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Radio National: Is the Great Gatsby 'tilting at windmills'?

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Radio National: Is the Great Gatsby 'tilting at windmills'?

SUBJECTS:  English

YEARS:  9–10


Intertextuality is about the process of making connections, either consciously or subconsciously, and can shape the way we interpret a text.

In this audio clip, explore the intertextual link between two classic novels: 'The Great Gatsby' by F Scott Fitzgerald and 'Don Quixote' by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra.

This clip from 'Books and arts daily' on Radio National is one in a series of eight.

If you like this clip, listen to the full ABC RN documentary by clicking 'Download Audio' on this webpage.


Things to think about

  1. 1.What is the 'Holy Grail'? What types of stories typically involve quests for the Grail? What sorts of heroes do they feature? What has the idea of a Grail quest come to mean today? Research the novel 'Don Quixote', by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. Who is Don Quixote? What is his quest? Is he a typical hero? What are the central themes of the novel?
  2. 2.What does Scott Donaldson believe is the relationship between F Scott Fitzgerald and his characters Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby? Why does Nick Carraway come to admire Gatsby by the end of the novel? What was Gatsby's 'Grail quest'? Why does Jane Gleeson-White believe that Gatsby is 'the great romantic'? Note down the comparisons she makes between Gatsby and Don Quixote.
  3. 3.In what ways is Jay Gatsby like Don Quixote? Use a Venn diagram to show their similarities and differences. How does making this comparison help you understand Gatsby? Why might these characters be considered modern heroes? How do they differ from typical heroes of grail quests? Do you think audiences today would find Gatsby believable if he were more like such heroes?
  4. 4.Find out more about the Grail quest and the age of chivalry. Write your own version of a Grail quest story set in the modern world.


Acknowledgements

Produced by RN Books and Arts Daily.


Date of broadcast: 31 May 2013


Copyright

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