The Great Gatsby - In your opinion how effective is Fitzgerald in evoking the 'ironies and disorders' and the 'wonderful glow' of the Twenties?

Review of essay

Rating: 5 star(s)

Response to the question

Response to Question
This question needs candidates to focus on areas of the text that could come under the 'ironies and disorders' and 'wonderful glow' of the period in which the novel is set, and in doing so, contrast the ways in which Fitzgerald portrays the wealthy characters of the novel as being careless, hedonistic and at the same time incredibly glamorous. The candidate is very successful in this, making reference to the text and linking it to the words in the question, and also to other themes in the novel, such as the American Dream. Repeating the words in the question is a good habit to get into, because it helps you to stay on track, and shows the examiner you're aware of what you need to be discussing.

Level of analysis

Level of Analysis
The candidate's use of quotes in this essay is very good. The candidate demonstrates appropriate analysis of quotations, because they do not simply place quotes into their essay, but they are, from time to time, examined in detail (the paragraph on the "death car" is a good example). This is a key skill in order to reach the top grades, and candidates should be aware that examiners need to see evidence of deeper analysis of the text, but it isn't needed at every opportunity, and this essay shows this well.

The inclusion of comments and criticisms of the text in the essay (examples are in the second paragraph and conclusion) shows research of critical perspectives on the novel has taken place, suggesting this is a strong and committed candidate. The second paragraph is a particularly good example of this, because Trilling's comment is quoted and then its relevance to the book is explained and clear links are made. However, at GCSE (and most, if not all of an A Level course, depending on exam board) this is not necessary and is not a requirement for gaining top grades. It is impressive and if it is reasonable to include it, then candidates should consider this, but if they choose not to do this then it will not affect their performance.

Quality of writing

Quality of Writing
The quality of written communication is excellent. There are a few errors, but they generally extend only to missing apostrophes. Personally, I see the inclusion of page numbers after each quotation to be unnecessary, and I feel that they clutter up the essay. On two occasions (7th and 8th paragraphs) the candidate also places a quote on its own line, which is unnecessary and seems odd, particularly as this is only done with two quotes. The candidate also uses inverted commas instead of speech marks to quote the text. While this is a very minor mistake, it can create confusion when candidates want to write something in inverted commas that is not quoted from the text. However, I did this throughout my GCSEs and even into AS Level and was never corrected by teachers, so it really is nothing more than a stylistic issue, and should not be a cause for much concern.