The Great Gatsby Essay Notes: Essay Test Thursday, November 10
by Lisa Coleman
November 07, 2011
The Great Gatsby
Essay Notes
Essay Topic 1
Discuss the emphasis on rich vs. poor in The Great Gatsby.
Ideas:
Is there snobbery in this novel?
Does wealth influence the characters’ actions?
What is the final outcome for the wealthy characters? The poor?
Essay Topic 2
Discuss the importance of romance in the novel.
Ideas:
Gatsby waited 5 years.
Gatsby retraced their footsteps in Louisville when he returned from the war.
Gatsby read the newspaper for a glimpse of Daisy’s name.
Gatsby bought the house across from Daisy.
The “tea” chapter has many romantic references.
Essay Topic 3
Compare and contrast Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan.
Ideas:
Why did Nick disapprove of Gatsby from beginning to end?
Why does Nick believe Gatsby is better than the whole bunch of them put together?
What kind of person is Tom? Gatsby?
Essay Topic 4
Discuss the concept of time in the novel.
Ideas:
Gatsby is trying to repeat the past and transcend time.
Gatsby catches the clock.
He is winding down like an overwound clock.
He doesn’t want to see Pammy—she represents 3 years that he is trying to pretend do not exist.
Essay Topic 5
Discuss the instances of irony in the novel.
Ideas:
They hear wedding music when the marriage is ending.
Gatsby is killed by a jealous husband who believes Gatsby is guilty of adultery.
Gatsby is killed the first and only time he uses his pool.
Daisy is driving the car that kills Myrtle.
Essay Topic 6
Discuss the references to God in the novel.
Ideas:
These characters do not know who God is.
Wilson believes God is a billboard.
These characters do not have a church for a “time of need.”
Essay Topic 7
Discuss the role of morality in the novel.
Ideas:
Do these characters know the difference between right and wrong?
What is the behavior of the characters? The people who attend Gatsby’s parties?
Essay Topic 8
Discuss symbolism in the novel.
Ideas:
Water Imagery:
Jay Gatsby was born on the water and died on the water. Daisy’s house is across the water from Gatsby’s.
Dust Imagery:
Wasteland and dust represent moral decay. Gatsby’s house fills with dust. The valley of ashes is significant. Wilson is described as an ashen figure moving toward Gatsby just before he shoots Gatsby in the pool.
Time Imagery:
Gatsby catches a clock.
Green Imagery:
The green light at the end of Daisy’s dock is symbolic of the fresh start for the Dutch sailors and represents the American dream.
There are numerous references to the color green throughout the novel.
Essay Topic 9
Discuss the manner in which this novel is about the
American dream.
Ideas:
What is the American dream?
What is the American dream?
Freedom
Success
Democracy
Fairness
Wealth
The green light at the end of Daisy’s dock represents Daisy and the American dream. Gatsby did not achieve his dream, but we “beat on, boats against the current” toward ours.
Essay Topic 10
In what manner is Gatsby “great?”
Ideas:
He is a dreamer.
He creates himself.
