Title: The Great Gatsby
Author: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Year of publication: 1925
1. Type of literary work:
Novel
Play
Novella
Short Story
2. Genre of the novel*:
historical novel
war novel
regional novel
psychological novel
novel of adolescence
thriller
detective
science fiction novel
fantasy novel
tragedy
*more than one genre can be ticked
3. Setting of the story
What is (are) the place(s) of action:
Indications (where in the novel can you find evidence of the setting(s):
The whole story takes place in East Egg (page 61) and West Egg (page 97), that
are two suburbs of New York. Both suburbs are very wealthy. There is a
difference between the wealth of the East Egg and the wealth of the West Egg.
The people in the East Egg were born into their own wealth, while the people
of the West Egg had to work for their money.
, 4. Time
a. what is the time (period) of action:
Indications (where in the story can you find evidence of the time of
Action
The time of action is the summer of 1922 (page 61). This falls in the Roaring
Twenties. This is a period between World War One and the Great Depression.
In the Roaring Twenties, there was an enormous economic growth in America.
In the story are the characters also very wealthy. Characteristic of the Roaring
Twenties is a lot of partying and spending big money.
b. what is the timespan of the story (= how much time elapses between
the beginning and the end of the story:
Indications (where in the story can you find evidence of the timespan)
In the begin of the book Nick decides to learn bond trading in New York. This
is in June. In the end of the book (page 165) the funeral of Gatsby takes place.
So the timespan of the story is about four months.
c. how is the story told:
Chronologically
Chronologically with flashbacks
Chronologically with anticipations
Not chronologically
5. Point of view:
First person narrative
Third person narrative
Omniscient narrative (=alwetend verteller)
6. Characters
a. who is/are the main character(s) and give a brief description:
Nick Carraway, he is a young man. He moved to West Egg in New York to learn
about bond business.
b. who are the minor characters:
James Gatz, he has changed his name to Jay Gatsby. He is the neighbour of Nick
in West Egg. Nobody knows about his past and how he became so rich. He