Pages

▼

Monday, March 5, 2018

gatsby essay prompts

We're a little pressed for time this week (what else is new?) so rather than have a brainstorming session in class about the essay prompts, I'm going to propose the ideas that last year's students invented and ask your opinion.  Please read the following, then comment to this post with your favorites-- or propose your own!

Here's what we came up with in class last year:
  • ·      The last line of the book is arguably the most important: “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne ceaselessly into the past.”  How does this line embody the thematic conflict that defines The Great Gatsby?
  • ·      Is Gatsby’s desire for success—however we define it—evidence of the American dream, obsession, a personal sense of honor, or something else? Does Gatsby symbolize our culture and even our own desires, or is he an outlier?
  • ·      How does Fitzgerald’s characterization create a tone around the theme of happiness?  What is Fitzgerald’s attitude toward happiness?  Does it depend on love, on external markers such as wealth, on repairing or atoning for the past, or on something that is unattainable?
  • ·      The notion of the American dream figures prominently in this story.  How do readers define the American dream?  Moreover, is pursuing the American dream necessarily a good thing?
at

25 comments:

  1. Oscar Vera SolanoMarch 5, 2018 at 5:45 PM

    I really like the first and last prompt. I believe I can do better on either of these two prompts. I like the rest, but I have some trouble brainstorming, and I don't feel too confident.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oscar Vera SolanoMarch 5, 2018 at 5:52 PM

    I also came up with a prompt: Does The Great Gatsby symbolized a time period in the U.S, or can it be related to different times. If so, how does the characters show similarities from the different time periods.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownMarch 7, 2018 at 10:12 AM

    I really like the 2nd and last prompt. They look like essays I could write about and actually get my message and point across to the reader.

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownMarch 7, 2018 at 10:13 AM

    I personally like te second essay prompt because in a certain way you can relate it to the American history and even today

    ReplyDelete
  5. UnknownMarch 7, 2018 at 10:15 AM

    I agree with Emanuel’s comment, i think there is a lot to be said about the American dream and a lot of ideas to be expressed using that prompt.🤠

    ReplyDelete
  6. UnknownMarch 7, 2018 at 10:17 AM

    I like the first and last prompt because they seem like I can write them & keep the essay interesting.

    ReplyDelete
  7. gabriel hernandezMarch 7, 2018 at 10:20 AM

    I feel like I can brainstorm and write a better essay with the 2nd or last essay prompt.

    ReplyDelete
  8. UnknownMarch 7, 2018 at 11:15 AM

    I like the second and last prompt. I have some ideas of what i can write about for those two prompts.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Yolanda SMarch 7, 2018 at 12:59 PM

    i like the second and last one , i feel like i can right my way around those two the easiest.

    ReplyDelete
  10. OliMarch 7, 2018 at 1:28 PM

    Why do we had humans have a want or need for the things in life we can’t have and why does that becomes our demise in the end such as gatsby, daisy, maybe Tom. They things they wanted ended up breaking them instead of making them complete.

    ReplyDelete
  11. UnknownMarch 7, 2018 at 1:36 PM

    I like the second prompt because I understand it more than the others, and I feel like I can explain it better

    ReplyDelete
  12. UnknownMarch 7, 2018 at 1:38 PM

    I like the second prompt, because i think i can relate things from present time to Gatsby.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Alexis Hernandez U.March 7, 2018 at 1:38 PM

    I prefer the 2nd and the last I feel strongly about them and the ability of being able to work with them.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Arturo DiazMarch 7, 2018 at 1:46 PM

    The prompt that I understood the best is the third one. I'd like to write about happiness. That's not something that we all get in the same way. We all get happiness in a different way.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Carlota_Placido_6March 7, 2018 at 1:50 PM

    I really like the first and second prompt. I feel that i Can work with these prompt because the book has many part that relate to the topic.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Carlota_Placido_6March 7, 2018 at 1:50 PM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Analuisa MarcialMarch 7, 2018 at 1:54 PM

    I would like to write about the 2 prompt I think it would be an easy prompt.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Jannet CossioMarch 7, 2018 at 6:13 PM

    I like the second prompt because I seem to get it more then the others. Since it’s focuses more on just Gatsby

    ReplyDelete
  19. Rafael's Financial Write-UpsMarch 7, 2018 at 8:45 PM

    I like the first prompt because it is asking about the meaning of the last quote of the book, and since we did not read it together in class and we did not go over that, I consider that prompt interesting.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Gricelda GomezMarch 8, 2018 at 10:52 AM

    I like the second prompt

    ReplyDelete
  21. UnknownMarch 8, 2018 at 1:01 PM

    I like the second, I feel like I can write that one better

    ReplyDelete
  22. UnknownMarch 8, 2018 at 1:49 PM

    I like the second one better because it would be easier for me to right.

    ReplyDelete
  23. natMarch 8, 2018 at 1:54 PM

    I feel like the last one , you c an write a lot and. have so much to say and keep it interesting .

    ReplyDelete
  24. UnknownMarch 9, 2018 at 9:08 AM

    I would rather do the second prompt because I understand it better

    ReplyDelete