Speaker: The novel is told from Nick Carraway’s point of view. He just moved to West Egg and is getting familiar with his cousin being around, his neighbor, and his new city surroundings.
Purpose: Nick Carraway uses the first chapter to provide exposition into the novel. It gives the reader a glimpse into his character and his view on some of the other characters. The reader can tell that the novel is going to be entirely from Nick’s perspective and they get introduced to his take on things, including his cousin Daisy and her husband Tom and the area in which he lives.
Strategies: Nick is very descriptive and acknowledging of his surroundings. With meeting every character, he describes what they are like and their appearance. For example, when he first meets Miss Baker, he describes every single one of her motions/mannerisms: “She was extended full length at her end of the divan, completely motionless and with her chin raised a little as if she were balancing something on it which was quite likely to fall.” He also uses his memories to describe how characters like Tom are prone to behave: “Her husband, among various physical accomplishments, had been one of the most powerful ends that ever played football at New Haven…”. This establishes Nick’s ethos and shows that he is a very observant person. It prepares the reader for the rest of the novel letting them know that Nick is a trustworthy source.
Topic: The first chapter is the exposition into the novel where the reader meets Nick and receives a description of his life before he moved to his new cottage across from his cousin.
Rhetorical Situation: Carraway’s intention is to set the scene of the novel. He introduces characters, his surroundings, reasons why he moved to West Egg, and where he came from.
Audience: The person that is reading and analyzing “The Great Gatsby”.
Audience Needs: The audience needs to understand each character’s mannerisms and features to know how the story will develop. Characters add to the plot of a story and while they need the plot, it is important to understand why a characters acts the way they do. The reader also needs to understand that Nick Carraway is the narrator throughout the novel, so they are getting the story through his experiences and thinking.
Purpose: Nick Carraway uses the first chapter to provide exposition into the novel. It gives the reader a glimpse into his character and his view on some of the other characters. The reader can tell that the novel is going to be entirely from Nick’s perspective and they get introduced to his take on things, including his cousin Daisy and her husband Tom and the area in which he lives.
Strategies: Nick is very descriptive and acknowledging of his surroundings. With meeting every character, he describes what they are like and their appearance. For example, when he first meets Miss Baker, he describes every single one of her motions/mannerisms: “She was extended full length at her end of the divan, completely motionless and with her chin raised a little as if she were balancing something on it which was quite likely to fall.” He also uses his memories to describe how characters like Tom are prone to behave: “Her husband, among various physical accomplishments, had been one of the most powerful ends that ever played football at New Haven…”. This establishes Nick’s ethos and shows that he is a very observant person. It prepares the reader for the rest of the novel letting them know that Nick is a trustworthy source.
Topic: The first chapter is the exposition into the novel where the reader meets Nick and receives a description of his life before he moved to his new cottage across from his cousin.
Rhetorical Situation: Carraway’s intention is to set the scene of the novel. He introduces characters, his surroundings, reasons why he moved to West Egg, and where he came from.
Audience: The person that is reading and analyzing “The Great Gatsby”.
Audience Needs: The audience needs to understand each character’s mannerisms and features to know how the story will develop. Characters add to the plot of a story and while they need the plot, it is important to understand why a characters acts the way they do. The reader also needs to understand that Nick Carraway is the narrator throughout the novel, so they are getting the story through his experiences and thinking.