Essay Introduction Exercise

Part A) 

1) Once finished review the following page and expand your essay introduction outline: http://lklivingston.tripod.com/essay/intro.html

2) Create a list of criteria for evaluating essay introductions

3) Post both of these to your blog

Part B)

The following is an essay example without an introduction.  Your task will be to read the essay and write an introduction paragraph for it.  This should be posted to your blog.

Remember a conclusion is very similar to an introduction...

Resources I suggest you review:

A very basic sample essay.

Thesis statement help: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/545/1/

                                    http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/thesis_statement.shtml

1st supporting paragraph:

     The most obvious evidence of Fitzgerald’s opinion is the immorality demonstrated by characters ‘living the dream’. Tom, Daisy, and Jordan, who are all very wealthy, live their lives with regard for nothing but their own pleasure and well being. In chapter three, Fitzgerald first hints at Jordan’s careless lifestyle when in a conversation with Nick she defends her poor driving: “[Everyone]’ll keep out of my way, it takes two to make an accident.” (p.63). Jordan’s attitude is very selfish; she avoids responsibility for her actions by placing accountability on the world around her for not accommodating her carelessness. This carelessness is Fitzgerald’s criticism of the selfishness in American upper class, those who are ‘living the dream’, particularly their lack of empathy for everyone else. The ash heaps described in chapter two, one of the most prominent symbols of the novel, represent just that: the ethical wasteland caused by the selfish upper class, and their complete lack of empathy for those less fortunate. The immorality of the characters however, stretches far beyond their careless actions, a notably revisited folly of those in the novel who are ‘living the dream’ is the lack of monogamy, and outright disrespect for women demonstrated by Tom Buchanan. On page eighty-two Jordan explains that Tom cheated on Daisy the night of their honeymoon; an act which is immoral by near anyone’s standards. Furthermore, on page forty-one, Tom violently attacks his mistress, Myrtle Wilson, breaking her nose. Another trait that is shared by most upper class characters is dishonesty. On page sixty-three Nick clearly describes Jordan as “incurably dishonest”, and towards the end of the story the Buchanans allow Gatsby to be killed for a murder that Daisy committed! All of these immoral acts and virtues paint a bitter image of the American dream, because the characters’ actions are not in spite of their money, but seemingly because of it. Near the end of the book, Nick says the following:

I saw that what [Tom] had done was, to him, entirely justified. It was all very careless and confused. They were careless people, Tom and Daisy —they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money (pp.187-188).

This passage suggests that, in Fitzgerald’s eyes, the immorality of the wealthy can, at least in part, be attributed to the fact that their money can protect them. The central factor of the American dream is wealth, and based on the actions of wealthy characters in The Great Gatsby it is apparent that Fitzgerald believes that wealth can often lead to immorality.

Another aspect of the American dream that Fitzgerald criticizes in Gatsby is its negative effect even on men of good moral stature, and he does this with the character of Gatsby himself. When Fitzgerald reveals Gatsby’s past, the reader learns that Gatsby, or Gatz, was a man from modest roots who sought out to become the best he could be, and worked very hard to achieve success (p.104). In chapter nine while Nick is going through some of Gatsby’s belongings, he comes across this schedule, which is a testament to the strict regimen Gatsby designed to climb the social ladder:

Rise from bed ......................................................6.00 A.M.

Dumbbell exercise and wall-scaling ……...6.15-6.30 "

Study electricity, etc....................................7.15-8.15 "

Work............................................................8.30-4.30 P.M.

Baseball and sports......................................4.30-5.00 "

Practice elocution, poise and how to

attain it …………………………….…. 5.00-6.00 "

Study needed inventions..............................7.00-9.00 "

GENERAL RESOLVES

No wasting time at Shafters or {a name, indecipherable}

No more smokeing or chewing

Bath every other day

Read one improving book or magazine per week

Save $5.00 {crossed out} $3.00 per week

Be better to parents (pp.181-182).

This schedule shows that Gatsby was committed to achieving success through hard, honest work. This fact is also highlighted when Nick and Jordan run into the owl eyed man, who points out that all the books in Gatsby’s library are real: “I thought they’d be a nice durable cardboard.” He says “Matter of fact they’re absolutely real.” (p.50). The fact that the books are real shows that Gatsby is not just some phoney, that he probably read a lot of the books, and that they’re not simply for show. Unfortunately, this honest hard-working Gatsby is killed, on “One autumn night” in 1917 (p.117). When Gatsby meets Daisy, he pretends to be wealthy, when in fact he is very poor; he does this because Daisy and her family want a man who has money, they want Daisy to live the dream. Two years later, when Gatsby returns from war, he does not come home, because he does not have enough money to satisfy Daisy, or her family; a metaphorical barrier separates the two, simply because they’re from different social strata, because Gatsby and Daisy together, cannot live the American dream. So Gatsby’s solution is to get rich quick: he abandons his years of hard, honest work, and succumbs to a career of bootlegging. It was the pressure and high materialistic standards of the American dream that twisted Gatsby, an honest, hard-working man, into a common criminal; Fitzgerald’s portrayal of this transformation is an intense criticism of that ‘dream’.

     The unifying theme which ties this satire of the American dream together however, is the glaring difference between appearance and reality. For most of the characters in the novel, the illusion of happiness is far more important than happiness itself. This is a harsh criticism of the dream’s focus on looking prosperous. A terrific example of this is Myrtle Wilson. In chapter two, when Myrtle spends time with Tom, she talks to and about people as if she were worth more than they are, she acts as though she were a stereotypically snobby millionaire, letting “four taxicabs drive away before [selecting] a new one, lavender-colored with gray upholstery” (p.31), and referring to the hotel staff as “These people” (p.36) in a condescending manor. In addition, Tom buys Myrtle goods and clothing, to make her feel wealthier. Although she is poor, Myrtle, by emulating the upper class, feels rich, and as though she were living the dream. However, the fact that all Myrtle needs to do in order to live the dream is look like she’s doing so, is a criticism in itself; the American dream is nothing but a show, a grand materialistic circus, which requires no inner fulfillment whatsoever. This is further alluded to when Fitzgerald refers to Myrtle’s clothing as a “costume” on page thirty-five. Another great example of projected happiness in the novel is Daisy and Tom’s child. The one time that Fitzgerald reveals Pammy in the novel there is very little chemistry between her and her parents, and their only dialogue is simple meaningless baby-talk (p.123). In addition, her entrance and exit seems very disciplined and quiet, as though she were a toy that is brought out when guests arrive to show off for a moment, only to be tucked back neatly away. The emotionless atmosphere that Fitzgerald creates between Pammy and her family suggests that perhaps Daisy and Tom only had the child because ‘that’s what people are doing nowadays’. The American dream is to look happy, and all happy couples have children, so for this reason Daisy and Tom had a child; the criticism is that that’s the only reason. Without a doubt however, the character who puts on the biggest show is Gatsby himself. Every chance that Gatsby gets, he puts his money on display for Daisy to see, whether it be wearing a gold and silver suit, or taking her on a tour of his extravagant household (p.89). The peculiar thing about Gatsby however, is that he is, as mentioned earlier, a morally sound person at heart. Fitzgerald implicates Gatsby’s sincerity on page fifty-two, when Nick describes Gatsby’s incredibly reassuring smile; such a characteristic cannot be faked. Even though Gatsby is, unlike the Buchanans or Jordan, a good person, he still feels he needs to appear incredibly materialistic in order to be living the dream, and impress Daisy. This focus on appearance and material alone is a major aspect of the American dream, and most of the characters that Fitzgerald has created in Gatsby hold this very narrow-minded world view.

     In mainstream society, a person’s success is measured in units of dollars; when Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby in the 1920’s things were no different. The American dream, the capitalist dream, is to be rich, have lots of expensive toys, and flaunt the wealth for everyone to see. Unlike the pursuit of goals such as love and happiness however, the accumulation of wealth is insatiable; there is no endpoint to ‘becoming rich’, there is always more money to be made. It is this unquenchable thirst that decays human morality at the core, and Fitzgerald recognized this. When F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby he was criticizing how the American dream, the relentless pursuit of wealth, corrupts and destroys society; the novel is as, if not more, relevant today, than it was in 1925.