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Faulkner Relaxing after his AP Lang & Comp Exam
Faulkner Relaxing after his AP Lang & Comp Exam
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Hahahaha. I love the contrast in length of those two questions. I don't think any of us will need graphic organizers for this one.
ReplyDeletehahaha definitely not. we thought that all you guys really needed was one question and then you guys can take it in any direction you really wanted to and branch off in any topic you felt really strongly about.
ReplyDeleteNice, short, right to the pint…now this is the type of question I like to respond to. Taylor, your statement is 100% correct, no graphic organizers needed. Now that I’ve commented on the structure of the question, I guess its time to answer it. Obviously, the idea of juxtaposing things throughout the story connects directly into what our first blog was about, which are the over arching conflicts. Now, as opposed to the conflicts, juxtaposing ideas could just mean two different things that aren’t necessarily conflicting. To me, a conflict s when the opposites collide, where as here, I think that the opposites are in place to help the reader understand them both better.
ReplyDeleteA good example of this “help”, takes place during Nick’s conversation with Mr. Wolfshiem. Mr. Wolfshiem is describing Gatsby and he states, “ [Gatsby] would never so much look at a friends wife” (77). Now, I never picked up on this little tid-bit until I realized 2 pages later that it was actually foreshadowing. Now, my interest here wasn’t peaked by this foreshadowing, even though it is noticeable, but instead by the conflicting views of Gatsby. On the one hand, one of his good friends thinks he is as straight as an arrow, while he has placed himself in a strategic position to introduce himself once again to his love daisy, who happens to be married. Not only does this go right against the quote presented above, but it goes along way in judging Gatsby’s character. In one sense, his forethought in choosing properties might seem sleezy, but at the same time, it is somewhat heroic. Not heroic in the typical cape wearing sense, but there is really no other way of describing it. Also, the fact that Gatsby has placed his love for daisy so out I the open, makes the reader wonder why he has to go through Jordan to tell Nick.
“Then it had not merely been the stars to which he had aspired on that June night. He came alive to me, delivered suddenly from the womb of his purposeless splendor” (83). At first, this quote was of little interest to me, that is of course; the question forced me to think about conflicts all over again. Now, for a while I couldn’t think about who the quote was describing, was it Gatsby or Jordan? Suddenly it came to me, it was actually Nick. To me, when he says he was woken from his “purposeless splendor”, it shows that his new purpose is to reintroduce Daisy and Gatsby. Another interpretation of this, is that Nick is upset because he realizes that the only reason Gatsby took interest in him is because he saw that he could use Nick to get to Daisy. This also brings around the more conning side of Gatsby which, at least for me, I don’t want to believe.
Emma and Eric, thanks for the leeway by the way.
ReplyDeleteFor the sake of brevity I am limiting myself to three instances of juxtaposition in the novel. That being said, in the chapter, Fitzgerald's use of juxtaposition serves to accentuate the lackadaisical attitude of the central characters towards what would be, for any normal person, significant events. This goes back to events of previous chapters, in which Daisy's baby is spoken of as an after thought (oh yeah, by the way, I've got a baby), gay love scenes are given no significance (har har), and the entire society casually breaks the law (Prohibition).
ReplyDeleteOne instance of this is when Gatsby and Nick drive into New York. "The city seen from the Queensboro bridge is always the city seen for the first time, in its wild promise of all the mystery and the beauty in the world. A dead man passed up in a hearse" (Fitzgerald 73). The abruptness of the shift from New York as a city of dreams to the harsh realities of life and death (cough tension cough) shows how Nick and Gatsby couldn't care less about the dead man in the hearse. Indeed, as soon as thon passes by, Gatsby and Nick continue on unperturbed.
The most obvious quote in this chapter would have to be: "'Four of them were electrocuted'...'His nostrils turned to me in an interested way. 'I understand you're looking for a business gonnegtion.' The juxtaposition of these two remarks was startling" (75). This quote really shows the effect of juxtaposition of the reader/hearer. The the speaker, combining electrocution with business seems natural, but we are left thinking what the hell? just as Nick did in this scenario. As such, it is clear that juxtaposition effectively works to highlight given passages or events.
ReplyDeleteGreg: "straight as an arrow" ...(har har)
ReplyDeleteHey, that's my joke.
ReplyDeleteI'll post in a bit once I finish some other stuff.
Hey! Stop dissing me and Brooke's question!
ReplyDeleteWould it be me and Brooke or Brooke and I?
ReplyDeleteAnd Kaare, it has been stolen. Te Robó.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the short question, I am quite grateful. I do believe, however, that this question is very interesting as it addresses a literary function that really requires a second look towards the text to figure out. First off, Taylor you beat me to the punch with that last quote. I literally just found the page and was about to type it when I saw you had already shared. But I do agree with your analysis. I also think that it is important to consider with this quote how it not only leaves a "what the hell?" feeling with the reader, but also makes them wary of how unpredictable the story has potential to be. It keeps them on their toes, and thus makes them more considerate ans appreciative of the story's juxtaposition as a whole. One example that I found was during Nick's conversation with Mr. Wolfshiem. They were talking about the good qualities of Gatsby when Mr. Wolfshiem suddenly stopped and said, "I see you're looking at my cuff buttons" (77). He explained that they were made out of human molars, to which Nick said, "That's a very interesting idea." Mr. W responded "Yeah...Yea, Gatsby's very careful about women" (77). This sudden, random change from a conversation about Gatsby to a brief conversation about molar cuff buttons and quickly back to Gatsby further contributed to the unpredictability of the book, but also made me really think about both of the ideas being mentioned. I wondered why anyone would have human molars on the cuffs of his coat and what that could possible resemble. I also thought more about Gatsby, and the line that said he is "very careful about women". What could that signify about his loneliness and relationships with others? It was because of this juxtaposition that I started to do some critical thinking about these ideas, and I think that overall that is the goal of juxtapositions - to make the reader think. One more place where I saw an effective use of juxtaposition was when Nick and Jordan had their conversation at the end of the chapter, "'He doesn't know very much about Tom, though he said he's read a Chicago paper for years just on the chance of catching a glimpse of Daisy's name.' It was dark now and as we dipped under a little bridge I put my arm around Jordan;s golden shoulder and drew he toward me and asked her to dinner" (84). While this is somewhat subtle, I try to put myself into the conversation, and such a sudden change of discussion made me not only wonder about future tensions between Gatsby and Tom but also the romantic future of Nick and Jordan. Again juxtaposition made question what could end up being important aspects of the story.
ReplyDeleteJust a couple thoughts on the chapter as a whole. Now that we know Gatsby's true motives, does he actually like Nick as a person or is he simply using him for his own selfish wishes? Now I realize that when he trembled and reached his arms out back in chapter 1, he was longing to escape, but not from his home, rather from his loneliness and towards his love Daisy.
To close, any thoughts on the quote on the last page in the chapter? "There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy and the tired" (85). I can feel symbolism, but I am not quite sure of what it is.
Greg good point about Gatsby and the wives.. I was going to say that. Anyways i found other examples i can use. The description of Daisy on the day before her wedding day, holding the letter and as Jordan describes, "...as drunk as a monkey" (81), compared to the always sober Daisy the people of Chicago know shows great contrast and is definitely purposely illuminated. "Perhaps because she doesn't drink. It's a great advantage not to drink among hard drinking people. You can hold your tongue and, moreover, you can time any little irregularity of you own so that everybody else is so blind hat hey don't see or care" (82). Jordan addresses this lightly, but I felt a slight humor behind her mentioning the Daisy who doesn't drink immediately after she tells Nick how she got completely, for lack of a better word, "wasted". She tells of how she has the advantage of never having the chance to act unusual and perhaps embarrassing in front of others, when the previous story she told is exactly that, Daisy acting in an unusual and alarming way because of drinking too much.
ReplyDeleteGreg that was an interesting interpretation of that quote, what caught my eye about it was the juxtaposition/ contrast of the words "purposeless splendor” (83). It's peculiar because they have conflicting meanings and yet are placed side by side. Throughout the chapter, Fitzgerald juxtaposes words on a couple occasions that have drastically different definitions, at first it seemed rather odd to me why he would place them side by side. "purposeless splendor" is one, and another one I caught was "[Mr. Wolfshiem] forgetting the more sentimental atmosphere of the old Metropole, began to eat with ferocious delicacy" (75). I think in both these cases, the odd juxtaposition of the words contributes to character development. I thought the juxtaposition of "Purposeless splendor" was particularly important in terms of the way that juxtaposition applies to Gatsby's character. In describing Gatsby, (relating to last night's blog) again the quote contributes to the many different, contrasting things that we know (or think we know) or have heard through gossip/imagery/setting etc. about Gatsby's character so far. The word "purposelessness" sort of goes with the questions of the mysteriousness of Gatsby's character: How did Gatsby get his money (which, we may or may not have learned the truth about this chapter), who is he, why does (what's the purpose) he have all these amazing parties if he has such a laid back "modest" demeanor (addressing Nick as "old sport" all the time)? Which, that last question, is answered immediately before this quote is said: "Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay" (83).
ReplyDeleteThe definition of "splendor", on the other hand is "brilliant or gorgeous appearance", "magnificence", "an instance or display of imposing pomp or grandeur", "glory; brilliant distinction". Obviously, magnificence and brilliance and gorgeousness are not generally classified as "purposeless". This side of the juxtaposition also describes Gatsby's character: his "brilliance" of his glamorous parties (the bookshelves, the setting of his house) he hosts, all his connections (get Philadelphia on the line)-obviously he has a high social status/ important and significant job- and also the fact that Gatsby has this notorious reputation, everyone knows who he is (despite not personally knowing him) and everyone loves talking about him. I interpreted "purposeless splendor", only one juxtaposition, as deliberate by Fitzgerald, to depict the two contrasting sides (we've seen so far) of Gatsby's character.
Hahah Fineee Taylor!!! Stop dissing the question that Brooke and I
ReplyDelete(eh hem, brilliantly) posed last night.
I also liked Greg's example about Gatsby and the comment about how he would "never so much as look at a friends wife."(77) This quote shows the view that Gatsby's acquaintances or "friends" have about him. Mr. Wolfshiem has this idealic view of Gatsby that is flawless, but also false. The fact that he says this, and then directly afterward, only two pages later, the reader must abruptly shift gears and switch to Nick's encounter with Jordan Baker. In this scene, Jordan tells Nick of Gatsby's wish for him to invite Daisy to his home so that he can see her, and she can see his house. It is evident that Daisy is married, and so clearly Gatsby wishes and hopes to do more than just looking at another mans wife...It seems to be suggested that he wants to see her, and talk to her and reconnect wiht her.
ReplyDeleteThe effect that Fitzgerald's choice to place these two contrasting ideas next to each other has is that it shows somewhat of a hypocrisy in Gatsby's character. As we talked about in class today, hypocrisy is a major theme in the novel and i think this example clearly shows that. Obviously the image that Gatsby has portrayed to his friends, such as Mr. Wolfshiem, has been one of respect towards married women and their husbands. However, this image that he has so apparently put out to the general people who "know him" is completely contradicted by his wish to see Daisy. This shows the hypocrisy in Gatsby's character.
Also, i found it interesting that Gatsby told Jordan Baker of his wish randomly at his party. Previously having no encounter with the woman, and not even necessarily knowing who she was precisely, Gatsby confided in her with his secret wish and trusted her to talk to Nick for him. Why is it that Gatsby could not talk to Nick himself when the two of them had become closer that night, or even after that when the two spent several moments together here and there over the next few days. Gatsby went through the great measure of even taking Nick to lunch in New York...why is this? Why could he not just ask Nick himself?
It seems to me that this juxtaposition of the ideas people have of Gatsby, are to show his internal hypocrisy. We also discussed self-image today and how that is a major theme of the novel. It seems that Gatsby is not comfortable with himself, and perhaps recognizes the even more obvious hypocrisy that would exist if he himself were to confront Nick about the situation.This is why he uses this woman, Jordan, a stranger to Gatsby, to confide in as sometimes it is easier to say what you truly mean to someone you dont know. Gatsby realizes that maybe Jordan won't tell anyone, or even if she did she wouldnt necessarily be believed in comparison to all of the other gossip about him. This shows Gatsby's insecurity,hypocrisy and knowledge of his self image. Just a thought.
Brooke and my, Taylor.
ReplyDeleteI hope no one is dissing Grace and Brooke's question. I loved it. I like this one, too.
Before I read beyond Taylor's grammatical correction that was in fact erroneous, I just have to say the phrase is "piqued my interest" not "peaked" and Greg, I think you are conflating the terms "conflict" and "tension"...? Be careful to keep these distinct. For English class purposes conflict has to do with the action of the story (internal or external) while tension involves two paradoxial elements being placed together. Nicole defined it quite well for us a few blogs ago.
Now, back to my reading. I have to respond to a few comments at a time or I get distracted (ahem... anxious).
Tomato Tomato, Potato Potato
ReplyDeleteThe question I'm going to ask is directed more toward those of you who have not yet responded... what do you think of Mr. Wolfsheim? Do you guys know about the "Black Sox Scandal?" Why does Fitzgerald chose to allude to this (this part of the novel always seemed irrelevant to me until I heard a theory that Dave Berenholtz (sp?) presented to his AP Lang & Comp class last year (citing sources!)
ReplyDeleteLuke, I like the way you used the blog to bring up something that feels important but is hard to pin down. I would say that for anyone who has not yet posted, responding to Luke rather than to the original question would be totally fine (look at the rubric and the entire responsiveness row)
Also--Grace, your addressing linguistic tension feeds really well into what we're doing in class tomorrow.
I think we should have our own 1920s day tomorrow and come in wearing absurd flapper outfits and blasting the songs we hear mention of from Gatsby's party. No bathing suits allowed.
That expression is hard to convey in text, Greg
ReplyDeleteKaare, I have been meaning to tell you for two weeks that your blog picture cracks me up every time.
ReplyDeleteWow...i just got a blog picture before i even saw that comment.
ReplyDeletehahaha i agree with Grace's last post. all of the posts cover what needs to be covered and it isn't important about the length, rather the responses we create as the rest of the classs
ReplyDeleteno offense but ur pic is creepin me out greg...
ReplyDeleteI, too, have a new picture.
ReplyDeleteBrook is this better?
ReplyDeleteBrooke*
ReplyDeleteGrace and Brooke I liked your question last night!!! (although it was super long, but regardless of that fact, it was still great).
ReplyDeleteIt seems like every aspect of this book juxtaposes with something else later on in a paragraph, sentence, or chapter. Fitzgerald is clearly trying to create some sort of image, or perhaps even, just to better demonstrate reality by including opposing ideas throughout his novel. I really liked this chapter, for numerous reasons; mostly because we finally learn some truth about Gatsby. And we know that it is true, because he has pictures to prove it, and (to be a little cheesy here) a picture is worth a thousand words...
Anyways, back to the question. Going off of what Luke definitely hit on, (and a few others I can't remember who specifically) when we meet Mr. Wolfsheim, he immediately appears to be an odd fellow, and continues to be more and more strange throughout the lunch, as mentioned in the above quote about the molars..not normal! In addition to this, he acts as though he knows Gatsby- but does ANYONE really know Gatsby? It seems that this is not the case. I think that Gatsby is purposefully lonely, because he is waiting for Daisy to come back into his life! She had tried to say goodbye to him before he left for the war, "packing her bag one winter night to go to New York and say goodbye to a soldier who was going overseas" (Fitz 80). Now, Gatsby has purposely purchased his home at that location so that he can be near Daisy.
She is the one he holds his arms wide open to when he is looking across the bay.
I didn't really bring up any new juxtapositions... but most of them have already been hit on so I don't want to repeat. However, I will point out the Gatsby calls Nick "old sport" and Nick calls Gatsby "Mr. Gatsby". There is a clear differentiation between classes there, and Nick seems to respect Gatsby more than Gatsby respects him. Is Gatsby "using" Nick?? Oh, and Anna, I agree with your point that Gatsby is a hypocrite.
One last thing, I wanted to include the quote about Daisy beng drunk before her wedding, because I think that it demonstrates a great example of the juxtaposition within a character in the novel. We know Daisy as an innocent wife of Tom, who just flits through life-- even her name is innocent. It's a white flower. Here, however, we see a side of her that is quite unexpected..
"'Take 'em downstairs and give 'em back...Tell 'em all Daisy's change her mine...' She began to cry- she cried and cried... She wouldn't let go of the letter" (81).
I guess I'll comment on Luke's question (I didn't have much else to add to the original blog post anyway):
ReplyDelete"To close, any thoughts on the quote on the last page in the chapter? "There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy and the tired" (85)."
First, I must establish that this phrase "began to beat in [Nick's] ears with a sort of heady excitement," (Fitzgerald, 84) and as such can be understood as a sort of mental, private philosophy that Nick stumbles upon spontaneously in a moment of passion.
Next, I'm going to delve into the less concrete aspects of the quote. The first thing that came into mind when I read this quote was the inscription on the Statue of Liberty: "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me.I lift my lamp beside the golden door."
I'm not entirely sure why I am so suddenly reminded of this poem, but it seems relevant mostly due to the idea that there are often two opposing parties in life: the hard-working laborers that complain to be trampled upon by the world and the successful rich who believe that the world revolves entirely in their favor. In the case of The Great Gatsby, we see the first group represented as the "pursued" and the "tired" and the second group described as the "pursuing" and the "tired".
This connection in turn lends itself to both a tension in the story between societal classes and an emphasis on the American Dream.
Going off of T.P's idea of these abrupt shifts in setting and dialogues, I also noticed the random information thrown about in the dialogue between Nick and Mr. Wolfsheim, when Gatsby has to take a call. it seems as though Mr. Wolfsheim is speaking of very random events, in order to 'convince' Nick to follow his impressions/opinions of Gatsby rather than the gossip impression of Gatsby during the party.
ReplyDelete"I made pleasure of his acquaintance just after the war" (Fitzgerald 72)
"finest specimens of human molars..." (Fitzgerald 72)
"Yeah, Gatsby's very careful about women. He would never so much as look at a friend's wife" (Fitzgerald 72).
This entire page is written in order to juxtapose Mr. Wolfsheim's opinions and impressions of his dear friend Gatsby. However in trying to compare these opinions, his conversations, seems to almost not make sense, because of his randomness thinking. Mr. Wolfsheim's impression does in fact have an impact on both the readers and Nick as a character, because he shows Gatsby's favorable characteristics. Not to mention, Wolfsheim is also showing the well-roundedness of Gatsby as a person and a friend.
I feel that a lot of Fitzgerald's details and rhetoric are used to further enhance our perception of the characters in the novel.
ReplyDeleteOne such instant I want to recognize is at the beginning of the chapter, when Nick goes on and on with that long list of people who have attended the Gatsby residence during the summer. Why does Nick care so much about these people? One interesting way to look at this is how the short summaries of the characters are mixed with these sarcastic, almost funny statements about the faults of some of them, like how Ripley Snell was "so drunk out" on the gravel that Mrs. Ulysses Swett "ran over his right hand" with her car, or how Henry L. Palmetto committed suicide by "jumping in front of a subway train" at Times Square (Fitz 66-67). These peculiar observations of Nick's that Fitzgerald feels the need to point out seem to contribute to Nick's growing criticism of those around him. It's already been established in the last chapter that Nick is a lonely man, and perhaps his disdain over being so lonely is what's causing him to develop this continuouis critique of those around him. The closing paragraph of the chapter takes this idea further. As the car that Nick and the others are in drives through New York, Nick describes the scenery in an interesting way, saying that they passed "a barrier of dark trees" as well as the "facade" of Fifty-ninth Street (Fitz 85). Describing this area of New York as a concealment of something else really hints at Nick's thought process and how he views what's around him. It seems like he really possesses a seemingly negative view of the environment around him, and he doesn't stop criticizing it.
One interesting use of repetition I've noticed is how Gatsby constantly calls Nick "old sport" whenever he's around (Fitz 64-65). It feels like there's almost a child-like connotation in this Gatsby's establishment of Nick's character, although it doesn't appear to be disrespectful in any way. The fact that Gatsby always addresses Nick in this way even though the two hardly know each other shows that Gatsby has a high level of respect for Nick and has taken quite a liking to him; this intimacy with Nick that he has doesn't seem to be apparent with any other character in the novel. I feel that Gatsby's wanted involvement with Nick is something that we should really focus on as we read the book, and that it'll open up a huge window on Gatsby's character, since he's still so mysterious.
One last thing, in relation to where Gatsby got his money, although he says that he inherited it, at the beginning of the chapter, a group of ladies say, "He's a bootlegger" (65). This suggests that Gatsby is selling alcohol...which would explain why he has so much of it...and ho he has so much money (because it was illegal at that time, so you would make a killer profit by selling it). I could be totally wrong though.
ReplyDeleteGREG. I LIKE IT BETTER. U HAVE MY APPROVAL :)
ReplyDeleteAlso, the question last night was in no way hard to understand, and I think the reason why a lot of you complained about is because it was just longer than the previous questions, which seems odd for a class that has to read a lot anyway.
ReplyDeleteP.S.
ReplyDelete1) Taylor, "Te Robó" means "he stole you"
2) Greg, I believe your "Tomato" expression requires the utilization of accent marks
3) Kaare, you need a new blog picture about the Great Gatsby, no?
4) I approve of Luke's picture
5) And Greg's
6) My own comment just reminded me of something - does anyone listen to Rush?
I'm going to respond to Luke's question, about the quote, "There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy and the tired" (85). Fitzgerald could possibly be classifying all the characters that arise in this book into theses four categories. For example, Gastby is the "pursuing," trying to win Daisy's love...Daisy is being "pursued" by Gatsby, whether she realizes it or not. The pursuing show great determination to achieve their goal, and it seems as though they will never stop until they reach it. The pursued could be frightened, perhaps, or alarmed that they are such a great focus in someone else's life, and I feel like they may not know the best way to handle the situation. The tired are people who do not seem to care or have a specific goal in life, who dont entirely understand the concept of hope, or trust, and choose not to raise the bar for their own success. The busy are people who are so consumed in their jobs or other activities that they just dont have time to set and achieve a goal to pursue in thier life. The busy prioritize based on the ways they will become most successful, whether that means filling up their schedule with work or extracurricular activities so they can enjoy "the fruits of their labors."
ReplyDeleteI think everyone in this book can somehow fit in to one (or more) of these categories, and I think its Nick's attempt (as well as Fitzgerald) to make the characters as universal as possible.
George, I just changed my picture before reading your post. You read my mind.
ReplyDeleteI agree that we are made well aware of the insecurity, hypocrisy and awareness of Gatsby’s self image in chapter 4. We see that he is aware of the gossip circulating him. He attempts to modify his image to Nick, by telling the truth. “So he was aware of the bizarre accusations that flavored conversation in the halls. ‘I’ll tell you God’s truth…I am the son of some wealthy people in the middle-west... I was brought up in America and educated at Oxford because all my ancestors had been educated at Oxford because all my ancestors have been educated there for many years” (Fitzgerald 69). Following this quote, we see Nick’s skepticism of this statement. “He looked at me sideways- and I knew why Jordan Baker had believed he was lying. He hurried the phrase ‘educated at Oxford’ or swallowed it or choked on it as it had bothered him before” (69). We cannot really tell whether he is telling the truth or not, and what exactly would he have to conceal if he weren’t telling the truth? It also makes us question the motives of Gatsby because he had earlier stated that he didn’t want Nick to get the wrong idea of him from the stories he heard. These juxtapositions add skepticism to the motives and overall character of Gatsby.
ReplyDeleteAlso, when Gatsby claims that he is telling the truth, this reminded me of how in the beginning of the novel Nick claims that he never judges other people. The fact that a person has to claim something about themselves to others implies they are insecure and are trying to convince others and themselves that this statement is true. In this chapter, we also see a quick and drastic change in attitude of Nick towards Gatsby. He once felt privileged to make his acquaintance, and now, he claims he is more “annoyed than interested” by the incessant information Gatsby is feeding him. (72).
Still, there are juxtapositions of views of Gatsby’s character, which emphasize the very unstable view people obtain of him. Mr. Wolfshiem believes he is a man of ‘fine breeding’. “‘There’s the kind of man you’d like to take home and introduce to your mother and sister’” (76-77).
In class we talked about how the mystery of Gatsby is what draws people in, and he maintains this mysteriousness to keep him from being lonely. However, Nick seems to be drawn away by the incompleteness of his answers. “‘I don’t like mysteries…and I don’t understand why you won’t come out frankly and tell me what you want…’” (76). The juxtapositions of contrasting opinions of Gatsby establish that he is an extremely complex person with questionable motives.
What is wrong with you guys tonight?! I'll take the blame for mentioning the elevator scene 2 days in a row.
ReplyDeleteGreg--I think you should have a photograph of Byron. The one of Bush makes me uneasy. For many reasons.
Kaare--great post.
Not erroneous Parrish, as it was a question to provoke self reflection which led to their erroneous correction of a perceived fault.
ReplyDeleteAlso to add, there is a character shift, during the conversation between Gatsby and Nick about Mr. Wolfsheim. After leaving the conversation, Wolfsheim is observed,
ReplyDelete"as he shook hands and turned away his tragic nose was trembling...'he becomes very sentimental sometimes'" (Fitzgerald 73). Nick soon finds out that Wolfsheim fixed the World's Series in 1919. However, being a gambler, it is important to have a 'poker face' and to somewhat hide emotion from others to see. In the contrary, during this scene, Wolfsheim is seen nearly crying. This juxtaposition between his profession and his personality shows that Wolfsheim as a character is unassuming and initial impressions should not be definite opinions.
Ms. Parrish, you have to remember that this is on the internet. As serious as we may try to be, the blog is still prone to 20% shenanigans.
ReplyDeleteSomeone (LUKE) who likes baseball, tell the class about the Black Sox Scandal
ReplyDeleteKaare, what emotion is that face supposed to suggest? Fear? A yawn? Horror? Awe at the beauty of language?
Astonishment, surprise, shock, the realization of the elevator scene, etc.
ReplyDeleteI believe the Black Sox scandal was about 8 men who were kicked out of baseball for betting against their own team during the world series and intentionally trying to throw the games so that they would lose. They made a movie about it called "8 Men Out". We should watch it Ms. Parrish Charlie Sheen is in it.
ReplyDeleteNice try, Luke, but thank you for the explanation.
ReplyDeleteThink about why Fitzgerald would allude to this incident in which the hearts of baseball fans were broken (I didn't bring my book home but he says something to that effect in ch 4) by a corrupt system/greedy men who threw the game in exchange for monetary rewards.
When I typed in "thug life" on Google a picture came up with "Byron" in the caption...so it must be legit.
ReplyDelete