This project is designed for students to share their understanding of F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby," through the creation of an animated symbolic timeline focusing on the evolving meaning of the green light. This activity will challenge students to interpret symbolism, analyze textual evidence, and synthesize their understanding of the novel's central themes. By visually representing key moments and supporting them with direct quotes and insightful analysis, students will gain a deeper understanding of the novel's thematic concerns, particularly regarding the nature of desire, the elusiveness of the American Dream, and the power of memory. Students will use Keynote shapes, animations, and audio recordings to share their analysis.
The Lesson
Students create an animated timeline illustrating the evolving symbolism of the green light in "The Great Gatsby." The process will involve:
- Identifying Key Moments: Students will identify 3 pivotal moments in the novel where the green light or another symbol of their choice is featured, noting the surrounding context and its symbolic significance.
- Gathering Textual Evidence: For each identified moment, students will select a direct quote from the text that directly relates to the green light and its associated symbolism.
- Analyzing and Interpreting: Students will compose a concise paragraph that analyzes the chosen quote, explaining how the green light's meaning shifts in that specific context and how it contributes to the novel's overarching themes. This paragraph will be incorporated into their final animation.
- Creating the Timeline: Students will utilize Keynote shapes, images, and animations to visually represent the green light's progression, seamlessly integrating their textual analysis and quotes.
- Create audio recordings: Students will use the paragraphs they have written to record audio for each of the 3 key events in their timeline.
- Export as a movie: Students will export the final product as a movie.
In summary, this project supports the development of critical thinking, textual analysis, and interpretive skills, while simultaneously offering a creative avenue for expressing their understanding of the novel's symbols and themes.
Extension Activity:
To extend this lesson, students can compose original music in GarageBand to match the feeling of each green light moment in their timeline. They'll use GarageBand to create sounds that fit the mood of that moment in the novel.
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April 08, 2025
Beautiful Jennifer! What a creative way to have students interact with the symbolism of Gatsby. Love the way your movie showed that symbolism through shapes, motion graphics and animation.
This morning I was just reading a Library of Congress blog “The Great Gatsby Turns 100”. With the 100 anniversary of publication on Thursday, April 10, you have made an engaging connection for your students!
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