1、 The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald (September 24, 1896 December 21, 1940)n An American author of novels and short stories. n His works are evocative of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. nHe is widely regarded as one of the twentieth centurys greatest writers and a member of the “Lost Genera

2、tion of the Twenties. ContextnThe Great Gatsby was written in the early 1920s the Great War was over and the American economy was booming. Fitzgerald, through the narrator voice, admired the new riches of the time, but on the same time, was uncomfortable with the materialism and lack of morality. De

3、spite the openness of the era, social classes stood strong, and they are the background of the novel. Fitzgerald, who had lost his first love due to social standing differences, separated Gatsby and Daisy on the same grounds. ContextplotnThe story begins in the summer of 1922 ,when the narrator, Nic

4、k Carraway, finds his new neighbor, Jay Gatsby, lives in a Gothic mansion and is renowned for his lavish lifestyle with parties.nNick finds out that Gatsby is Daisys (Nicks cousin) ex-boyfriend when he is a poor lieutenant in 1917. But Daisy gets married with Tom, a upper-class man. n. Then Gatsby b

5、ecomes very rich through running a bootlegging operation. He buys the mansion opposite of Daisys house and the lavish parties and his house is just to attract and impress Daisy. He has waited for her for 5 years!nWith the help of Nick, Gatsby meets Daisy, and wins her adoration.nGatsbys car is invol

6、ved in an accident where Myrtle, who has an affair with Daisys husband is run over and killed. nAlthough Daisy was driving the car, Gatsby covers for her and decides to take the blame.nMeanwhile Tom tells Myrtles husband George that that car belonged to Gatsby. Then George goes to Gatsbys home and k

7、ills him in his swimming pool, and then shoots himself.nThen Nick cant find Daisy. She goes to Europe with her husband! Gatsbys funeral is only attended by Nick and Gatsbys old father.n Finally, sick of the East and its empty values, Nick decides to move back to the Midwest.Nick Carraway (narrator)

8、man from the Midwest, a Yale graduate, a World War I veteran, and a resident of West Egg. He is Gatsbys next-door neighbor and a bonds salesman. He is an unreliable narrator because he lies frequently in the novel to himself and the readerCharacterJay Gatsby (originally James Gatz) a young, mysterio

9、us millionaire with shady business connections later revealed to be a bootlegger(走私者), originally from Minnesota. He is obsessed with Daisy Fay Buchanan, whom he had met when he was a stationed as a young officer in World War I. Based on bootlegger, and former officer in the Great War, Max Gerlach,

10、according to Some Sort of Epic Grandeur, Matthew J Bruccolis biography of F Scott FitzgeraldCharacterDaisy Buchanan ne Fayan attractive and effervescent（活潑的）, but shallow, young woman; Nicks second cousin, once removed; and the wife of Tom Buchanan. Daisy is believed to have been inspired by Fitzger

11、alds own youthful romances with Ginevra King and Zelda Sayre. Daisy once had a romantic relationship with Gatsby, before she married Tom. Therefore, her choice between Gatsby and Tom is one of the central conflicts in the novel. CharacterTom Buchanan millionaire who lives on East Egg, and Daisys hus

12、band. Buchanan has parallels with William Mitchell, the Chicagoan who married Ginevra King. Buchanan and Mitchell were both Chicagoans with an interest in polo. Like Ginevras father, whom Fitzgerald resented, Buchanan attended Yale and is a white supremacistCharacterThemesnThe rise and decline of Am

13、erican dream. Many critics had raised this question: Does Gatsby represent the American dream? He was born in a family with low status, but finally he became a millionaire. To some degree, he represented the success of Americans. ThemesnTom and Daisy stand for the upper class, but they move from one

14、 place to another with unease, they possess no morals, no obligation, no dream. Myrtle and her husband are the victims in this tragedy. Among these people who are rich ,wealthy, powerful and influential, they dont have many choices. nWealth may corrupt moralitySo we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.我們繼續(xù)奮力向前劃，逆水行舟，不停地