How setting is used
In this extract from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the narrator’s description of his neighbour’s house parties establishes an atmosphere of luxury and glamour:
In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars. At high tide in the afternoon I watched his guests diving from the tower of his raft, or taking the sun on the hot sand of his beach while his two motor-boats slit the waters of the Sound, drawing A wide, wooden board used for a type of water-skiing (popular in the 1920s). over A waterfall. of foam. On weekends his Rolls-Royce became an omnibus, bearing parties to and from the city between nine in the morning and long past midnight, while his station wagon scampered like a brisk yellow bug to meet all trains.”
The Great Gatsby, Chapter 3, Scott Fitzgerald
Example analysis
- Several Old-fashioned, or no longer in everyday use. words suggest that this setting is in the past, “...omnibus… motor-boats…aquaplanes…”
- The author’s description of the setting establishes an atmosphere of wealth and indulgence, with the “champagne…his beach…Rolls-Royce…motor-boats.”
- The author presents the The teller of a story; the voice in a text that describes or narrates the events of the plot. The narrator is often either a character in the story, or an authorial voice who gives a commentary on events but doesn't take part. as an observer of this setting - he is an outsider looking in.
- The use of metaphorical language also gives a suggestion of a detached narrator viewing an unfamiliar setting, “…like moths...like a brisk yellow bug…” These insect A comparison using 'like' or 'as' to create a vivid image, eg as big as a whale; float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. create a feeling of an observer watching a strange, new world.
- The setting is described in a Has the feel of a film way, with the narrator sweeping his eyes over several locations - the garden, the raft, the beach and the water.
- This sense of movement from one setting to another establishes a feeling of energy. This is also suggested by the use of phrases like “came and went…to and from…scampered.”
- There is also a contrast between the setting of the gardens at night (whispering…blue…stars) and the afternoon at the beach (sun…hot…slit the waters). The To place two or more ideas/images close together to create further meaning for an audience. of these settings within one paragraph makes them seem even more vivid.
- The author uses The pronouns in English (I, you, he, she, it, we, they, me, him, her, us, and them) showing contrasts of person, gender, number, and case. to create a strong link between one of the characters and this setting, “…his gardens…his guests…his raft…his two motor-boats…his Rolls-Royce…his station wagon…” Although we don’t know who ‘he’ is in this extract, the reader can see that he owns this world of luxury and pleasure.
