sparknotes vs cliffnotes
Bryan Lietz
3/5/13
English 3
Ms. Lindstrom Sparknotes and Cliffnotes both assist a reader and can help students interpret literature at a more in depth level, and help improve understanding the literary elements, character developments, and plot development that a author uses to help create the story. Both sites provide similar information, ranging from overall plot summaries and character analysis, but Sparknotes goes more into the literary aspect of the book, while cliffnotes focuses more on the character and his motives. In analyzing Jay Gatsby, Cliffnotes focuses much more on Gatsby himself and his underlying motives to his character, like “In assessing Gatsby, one must examine his blind pursuit of Daisy.” (Cliffnotes). Sparknotes focuses not only on the overall character of Jay Gatsby, but also analyzes how his character compares with other characters, and how his character relates to the author. Some of examples of Sparknotes on Gatsby are, “Fitzgerald uses this technique of delayed character revelation” (Sparknotes), and “Gatsby is contrasted most consistently with Nick” (Sparknotes), showing how Sparknotes develops a more in depth character analysis. However, both sites have a similar set up, as the book must be searched for in the tool box when first accessing the site, and on the left a toolbar exists of the different sections a reader can glance through for detailed information. The most significant difference between the two sites when it came to character analysis was Sparknotes had a broader analysis while Cliffnotes analysis was narrower. Sparknotes and Cliffnotes present the information similarly when the sites analyze the plot, using paragraph form going in chronological order. Sparknotes summarized the storyline, while capturing a deeper understanding in the last paragraph, like “Nick reflects that the era of dreaming—both Gatsby’s dream and the American dream—is over” (Sparknotes), while Cliffnotes summerizes but also refers to specifics
3/5/13
English 3
Ms. Lindstrom Sparknotes and Cliffnotes both assist a reader and can help students interpret literature at a more in depth level, and help improve understanding the literary elements, character developments, and plot development that a author uses to help create the story. Both sites provide similar information, ranging from overall plot summaries and character analysis, but Sparknotes goes more into the literary aspect of the book, while cliffnotes focuses more on the character and his motives. In analyzing Jay Gatsby, Cliffnotes focuses much more on Gatsby himself and his underlying motives to his character, like “In assessing Gatsby, one must examine his blind pursuit of Daisy.” (Cliffnotes). Sparknotes focuses not only on the overall character of Jay Gatsby, but also analyzes how his character compares with other characters, and how his character relates to the author. Some of examples of Sparknotes on Gatsby are, “Fitzgerald uses this technique of delayed character revelation” (Sparknotes), and “Gatsby is contrasted most consistently with Nick” (Sparknotes), showing how Sparknotes develops a more in depth character analysis. However, both sites have a similar set up, as the book must be searched for in the tool box when first accessing the site, and on the left a toolbar exists of the different sections a reader can glance through for detailed information. The most significant difference between the two sites when it came to character analysis was Sparknotes had a broader analysis while Cliffnotes analysis was narrower. Sparknotes and Cliffnotes present the information similarly when the sites analyze the plot, using paragraph form going in chronological order. Sparknotes summarized the storyline, while capturing a deeper understanding in the last paragraph, like “Nick reflects that the era of dreaming—both Gatsby’s dream and the American dream—is over” (Sparknotes), while Cliffnotes summerizes but also refers to specifics
Cited: "The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald Critical Essays Social Stratification: The Great Gatsby as Social Commentary." The Great Gatsby: Critical Essays: Social Stratification: The Great Gatsby as Social Commentary. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Mar. 2013. "The Great Gatsby." SparkNotes. SparkNotes, n.d. Web. 06 Mar. 2013.