| AP Literature & Composition-Unit Eight |
||||||||||||||||||
| Modern to Post-Modernist Novels |
||||||||||||||||||
| Essential Questions: 1. In what ways is The Great Gatsby and Slaughterhouse Five autobiographical novels? Does the character of Nick or the character of Gatsby seem most like Fitzgerald? What other people or events mirror Fitzgerald’s life? And Billy Pilgrim and Kurt Vonnegut? 2. One of Fitzgerald’s strengths comes from his imagistic style. Vonnegut uses “clumps of images” or scenes as its main structure. How are these authors’ styles reflective of literature in/of their respective times? (modernism and post-modernism) 3. Compare and contrast the literary elements of The Great Gatsby and Slaughterhouse Five according to Freytag’s Pyramid. To what extent do the authors either follow or violate this principle and the impact the plot structure has on the overall meaning of their respective novel? 4. Fitzgerald and Vonnegut clearly draw parallels between geography, social values, and characters. How does this compare to the short fiction pieces we read by Faulkner and O’Connor in Unit 1? 5. The technique of a first-person narrator presents certain problems of objectivity and reliability for the reader. To what extent is Nick a reliable narrator, and is his evaluation of Gatsby ultimately just? To what extent is Billy Pilgrim reliable? Does Vonnegut’s assertion into the narration create intimacy with the audience or does it intrude? |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| Writing Process 1. Reader’s Response: Write an interpretation of the meaning of the new, real books on Nick’s library shelves. What book would you add to the library using techniques from presented artists? 3. Respond to images from Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso, Dali. What do these pieces make you feel and see? Is there a specific point of view presented in the art? How is literature like art? 4. Using modern poetry selections from Unit 7, especially works from the Harlem Renaissance, compare themes and styles with that of Fitzgerald. 5. Reader’s Response: How does Slaughterhouse-Five represent a modern or postmodern work of art? What similarities and/or differences does it have with other works of art of the time period? How does it differ from impressionistic works? Writing Focus: Explication, Analysis, or Compare & Contrast Essay |
||||||||||||||||||
| Tools |
||||||||||||||||||
| Author Focus |
||||||||||||||||||
| IMAGES Cugat, Francis. "The Great Gatsby." No date. On line Image. Painting.All Posters. 2008. 10 Aug. 2008 <http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/BOOK/BD021~The-Great-Gatsby-by-F-Scott-Fitzgerald-Posters.jpg>. "F. Scott Fitzgerald." No date. On line Image. Find a Grave. 1 Jan. 2001. 10 Aug. 2008 <s3.amazonaws.com/.../222/fitzgeraldfscotbio2.jpg>. "Kurt Vonnegut." No date. On line Image. Braniac. 2008. 10 Aug. 2008 <www.boston.com/.../ideas/brainiac/vonnegut.jpg>. "Slaughterhouse Five." No date. On line Image. "Banned Book Week." Marshall University.13 Sept. 2007. 10 Aug. 2008 <www.marshall.edu/.../images/slaughterhouse5.jpg>. |
||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated On: Aug 10, 2008 |
||||||||||||||||||
| Unit Vocabulary Reading Selections Writing Process Tools Author Focus |
| Unit Vocabulary |
| Unit Vocabulary |
| Concepts |
Terms |
| Modernism Post Modernism Fatalism Zeitgeist “Roaring 20s” Anti Hero Byronic Hero |
Cumulative from units 1-8 |
| Freytag's Pyramid |
| Listen to Count Basie |
| Listen to Johnny Dobbs |
| Listen to Louis Armstrong |
| "Strawberry Fields" YouTube |
| Gatsby Study Guide |
| Slaughterhouse Five Study Guide |
| Author Biography |
Author Links |
| F. Scott Fitzgerald |
|
| Kurt Vonnegut |