Outline Paper #1
Dr. Masters
1 February 2007
I. Introduction
This paper will examine the connection between the architecture/houses of Phillip in Scott Bradfield's The History of Luminous Motion and Gatsby in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.
2: Big idea about how the architecture in both texts represents cultural constructs of the "American Dream" as a sort of hyper-reality or imitation. However, both characters react to their environs differently; Phillip fights it and Gatsby embraces it, both, however, end up with a loss of innocence, a disconnection, in both literal and figurative death
II. Architecture as the American Dream
I want to begin by establishing that in both texts the house is representational of the American Dream as defined by consumer culture
Contrast two passages: M of N #11 (Dad's body as house); 5 (Gatsby’s Pulpless oranges)
Do something with all the lawn imagery (Phillip picturing Dad as lawn, note 7, Gatsby wanting to cut/present Nick's lawn, note #2
This may end up needing to be two paragraphs, one on Dad’s house and lawn and one on Gatsby’s.
III. Architecture as imitation
Once I establish that both Bradfield and Fitzgerald satirize the American Dream, I can then look at how the house, or the American dream is an imitation
Gatsby's first introduces his house a "factual imitation" (M of N #8)
Owl-eyed man sees Gatsby's books (#3)
Description of Pedro's house, idealized (#12)
Mom's description of culture as a house, not imprisonment (#7)
IV. Phillip and Gatsby as coming-of-age
Following up their architecture, their culture is imitation, a simulation we can examine their reactions; but first, must prove that both characters are coming-of-age and possess a kind of innocence (M of N #1a-c)
Phillip's motion, language as a sort of dream-like fantasy (13)
Gatsby's dream as a young man (9b, c, f)
V. Phillip's reactions to architecture
Now I can explore their divergent reactions to the cultural constructs, beginning with Phillip who lives, but his dream, his imitation of the imitation dies
Phillip cannot find the "frame" for his sentences, loss of words=loss of power=loss of innocence (17)
Phillip burgles homes (9)
Men as Phillip's construction, his manhood threatening (#6.5)
Final "Death"—moving into Father's house (11)
VI. Gatsby's reactions to architecture
Gatsby, however, doesn't fight against the dream, instead he wills himself to fully embody it only to lose it through his mistaken death
Gatsby takes Daisy to see his house (5e, 1b)—juvenile wish fulfillment
Gatsby's tragic flaw; his belief that he can recreate the past (like Phillip's) (5g)
Final Death—Father grasps final image of son's house; the immortality of imitation? (5i)
VII. Conclusion