The Great Gatsby
Write about some of the ways Fitzgerald tells the story in Chapter 1.
Fitzgerald uses different narrative techniques to tell the story in chapter 1. Most notable: The setting, Fitzgerald uses high level description on the various settings. The narrator, Nick Carroway is the narrator and therefore the only viewpoint the reader has. Finally, the characterisation of some characters is very strong which helps tell the story in chapter 1 and give a starting judgement of these characters.
Firstly, Fitzgerald describes the setting through the eyes of Nick Carroway and describes various settings within New York, Long Island (where the book is set). For example the comparison between the west egg and east egg. Nick Carroway’s house, In the West Egg, is described as an ‘eyesore’ whereas the East Egg is described as luxurious. I know this because when Nick is looking across the water he says ‘the white palaces of fashionable East Egg glittered along the water’. This comparison clearly shows the East Egg being a place of wealth and fashion in comparison to the West Egg being not up to par to East Egg. Nick is shown to live in between 2 huge, luxurious houses in West Egg and the fact that there is 2 luxurious houses in West Egg is seen as a rarity. By Fitzgerald using this comparison it helps us make judgements on the people who live in the West Egg and the people who live in the East Egg E.G. we now know that the people who live in the East Egg are generally more well off and would most probably live a hedonistic lifestyle whereas the people in the West Egg are more likely to be less well-off and unable of living the hedonistic lifestyle, expect in rare occasions e.g. Gatsby.
Continuing with the setting, the Buchanan’s house is also described as quite a luxury. ‘A sunken Italian garden, a half-acre of deep, pungent roses, and a snub-nosed motor-boat that bumped the tide offshore.’ This description shows the beauty of the garden and also tells us that the Buchanan’s
Fitzgerald uses different narrative techniques to tell the story in chapter 1. Most notable: The setting, Fitzgerald uses high level description on the various settings. The narrator, Nick Carroway is the narrator and therefore the only viewpoint the reader has. Finally, the characterisation of some characters is very strong which helps tell the story in chapter 1 and give a starting judgement of these characters.
Firstly, Fitzgerald describes the setting through the eyes of Nick Carroway and describes various settings within New York, Long Island (where the book is set). For example the comparison between the west egg and east egg. Nick Carroway’s house, In the West Egg, is described as an ‘eyesore’ whereas the East Egg is described as luxurious. I know this because when Nick is looking across the water he says ‘the white palaces of fashionable East Egg glittered along the water’. This comparison clearly shows the East Egg being a place of wealth and fashion in comparison to the West Egg being not up to par to East Egg. Nick is shown to live in between 2 huge, luxurious houses in West Egg and the fact that there is 2 luxurious houses in West Egg is seen as a rarity. By Fitzgerald using this comparison it helps us make judgements on the people who live in the West Egg and the people who live in the East Egg E.G. we now know that the people who live in the East Egg are generally more well off and would most probably live a hedonistic lifestyle whereas the people in the West Egg are more likely to be less well-off and unable of living the hedonistic lifestyle, expect in rare occasions e.g. Gatsby.
Continuing with the setting, the Buchanan’s house is also described as quite a luxury. ‘A sunken Italian garden, a half-acre of deep, pungent roses, and a snub-nosed motor-boat that bumped the tide offshore.’ This description shows the beauty of the garden and also tells us that the Buchanan’s