IN PERSON: The centenary of "The Great Gatsby" seems an opportune time to speculate about why F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel continues to fascinate readers. Why has the short novel that contemporary reviewers dismissed as “painfully forced, “no more than a glorified anecdote” and “a dud” become a classroom staple, inspired numerous stage and film adaptations, and spawned an increasing number of books and articles? Looking for answers, we will consider the cultural changes and social dynamics of the 1920s embodied in “The Great Gatsby” that have unmistakable contemporary parallels. Much of the course will be devoted to close textual analysis of Fitzgerald's artistry and organization of his materials. We also will analyze selected film clips. Readers well acquainted with Fitzgerald and those who, like the novel's narrator, are new to the novel’s fictional terrain should come away with new clarity about why "The Great Gatsby" continues to endure in our country's literary landscape. | Facilitated discussion.
Max enrollment: 12.
Location: Judea Reform Congregation, 1933 W. Cornwallis Rd, Durham NC 27705
