Example Essay Paragraphs Skills
The Great Gatsby by _____________________________ is essentially a story about __________________________
___________________________________. Jay Gatsby, the character that gives his name to this book wants to achieve happiness by marrying Daisy, a girl he loved a long time ago. Daisy represents the unattainable dream, in Gatsby’s case wealth. Gatsby is disillusioned when he cannot attain his perfect dream. _____________________________ uses _______________________ and ______________________________ to convey his message that___________________________________________________________.
One tool Fitzgerald uses to convey his message is characterization. He portrays the character of _________________________ negatively/positively in The Great Gatsby. S/he is described as _________________ and ________________. For example (quote 1)
Another example of the _________ (quote2)
This positive/negative portrayal illustrates ________
_________________________________________________________.
Fitzgerald uses symbolism to convey his message as well. The color ______________________ represents ____________________ . Quote. The color ________________________ represents _________________________. Quote. The two of these colors combined make the color _________________. The color ___________________ plays a big role in the book. Gatsby is focused on reaching his dream of getting Daisy. The color ___________________ symbolizes this dream that is tainted by ________________________. Gatsby is often associated with this color. Quote, Quote.
The Great Gatsby by _____________________________ is essentially a story about __________________________
___________________________________. Jay Gatsby, the character that gives his name to this book wants to achieve happiness by marrying Daisy, a girl he loved a long time ago. Daisy represents the unattainable dream, in Gatsby’s case wealth. Gatsby is disillusioned when he cannot attain his perfect dream. _____________________________ uses _______________________ and ______________________________ to convey his message that___________________________________________________________.
One tool Fitzgerald uses to convey his message is characterization. He portrays the character of _________________________ negatively/positively in The Great Gatsby. S/he is described as _________________ and ________________. For example (quote 1)
Another example of the _________ (quote2)
This positive/negative portrayal illustrates ________
_________________________________________________________.
Fitzgerald uses symbolism to convey his message as well. The color ______________________ represents ____________________ . Quote. The color ________________________ represents _________________________. Quote. The two of these colors combined make the color _________________. The color ___________________ plays a big role in the book. Gatsby is focused on reaching his dream of getting Daisy. The color ___________________ symbolizes this dream that is tainted by ________________________. Gatsby is often associated with this color. Quote, Quote.
Here is an outline of what your paper should look like. For each paragraph, make sure you answer the corresponding essential question. Remember, each paragraph MUST relate back to your thesis.
- Introduction - What is Fitzgerald’s message? OR What is Fitzgerald’s critique of the American Dream?
- Character - How does Fitzgerald’s use of characterization reveal his message?
- Character - How does Fitzgerald’s use of characterization reveal his message?
- Motif - How does Fitzgerald use motif to establish mood/tone? How does the mood/tone help the reader understand the overall message? How does Fitzgerald’s use of motif establish a hopeful or tragic tone overall?
- Character OR Symbol - How does Fitzgerald's use of characterization reveal his message? OR How does Fitzgerald's use of symbol reveal his message?
6. Conclusion
Sample Introduction
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is essentially a story about dreams—conceiving dreams, chasing dreams—and the inevitable disillusionment humans experience when reality fails to live up to those dreams. It is a story about growing up and the unavoidable sorrows that follow. The narrator, Nick Carraway, has a youthful dream that takes him to New York where he experiences a new solitary life away from his parents, and he meets new people who have dreams of their own, most notably Gatsby, the character who gives his name to this book. Through Nick’s eyes, Fitzgerald skillfully comments on what the journey from innocence to experience is like. Though it is a rough journey, he leaves the reader with a positive message, asserting that whatever the cost, chasing dreams and growing up are a part of the human experience, and therefore have intrinsic value.
Sample Character Paragraph
Fitzgerald purposely portrays Myrtle Wilson as a static, unappealing character in order to enhance the reader’s disgust for how her obsession with money has distorted her perception of what is important. In chapter two, we meet Myrtle when Tom and Nick travel to the Valley of Ashes. During the party at Tom and Myrtle’s apartment in New York, Myrtle displays how selfish and unrefined her character is when she and Tom get into a fight after she says, “I’ll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai--------“ (Fitzgerald 41). Fitzgerald shows how loud and insensitive Myrtle can be. He also uses imagery to expose her true nature. When we first meet her, she is the wife of a garage owner and dressed to fit the part. When she joins Tom in the apartment he pays for in New York, she changes her dress, and in that action, she transforms into an exaggerated version of herself—loud, condescending, rude—the product of a life devoted to the love of money. Fitzgerald writes, “as she expanded the room grew smaller around her, until she seemed to be revolving on a noisy, creaking pivot through the smoky air” (31). This image depicts Myrtle’s exaggerated view of her own importance and exposes her selfishness and greed.
Sample Motif Paragraph
Fitzgerald uses weather as a motif to establish tone in The Great Gatsby. Much like weather, human emotion fluctuates. The characters in Gatsby find that their emotions vary based on the situations they find themselves, sometimes over the course of just a few minutes. When Gatsby is about to meet Daisy, we see that his mood changes from anxious and awkward to joyful and awe-struck when they finally feel at ease with each other again. Fitzgerald makes the weather mirror Gatsby’s (and the reader’s) emotions. When Gatsby is anxious and uncertain about his future, Fitzgerald describes the weather as a rain that “cooled…to a damp mist” (84). Mist distorts surroundings, making it difficult to see. The uncertain mood matches the uncertain weather. Later, when Gatsby finally has a chance to meet with Daisy, an intense fear gets the best of him, and similarly, the weather reaches new intensity. Nick lets Gatsby in from the pouring rain and closes the door “against the increasing rain” (Fitzgerald 86). Finally, Gatsby overcomes his fear, finds that Daisy is very happy to see him, and the sun shines through (Fitzgerald 89). Fitzgerald’s use of motif copies and, therefore, highlights the changing emotions of the characters.
Sample Conclusion
The title of this novel would suggest that it is entirely about Gatsby’s journey, his achievements, his “greatness.” However, he is undoubtedly a conflicted, flawed character—naïve, ambitious, generous, selfish, devoted, immoral, tragic. What truly makes him “great” is his ability to help Nick (and the reader) conclude that even though life is rife with tragedy and disillusionment, it is also filled with joy and hope. As Gatsby’s life indicates, holding on to a little of the naiveté of youth, while remaining balanced, leads to true “greatness.”
1. American Dream Free Write |
4. Graphic Novel 6 Panel Assignment |
5. Motif Quotes |
6. Motif Notes - Seasons |
7. Ch. 6 Gatsby Questions |
8._ch._7_tone_activity.pdf |
9._ch._7_summary__subj_verb_agreement.pdf |
10._notes_on_pg._180.png |
11._gatsby_fishbowl_choices.pdf |
13._does_money_make_you_mean.pdf |