The Great Gatsby and the American Identity

Unit Test

Ms. Logsdon’s English 11

Name______Date______

Read the passage below and choose the best answer to the following questions.

(1)And as I sat there brooding on the old, unknown world, I thought of Gatsby’s wonder when he first picked out the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock.(3) He had come a long way to this blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. (5) He did not know that it was already behind him, somewhere back in that vast obscurity beyond the city, where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night.

(6)Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter-tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther…and on one fine morning------

So we beat on, boats against the current borne back ceaselessly into the past. (pg. 180)

  1. What is the old, unknown world in line one?
  2. The world after 1985
  3. Europe
  4. America before the roaring 20’s
  5. Nick’s life before he met Gatsby
  6. None of the above
  1. What does the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock symbolize for Gatsby?
  2. The eyes of God
  3. Wealth
  4. Envy
  5. Purity
  6. His distant affair with Myrtle
  1. In line three, what is the significance of the color blue as a descriptor of Gatsby’s lawn?
  2. It represents the sadness Gatsby feels at having lost his dream.
  3. It represents the calm, blue ocean that borders his lawn.
  4. It represents the innocence of Jordan.
  5. It represents the deterioration of the middle class.
  6. It represents the jealousy of Tom.
  1. What is Gatsby’s dream, which is mentioned in line three?
  2. The dream of having a rich wife
  3. The dream of everlasting youth
  4. The dream of wealth
  5. The dream of being s superhero
  6. The American dream
  1. In lines four and five, it says that Gatsby didn’t know that his dream was already behind him. This implies that
  2. Gatsby never had a chance at life with Daisy.
  3. Gatsby reached his dream years ago.
  4. The American dream is unattainable.
  5. Nick will never do as well as Gatsby did.
  6. Meyer Wolfsheim stole Gatsby’s dream.
  1. In lines seven and eight, it says that the “future recedes before us”. What is the closest meaning of this phrase?
  2. We are close to the future.
  3. The future is very far away from us.
  4. The future is standing still, and we are gaining on it.
  5. The future is moving faster than we are, but we are not too far behind it.
  6. None of the above.
  1. Which American Modernist theme is best represented in this passage?
  2. Isolation
  3. Regret
  4. The dangers of technology
  5. An unwillingness to take responsibility for oneself
  6. None of the above

Read the passage below and choose the best answer to the following questions.

After the house, we were to see the grounds and the swimming pool, and the hydroplane and the mid-summer flowers—but outside Gatsby’s window it began to rain again, so we stood in a row looking at the corrugated surface of the Sound.

(8)“If it wasn’t for the mist we could see your home across the bay,” said Gatsby. “You always have a green light that burns all night at the end of your dock.”

Daisy put her arm through his abruptly, but he seemed absorbed in what he had just said. (9)Possibly it had occurred (10) him that the colossal significance of that light had now vanished forever. Compared to the great distance that had separated him from Daisy it had seemed very near to her, almost touching her. It had seemed as close as a star to the moon. Now it was again a green light on a dock. His count of enchanted objects had diminished by one.

  1. In the second paragraph, Gatsby mentions the green light to
  2. Nick
  3. Tom
  4. Jordan
  5. Daisy
  6. Myrtle
  1. From the notated sentence in paragraph three, one can infer that
  2. The symbolism of the green light had shifted or changed
  3. The green light went out
  4. Tom had discovered that Gatsby liked to look at the green light
  5. The green light symbolized caution for Gatsby
  6. Daisy purposely stood by the green light and waved across the bay at Gatsby
  1. In the last paragraph, Fitzgerald used a metaphor to describe how
  2. Daisy is beautiful as the moon
  3. Daisy was as unattainable as a heavenly body like a star or the moon.
  4. Daisy was close to Gatsby
  5. Daisy was far away from Tom
  6. Daisy was emotionally close to Gatsby, even though the years separated them.

11. The text says that Gatsby’s “list of enchanted objects had diminished by one”. The

word “diminished” in this context means

  1. made larger
  2. stayed the same
  3. made smaller
  4. made stranger
  5. none of the above

12. What are some of Gatsby’s other “enchanted objects”?

a. his car

b. his house

c. his clothes

d. his garden

e. all of the above

  1. In what way does this paragraph show Gatsby as a typical Modernist protagonist?
  2. He is showing that technology can be uncontrollable.
  3. He is rich beyond compare.
  4. He is isolated from other people.
  5. He is showing that mankind is better off in the natural world than in society.
  6. He is showing life as it really is.

Answer the following questions based on what you know about characterization in The Great Gatsby.

  1. What is the most likely reason Fitzgerald chose to reveal Gatsby’s true history in the final chapters of the book?
  2. To show that one person never really knows another
  3. To show that Daisy was the only one who really knew Gatsby
  4. To emphasize the crumbling values of the middle class
  5. To emphasize the aloofness of his party guests
  6. To add suspense and irony to the plot of the story.
  1. What is the connection between the name Daisy and her habit of wearing white?
  2. She is the most innocent character
  3. Her love for Gatsby is true
  4. She is on her way to a wedding
  5. It points out the irony of her guilt after she accidentally kills Myrtle
  6. It shows that she surrenders her moral character to Gatsby
  1. George’s eyes are the same as Dr. T.J. Eckleburg’s in order to emphasize
  2. His powerlessness over his situation
  3. His ability to see all and know all
  4. His desire to control Myrtle
  5. His terrible driving ability
  6. His innocence in comparison to Tom
  1. The eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg are similar to those of the “the owl eyed man” because both
  2. Are the eyes of God
  3. Represent the Modernist view of nature
  4. Are present at moments of absolute truth
  5. Are present when technology goes out of control
  6. None of the above
  1. Authors often use characters to comment on their views of society. Jordan represents
  2. The old fashioned woman
  3. The contented slave
  4. The noble savage
  5. The modern woman
  6. Old money
  1. Myrtle does not survive the strike from Gatsby’s car. In this way, her death is both symbolic and ironic. It is symbolic because
  2. Daisy got Tom in the end
  3. Technology and progress overcame the old fashioned woman
  4. Daisy is careless
  5. Gatsby is a dangerous man
  6. Nick was really driving
  1. Myrtle does not survive the strike from Gatsby’s car. In this way, her death is both symbolic and ironic. It is ironic because
  2. Daisy unknowingly killed her husband’s mistress.
  3. Women were not supposed to drive.
  4. George was going to take her West.
  5. Tom was the one who was really driving the car.
  6. Daisy finally takes responsibility for her actions.
  1. Nick is developed as an unreliable narrator because he
  2. Has no moral values.
  3. Is completely out of control throughout the book.
  4. He says he is nonjudgmental, yet he calls people names.
  5. Is reckless behind the wheel of a car.
  6. Tells lies to all of the characters.

Answer the following questions based on what you know about setting in The Great Gatsby.

  1. We know that East Egg represented “old money”. Use what you know about the attitudes and values of “old money” societies to determine how the story would be different if Gatsby had lived in East Egg.
  2. He would not have had wild parties.
  3. He would not have seen the green light.
  4. He would have married Daisy before Tom did.
  5. He would not have had a big house.
  6. He would not have a need for a hydroplane.
  1. The Valley of Ashes is the place that represents
  2. Old money
  3. New money
  4. The middle class
  5. The wild partiers
  6. People of color
  1. How does Myrtle change when she is taken out of the Valley of Ashes and into New York?
  2. She becomes louder and bossier
  3. She does exactly as she pleases
  4. She becomes quiet and subdued
  5. She spends all of George’s money
  6. Both a and b
  1. Fitzgerald uses West Egg to show us
  2. The proper behavior that all Americans should have.
  3. Upstanding moral values
  4. That people truly are good and care about one another
  5. That marriages are a bad thing because nobody is happy in the end
  6. That people are generally careless and selfish
  1. How would this story MOST LIKELY be different if it was set in 2012?
  2. There would be no wild parties
  3. There would be no wealthy people
  4. There would be no automobile accidents
  5. The married characters would have no affairs
  6. The plot would remain the same, but the details about the characters would have to be updated.

GO ON TO NEXT PAGE

Read the following poem and answer the questions that follow.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Whose woods these are I think I know.

His house is in the village though;

He will not see me stopping here

To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer

To stop without a farmhouse near

Between the woods and frozen lake

The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake

To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound’s the sweep

Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep,

And miles to go before I sleep.

  1. In what ways does this poem reflect the ideas of Modernist writers?
  2. The speaker is in love.
  3. The speaker is isolated from other people.
  4. The speaker regrets going into the woods.
  5. The speaker is commenting on the sinister use of technology
  6. The speaker is trying to avoid taking responsibility for something.
  1. What is the effect of the repetition of the phrase “and miles to go before I sleep”?
  2. It emphasizes the fact that he is alone.
  3. It emphasizes the fact that he is carrying a heavy burden of responsibility.
  4. It emphasizes the idea that it is night time.
  5. It emphasizes the contrast between the speaker and the quiet of the woods.
  6. It emphasizes the idea that time means nothing when you cannot sleep.
  1. What does the phrase “the darkest evening of the year” emphasize?
  2. The theme
  3. The tone
  4. The mood
  5. The architecture
  6. Both a and c

Read the following poem. Decide which Modernist theme you want to discuss, then create a timeline that shows how the theme is developed through the poem. Your timeline must include at least FOUR complete answers and thorough explanations.

Storm Fear by Robert Frost

WHEN the wind works against us in the dark,
And pelts with snow
The lowest chamber window on the east,
And whispers with a sort of stifled bark,
The beast,
‘Come out! Come out!’--
It costs no inward struggle not to go,
Ah, no!
I count our strength,
Two and a child,
Those of us not asleep subdued to mark
How the cold creeps as the fire dies at length,--
How drifts are piled,
Dooryard and road ungraded,
Till even the comforting barn grows far away
And my heart owns a doubt
Whether ’tis in us to arise with day
And save ourselves unaided.

Theme______

Phrases/Lines

from the poem

______

How the text

connects to the

theme