F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'The Great Gatsby'

1290 Words6 Pages

4 Written Task II Outline This written task two is on part three: literature, a critical study. The question chosen is if the text had been written in a different time or place or language or for a different audience, how and why might it differ? The selected text for this question is The Great Gatsby; the option of place will be applied. ?The analysis will determine how and why the setting of The Great Gatsby affects the plot and themes. Key Point One: New York is a large and busy city, and though this is not the precise setting of the majority of the story, this setting has a great impact on the novel because it adds to the theme of appearances; living in/near such a world city, one has a stronger desire and need to appear well-off and …show more content…

Gatsby?s mansion was an important part of the story as well. It was a party venue intended to attract Daisy?s attention where invitations were unnecessary, meaning she could come anytime. The extravagance allowed him to show Daisy he could provide for her. The location next to Nick?s home meant Gatsby had an ?in? with Daisy, as Nick was her cousin, and the positioning of the mansion meant that Gatsby could see the ?green light? at Daisy?s home. These were all key elements of the plot. In fact, ?Gatsby bought the house so that Daisy would be just across the bay? (Fitzgerald 78). Although there is a possibility of a similar situation existing in Minnesota it is highly unlikely to say the least that each of those factors would be met in Nick?s hometown, which means the entire story would be altered. If it were in Minnesota, meeting Nick and impressing Daisy and keeping an eye on her and such would need to be accomplished through different methods, if it were even possible at all. Furthermore, Minnesota did have an upper class ? Nick is an example, for his family was fairly well-off ? but their upper class was not quite as large, bizarre, or diverse as the upper class in New York that attended Gatsby?s parties. This is an indication that if the story had been set in Minnesota, the plot would not have included Gatsby?s parties because he would have known he could not attract Daisy the way he thought he could in New York. This would mean that Jordan and Nick most likely would not have met Gatsby and then the entire rest of the story would not exist if it had been set in