go back to Minnesota was not a happy one, its effect was good, because around this time Fitzgerald created his first piece of literature at his school at the age of thirteen. After that great event he left St. Paul to go to a...
Words: 1310 - Pages: 6
...turned into a very materialistic vision of a big house, nice car, and living the easy life. As represented in the novel The Great Gatsby and Baz Luhrmann’s, The Great Gatsby, the American Dream was more focused on instant gratification of material things and needing material things as an indication of success. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby and Baz Luhrmann’s, The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby is a renaissance man; a man who has it all but started out with nothing. His plan was to achieve his dream. He was so blinded by his possessions, in front of him, that he could not see that money could not buy love or happiness. Fitzgerald demonstrated how a dream can be corrupted by one’s focus on accruing wealth, power, and expensive things. Gatsby’s dream was “ambiguous, contradictory, romantic in nature, and undeniably beautiful while at the same time grotesquely flawed” (Hearne 189). His American Dream had become tarnished and corrupted by the culture of money and opulence that surrounded him. Gatsby was ‘new money’, and his romantic view of the wealthy did not prepare him for the self- absorbed, snobbish, group of people he was about to associate himself with. He threw lavish parties every night, yet he had no real friends to surround himself with. Gatsby bought expensive things and entertained a lot of people, but he was hoping for something more. Nick Caraway realized that Gatsby was involved in a few...
Words: 2843 - Pages: 12
...This temperance movement played a monumental role in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. During the time of Prohibition, it was concluded that alcohol had given the impression of being fun and exhilarating, turned biddable American citizens into convicts, and ridiculed the government. The Great Gatsby portrays this type of behavior through its characters Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, and their wealth and priorities. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is used as a social commentary about the 1920s to exhibit how the concept of prohibition was ineffective to the law, left a negative effect on society, and normalized illegal behavior. The prohibition era was the beginning of a great amount of organized crime. Some individuals set up self-owned businesses to sell illegal alcohol. A few of the people who were selling illegal alcohol had joined...
Words: 1183 - Pages: 5
...characteristics of women of this time. Feeling powerless to change their lives, women of the 1920’s did not strive to find happiness. Jordan, Myrtle, and Daisy, although unhappy with their lives, do not strive to find happiness by making a change.In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, each of the main female characters is portrayed as a miserable figure who do not have the power to change their lives. Jordan, a cynical professional golfer, struggles to succeed in a world filled with male dominance. Jordan is in a male dominated profession due to the fact that most sports professionals in the 1920’s were dominated by men....
Words: 1238 - Pages: 5
...In life, environments and social settings often influence a person’s actions and shape their character. Oftentimes, the people that someone spends a lot of time with is who they become which explains why friends mirror each other’s characteristics. For example, when someone surrounds themselves with a negative crowd, they are more likely to indulge in undesirable behavior. This is also how it works for environments as well. Fitzgerald uses setting in the “Great Gatsby” to create the character’s attitudes. Myrtle, Tom, Daisy, and Gatsby all serve as prime examples of people who have allowed their surroundings to affect the people they become. Fitzgerald uses “The valley of ashes” as a setting to define Myrtle and her attitudes throughout the story. The valley of ashes is an...
Words: 1143 - Pages: 5
...writers of the 20th century and the time called the „Jazz Age”. His most famous works are „The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and „The Great Gatsby” which have been adapted into films. The Great Gatsby has been the basis for many movie adaptations of the same name in 1926, 1949, 1974, 2000, and the latest in 2013. 2. Baz Luhrmann Mark Anthony "Baz" Luhrmann (1962 - ) is an Australian film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known for directing Strictly Ballroom, Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge, Australia and the newest version of The Great Gatsby released in 2013. 3. „The Great Gatsby” – the plot of the novel The Great Gatsby is an American novel written in 1925 that follows a cast of characters living in the fictional town of West Egg on Long Island in the summer of 1922. The story primarily concerns the young, handsome and mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and his unrealistic illusion and passion for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan. Major characters Nick Carraway – a Yale graduate originating from the Midwest, a World War I veteran, and, at the start of the plot, a newly arrived resident of West Egg, who is about 30 years old. He serves as the first-person narrator of the novel. He is Gatsby's next-door neighbour and a bond salesman. He is an easy-going, occasionally sarcastic, and quite optimistic person. Jay Gatsby (originally James "Jimmy" Gatz) – a young, handsome and mysterious millionaire with shady business connections, originally from North...
Words: 2708 - Pages: 11
...Barriers Influencing American Dreams Do obstacles in one’s life change one’s aspirations? If something hard or even Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:49 PM Comment: TITLE SHOULD REFLECT OVERALL THEME OF ESSAYß Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:35 PM Comment: Attention Getter unexpected occurs, does one turn his or her back on all that has been worked for? In an American society, there is an idea of a dream. Most people have dreams that differ from one another. Dreams are not limited only to society. Countless numbers of times in American literature, there are moments when an obstacle slows or possibly halts progression. Dreams can also be found in American literature; however, like the reality of society, barriers can be a component of having aspirations. Barriers create obstacles, whether emotional or physical, that make achieving a dream difficult or even appear to be impossible. In American literature dreams seem to be unattainable because of barriers. In all the years of literature, dreams, goals, and aspirations come in contact Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:35 PM Comment: Broad Topic Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:35 PM Comment: Narrow Topic Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:36 PM Comment: Thesis Statement Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:36 PM Comment: Clincher Sentence with a conflict. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby has a dream to be with Daisy Buchanan. Gatsby has a passion for his dream so fierce that he pursues ...
Words: 2718 - Pages: 11
...critical theory today critical theory today A Us e r - F r i e n d l y G u i d e S E C O N D E D I T I O N L O I S T Y S O N New York London Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business Routledge Taylor & Francis Group 270 Madison Avenue New York, NY 10016 Routledge Taylor & Francis Group 2 Park Square Milton Park, Abingdon Oxon OX14 4RN © 2006 by Lois Tyson Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business Printed in the United States of America on acid‑free paper 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 International Standard Book Number‑10: 0‑415‑97410‑0 (Softcover) 0‑415‑97409‑7 (Hardcover) International Standard Book Number‑13: 978‑0‑415‑97410‑3 (Softcover) 978‑0‑415‑97409‑7 (Hardcover) No part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced, transmitted, or utilized in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publishers. Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. Library of Congress Cataloging‑in‑Publication Data Tyson, Lois, 1950‑ Critical theory today : a user‑friendly guide / Lois Tyson.‑‑ 2nd ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0‑415‑97409‑7 (hb) ‑‑ ISBN 0‑415‑97410‑0 (pb) 1. Criticism...
Words: 221284 - Pages: 886
...The life of the American Expatriates in Paris in the 1920’s according to Hemingway’s Memoir “A Moveable Feast” “If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast,”- with these words Hemingway starts his memoir. The writer himself was “lucky enough” to spend seven years of his youth in the European center of culture and entertainment of the Jazz Age. Throughout the literary works of Hemingway it can be observed that Paris had a special place in his heart. He adopts Paris as a setting not only in “A Moveable Feast” but also in “The Sun Also Rises” and “Midnight in Paris.” But what makes “A Moveable Feast” stand out from many other works written by Hemingway is that it is a memoir, thus, the characters are real people and the events are actual as well. However, “various critics have pointed out that “A Moveable Feast” contains serious factual errors." Though, the most of the factual errors are about the workplaces of the characters, for instance the one of Walsh, and do not significantly influence the understanding of life flows of the memoir’s main characters. Hemingway along with other expatriates viewed Paris as a place where he could find a market for his literary works. “Many Americans who settled in Paris [believed] their native land was a cultural sink.” Those who caught the drama of the World War I and the time of...
Words: 1535 - Pages: 7
...audience for the music. Along with influencing the changing cultural music in New York during the Harlem Renaissance, Jazz music also inspired the fashion-side of the society: Men had begun to wear baggy pants, and young women cut their hair short. Loose high-cut dresses were practically mandatory for flappers due to dancing along with the fast-paced rhythm that Jazz music consisted of (McClendon). Unfortunately, like all other good things, the prosperous age that began in 1920 came to an end as America—along with the rest of the Western industrialized countries—entered the Great Depression in 1929 (Garraty). The American culture that was heavily based on credit backfired as the stock market on Wall Street crashed, sending millions of people into poverty because of it. When everyone was mourning over the negative impacts of the Great Depression, Jazz music was there to lift the moods of the...
Words: 1603 - Pages: 7
...NORTH AMERICAN FICTION BRIEF INTRODUCTION: Before starting our study of American Fiction we must understand what American Literature is in itself and which pieces of writing we can include within this label. It is believed that when a piece is written in North America, more precisely in the USA, it would automatically be given this epithet. But it should be taken into account that this idea is quite broad and doesn’t reflect the real essence of the term. However, there is also another definition that gathers this essence: American Literature is the one that represents the Americanism, the singularity of the USA philosophy and culture. This way, instead of focusing on who the author is, it is focused on the content of the writing. In that which concerns Fiction, the following documents are the ones considered as narrative: Speeches Letters Short Stories Essays Political Documents Sermons Novels Diaries 1 FIRST LITERARY EXPRESSIONS The first documents in which the idea of Americanism is very present are the Sermons. They respond to the strict Protestantism settled in the New Continent after the arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers and Puritans in the Mayflower (1620) and the Arabella (1630). They established a theocratic community whose main and only point of reference was the Bible. That is why the idea of the ‘city upon a hill’ is still very present in American mentality. As we all know...
Words: 12691 - Pages: 51
... King Charles I was beheaded in 1649& General Oliver Cromwell became the leader of the new government. In 1660, shortly after Cro-ll’s death, the dynasty of the Stuarts was restored. The establishment of new social&eco-ic relations, the change from feudal to bourgeois ownership, escalating class-struggle, liberation movement and contradictions of the bourgeois society found their reflection in lit-re. The main representatives of this period is: John Milton: was born in London&educated at Christ’s College. He lived a pure life believing that he had a great purpose to complete. At college he was known as the The Lady of Christ’s. he Got master’s degree at Cambridge. It’s convenient to consider his works in 3 divisions. At first he wrote his short poems at Horton. (The Passion, Song on May Morning, L’Allegro). Then he wrote mainly prose. His 3 greatest poems belong to his last group. At the age of 23 he had still done little in life&he admits this in one of his sonnets. (On his 23d B-day) In his another sonnet he wrote on his own blindness. (On his Blindness) Milton wrote diff. kinds of works. His prose works were mainly concerned with church, affairs, divorce & freedom. The English civil war between Charles I & Parliament followed by the 2nd civil war, 1641-1651. During these years Milton worked hard at his pamphlets, supported Cromwell (also wrote a sonnet “to Cromwell”). He wrote many journalistic works were he stood for the ideas of revolution. His...
Words: 10397 - Pages: 42
...Section A is open book. INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES The total mark for this paper is 120. All questions carry equal marks, ie 60 marks for each question. Quality of written communication will be assessed in all questions. 3 Section A: The Study of Poetry Written after 1800 Answer one question on your chosen pairing of poets. Heaney: Opened Ground Montague: New Selected Poems 1 John Montague and Seamus Heaney both write about the Irish past. Compare and contrast the two poets’ treatment of the Irish past in two poems you have studied. Hopkins: Selected Poems Dickinson: A Choice of Emily Dickinson’s Verse 2 Gerard Manley Hopkins and Emily Dickinson both express intense anguish in their poetry. Compare and contrast how both poets express intense anguish in two poems you have studied. Duffy: Selected Poems Lochhead: The Colour of Black and White 3...
Words: 25332 - Pages: 102
...The Story of the Fourth of July The Declaration of Independence We celebrate American Independence Day on the Fourth of July every year. We think of July 4, 1776, as a day that represents the Declaration of Independence and the birth of the United States of America as an independent nation. But July 4, 1776 wasn't the day that the Continental Congress decided to declare independence (they did that on July 2, 1776). It wasn’t the day we started the American Revolution either (that had happened back in April 1775). And it wasn't the day Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft of the Declaration of Independence (that was in June 1776). Or the date on which the Declaration was delivered to Great Britain (that didn't happen until November 1776). Or the date it was signed (that was August 2, 1776). So what did happen on July 4, 1776? The Continental Congress approved the final wording of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. They'd been working on it for a couple of days after the draft was submitted on July 2nd and finally agreed on all of the edits and changes. July 4, 1776, became the date that was included on the Declaration of Independence, and the fancy handwritten copy that was signed in August (the copy now displayed at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.) It’s also the date that was printed on the Dunlap Broadsides, the original printed copies of the Declaration that were circulated throughout the new nation. So when people thought of the Declaration of Independence...
Words: 16917 - Pages: 68
...AS English Language [pic] [pic] [pic] Fiction style models and tasks – 2012/2013 Style Model Workbook Style models are examples of a type of writing used to give you an idea of the features used when adapting a particular style and form. As you will be required to include a fiction and non-fiction annotated style model as part of your coursework folder we have compiled a selection of materials to give you a head start. The two booklets (one fiction, one non-fiction) will contain the type of extracts you should be looking for and the questions that accompany them will help you to annotate the materials appropriately. You will be given some of the extracts to study in class and some to complete as homework tasks. There may be some materials that you haven’t been directed to by your teachers, these will make very good additional preparation and you should look at these in your own time. All the resources, and some additional style models, can be found in the AS Language section of Moodle. AS LANGUAGE COURSEWORK You must keep all work during the production of the coursework in your folder. You will need all drafts and style models for part of your final grade. Criteria • Two pieces of your own writing • Each piece must have a different audience and purpose • You should write with a specific genre in mind • Pieces should be designed with a real publication in mind • Two...
Words: 28420 - Pages: 114
