MAJOR LITERARY WORKS
The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby takes place in the 1920's, a time when people weren't consumed by financial stress, but rather filled with optimism for their futures. This is perhaps the reason why I enjoyed the novel so much. After studying WWI, it was nice to learn about a time when people were excited about life. Rather than reading page after page about how hard it was to find work or how little families were able to eat, The Great Gatsby is filled with greed, betrayal, romance, hate, hope, despair and so much more. It seems as though each page contains a new twist in the story line that grabs attention and keeps the reader searching for answers. From the very start, a mystery was introduced. . . "Who exactly is Gatsby?" He was presented as just this really awesome guy that everyone seemed to want to know, but nobody really did know. This mystery man is what caught my attention and had me wanting more information. It seems that once you know the answer to your question, Fitzgerald introduces a new mystery. I never expected to enjoy a reading assignment as much as I did this one. Perhaps because it is very similar to a modern day soap opera, but is written in a way that made me think about modern values. For example, "Is it possible to recapture a lost love?", "Are material objects the key to happiness?", "Are the wealthy truly a higher class?". The author created an elaborate and interesting story, while still incorporating themes from the 20's and relevant issues.
All My Sons by Arthur Miller
All My Sons is most definitely my favorite of the plays that we have read so far. It is my opinion that the author, Arthur Miller, wanted his readers to question their thoughts about what is right and what is wrong and where they draw the line. A woman in the play, Ann, was faced with an unusual situation as her father was convicted of murder. She believed that murder was unforgivable and from then on she never visited her father. While reading All My Sons, I felt as if I were a character in the play. Miller shows each perspective and I found myself rooting for the characters. I also found myself thinking about what I would do if I were in Ann's position. It was really interesting to hear my classmates opinions as well. To my surprise there was a lot of controversy over where the line between right and wrong should be drawn. Our debates were very similar to those in the play. I still don't know exactly where I stand on this issue, but the All My Sons really got me thinking about perspective and how one's perspective can alter their opinion.