Rhetorical strategies:
· Symbol: “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter—tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther. . . . And then one fine morning— So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past” (180).
The symbolism of the green light affects the author’s style of writing by explaining to the reader the American dream of the 1920s. The green light symbolizes the American dream. Gatsby longs to achieve his dream. His dream is the pursuit of money and material wealth. In order to achieve this dream he has created a new identity for himself in order to fit in with all the other wealthy people in New York
· Imagery: “He had one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced, or seemed to face, the whole external world for an instant and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself” (48).
The use of sympathetic imagery used to describe Gatsby’s smile affects the author’s style of writing through the use of descriptive adjectives. This explains to the reader what Gatsby looks like. This kind imagery not only describes what Gatsby’s smile looks like, but it also characterizes what type of a person he is.
I enjoyed your analysis of rhetorical strategies in the novel. We used the same quote (the second one)! Unfortunately, I did not deeply analyze the quote as you did here, so I can't compare! Oh well. You seem to show a clear understanding of how these rhetorical strategies affect the text.
ReplyDeleteI would have to disagree with you on your first analysis, though. You explain that the green light symbolizes Gatsby's pursuit of money and material wealth; I do not think this is so. I believe the green light does indeed portray Gatsby's dream, but I think his dream is for Daisy to leave Tom for him. He is so in love with Daisy that he is willing to take the blame for her when she kills Myrtle. Yes, he tries to get her back by becoming incredibly wealthy, but above all else, he cares for nothing except her. As stated in the quote: "And then one fine morning--So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past". i believe this reflects Gatsby and his obsession with the past, and how his undying love for Daisy and his dream to have her to himself ultimately leads to his death.
All in all, you show a deep perceptive of rhetorical strategies and analyze them as well as connect them very successfully.