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Review: A Reader's Guide for "The Great Gatsby"
Author(s): Colleen A. Ruggieri
Review by: Colleen A. Ruggieri
Source: The English Journal, Vol. 97, No. 3 (Jan., 2008), pp. 112-113
Published by: National Council of Teachers of English
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/30046845
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The GreatGatsbyand the Cacophonyof the AmericanDream
In Chapter2, Tredelldips into
The bookis dividedintosixsecAs timesandviewpoints
change,
the
one constanthas remained-The tions:"Contexts";
language, style,and formof
"Language,Style
He notesthattheinfluthe
novel.
book and Form"; "Reading The Great
GreatGatsbyis an important
In thissoft- Gatsby";"CriticalReceptionand encesof Romanticpoetry,biblical
forhighschoolreaders.
cover,workbook-style
presentation,PublishingHistory";"Adaptation, and Christiandiscourse,and the
and Influence";and proseofJamesJoyceare partof a
has
Grudzina
provided teachers Interpretation
with a handy tool for a new "Guide to Further Reading." "complex mixture"from which
approachto thestudyofthenovel, While the guide is a quick read the languageof The GreatGatsby
enabling us to guide all readers and could be easily digested by was drawn.He examinesthe way
could in which Fitzgerald assimilated
thechapters
throughthe criticalperspectives honorsstudents,
Romantictermsinto a Modernist
also be usedindividually.
thatoftengo undiscussed.
"Contexts" begins with an style: "For instance, Fitzgerald
of Fitzgerald'slife. Of challenges the conventional
overview
A Reader'sGuidefor
numerous
the
biographiesavail- Romantic opposition between
The GreatGatsby
able, this one is especiallyinter- technologyand art, the machine
esting. Readers learn that the and the imagination,by drawing
failuresof Fitzgerald'sfatherhad on technologicalimageryto help
an impacton theauthor'slife,and evoke Romantic perspectives"
the trend toward "downward (19). The use ofsymbolsand flashmobility" added to Fitzgerald's backs is importantin the novel's
Afterhigh- form,and Tredell commentson
sense of inferiority.
lighting Fitzgerald's life and Fitzgerald'smethodof "showing"
career,Tredellmovesintothehis- the readerthe eventsby developFitzerald's
The
Great
Gatsby
toricalcontext.From the afteref- ing dramaticscenes, ratherthan
fectsofWorldWar I to theeffects merelytelling the reader about
ofProhibition,a clearoverviewof them (31). Discussion questions
the time periodprovidesconnec- about the use of color,the firsttions for students.For example, person narrator,and the scenic
TheGreat
Fitzgerald's
Tredellobservesthat Prohibition methodroundout thechapter.
Gatsby:A Reader'sGuide "fueledthe rapidgrowthof orgaPerhaps the most helpfulsecNicolasTredell.NewYork:Continuum,
nized crimenetworksengagedin tion of this work is Chapter 3,
2007. 134 pp. $14.95. ISBN:978-08264-9011-7.
bootlegging. . . and fosteredthe whichprovidesstrongsupportfor
This is a problem emergenceof wealthyand power- "Reading the Text."Six thematic
Socialinsecurity:
thatplaguesnearlyeveryteenager, fulgangsterswho-like Gatsby- elementsare discussed in depth:
and as Nicolas Tredell notes in werealso activein othercriminal "Romanticism";"America:Dream
The Great Gatsby:A fields,suchas gamblingand bond and History"; "America: The
Fitzgerald's
Reader'sGuide, the problem also fraud"(10).
1920s"; "Money";"Sexualityand
an
overScott
Tredell
Gender"; and "Appearance and
Next,
Fitzgerald
provides
plagued E
context. Reality."Relevantpassages from
his boyhood(1). As I viewofthenovel'sliterary
throughout
read Tredell'sopening section,I He citestheimpactofT. S. Eliot's thenovelarepresentedin connecwonderedabout usingthe issueof The Waste Land on The Great tion with each theme.For examforactivatingschemain Gatsby,in addition to the influ- ple, in his analysisofthethemeof
insecurity
myclassroom.I am alwayslooking ences of Joseph Conrad, Henry moneyin the novel,Tredellcites
the James,EdithWharton,and Willa thatcurrencychangeshandsonly
forfreshmaterialforenriching
work with honorsstudents,so I Cather (14). The chapter closes twicein the book-in Chapter2,
was glad to discover that this witha set of studyquestionsthat whenTom purchasesa dog, and in
reader's
guideprovidesan excellent could be discussedas a wholeclass Chapter 8, when Tom pays for
gasoline(53). However,he notes,
starting
pointforadvancedreaders. or assignedforhomework.
112
2008
January
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Tools forTeaching
"All themajorcharacters,
perhaps
all the minorones as well, in the
definedby
novel are significantly
theirrelationship
to money"(52).
accessibleanalyRich,text-based,
sis makesthischapteran excellent
additionto a studyof The Great
Excellent discussion points and
freshcriticismwould make this
booka strongadditionto an honors
orAP curriculum.
Fitzgerald'sLife:
A BiographyWortha Look
in recenttimes by describingan
incident in which Oprah, who
expressedinterestin returningto
"the classics" forher book club,
told audienceshow she spentthe
weekendreadingTheGreatGatsby
introduction
(xi). This interesting
hooked me fromthe start,and it
made me want to read on to discoverhow the authorswould tell
thestoryofFitzgerald'slife.
The biography highlights
many facets of Fitzgerald'slife,
dedicatingan entirechapterto his
wife Zelda (65-87). Student
scholarshipwill be enrichedby
the chapter"Gatsbyand All That
Jazz" (133-59). The book ends
witha chaptertitled"EverAfterward," which examinesGatsby's
relevanceto today'sreaders:"Substitute cocaine or oxycodin for
alcohol,falsecorporate
accounting
for bootlegging. . . Rush LimbaughforTom Buchanan,Britney
SpearsforZelda at twenty-two
...
you've got today'sversionof the
JazzAge" (370).
For ease in readingand a thorough and accurate account of
Gatsby'screator,UndertheInfluence
is an outstanding publication.
and the
Enhancedby photographs
Gatsby.
Chapter4 takesreadersthrough
the receptionFitzgeraldreceived
forhis noveland a historyof its
publication.Studentswill findit
thathe receivedletters
interesting
of praisefromthose he admired,
includingWilla Catherand Edith
Wharton(78). Chapter5 provides
overviews
oftheadaptations
ofthe
novel,examiningthestageversion
in 1926, an opera,and variousfilm
versions,including a television
moviethatairedin 2000 on A&E.
Under
F.ScottFitzgerald:
This sectionis especially
helpfulfor theInfluence
instructors
seekingsupplementaryE.
and ThomasD.
RayCanterbery
enrichmentmaterials.Chapter 6 Birch.St. Paul:Paragon,2006. 396 pp.
providesan extensive
guideforfur- $24.95. ISBN:1-55778-848-0.
therreading,includinga concor- WheneverI assign research,studance,severaleditionsofthenovel, dentsareapt to jumponline.Who
and criticism (118). Students could blamethem,withthespeed
and vast offerings
of the World
Excellent
discussionpointsand Wide Web? In addition,
many
wouldmakethis tomes found on the shelves of
freshcriticism
school librariestend to be brown
additionto an
booka strong
with
age; the old books have seen
honorsorAPcurriculum.
bettertimes.For thoseseekinga
introduction
Thisinteresting
mightuse thissectionforextended good resource for research on
hookedmefromthestart,and
research;instructors
mightfindit Fitzgerald'slife,F ScottFitzgerald:
is definitely itmademewantto readon to
Under the Influence
helpfulforplanningpurposes.
stu- worthreading.
Therearecountless
resources
discoverhowtheauthors
E.
dentswill use,oftensecretly,
when
Ray Canterbery and
wouldtellthestoryof
readingTheGreatGatsby.Though Thomas D. Birch note in their Fitzgerald's
life.
theyoftenheadforSparkNotes.com introduction, "Fitzgerald's life
or PinkMonkey.com,
youngreaders and novels continueto personify authors'authenticexpertise,this
in Ameri- book will be a valuable resource
needtobe exposedtoresearch-basedthegreatcontradictions
in
and
American
can
culture
to
The
capi- forstudentsand me as we jump
guides reading.Fitzgerald's
the into this Jazz Age and seek its
talism"
illustrate
Great Gatsby is an outstanding
(viii). They
resource
forthestudyof thenovel. public's venerationof Fitzgerald pertinenceto today'sworld.
EnglishJournal
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113