How Fitzgerald Tells Story in Chpt.2

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Write some ways in which Fitzgerald tell the story in Chapter 1? There are various ways in which F. Scott Fitzgerald narrates the story in the first chapter; through narrative voice, point of view, scenes and places, time and sequence. Firstly, we can realise that the story is verbalised by the use of first person narration. The first character we learn about is Nick Carraway (narrator of the novel The Great Gatsby and a major character). As a first person narrator, Nick gives us the story through his own perspective; using sophisticated vocabulary (formal, literary terms). However Nick’s sentences can be challenging to read (grammatically complex) and creates obscurity for the reader; this gives us the impression Nick is a literary man, after all he is writing a book. First person narration creates a personal view for the reader because we gain an insight into the character’s thoughts and feelings. Furthermore, during this chapter, Fitzgerald does not use a focaliser; therefore we are only given one perspective from the narrator of the story, so far. We are given a recollection of certain experiences; for instance, when Nick says “after various delays I came east, permanently”, a sense of foreshadowing is created to engage the reader and also makes the reader curious, as to why Nick moved to the East and what caused him return to the Midwest? The narration is not neutral; he offers aspects of his character through the information provided, and in the ways he presents himself. Narration is used to help Nick understand the significance of events. Throughout the first chapter, the narrator gives us few details about himself and his background, along with some personal aspects (self analysis). Nick’s character is soon seen as an unreliable narrator, which is Fitzgerald’s characterisation of Nick. The first impression we are given from this primary character
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