Crane, Mayakovsky, Wilson and the Brooklyn Bridge Poems

The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the most iconic engineering feats in New York City. Construction started in 1869 and it took fourteen years for the bridge to be finished, opening in 1893. The building of the bridge proved to be dangerous, claiming the lives two dozen people and cost $15 millions dollars in that time, which equates to about $320 million today. The bridge spans over New York City’s East River and connects Brooklyn and Manhattan. A German immigrant, John Roebling, who he died during the construction phase, originated the idea for the bridge. The bridge stretches a total length of 5,989 feet and the span between the large towers measure 1,595.5 feet, which at the time made the Brooklyn Bridge the world’s largest suspension bridge.

Bridge During Construction:

http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2013/05/22/130_years_of_brooklyn_bridge_photos_decade_by_decade.php

Hart Crane: ‘To Brooklyn Bridge’

Crane (1889-1932) was an American poet who came to New York from Cleveland, Ohio. His poetry became known for being ecstatic and his use of rhetorical verse. His poem, ‘To Brooklyn Bridge’ is a prelude to a longer poem entitled, ‘The Bridge.’ The poems were inspired by experiences he had while living in Brooklyn Heights in an apartment with a view of the bridge in the distance. Crane described his location adjacent to the bridge in a 1924 letter to his family, describing the bridge as ‘the most superb piece of construction in the modern world.’ His works regarding the Brooklyn Bridge was both inspired and provoked by the work of TS Elliot, in particular ‘The Wasteland.’ Crane’s work aimed to be more optimistic regarding modern and urban culture. Elliot’s ‘The Wasteland’ holds a negative view on modern culture and the reason he wrote the poem was because he believed modern people simply did not care about and were not passionate about anything. He intentionally made the poem hard to follow, with many different speakers and references to classic literature, almost challenging readers to read further if they do not understand a reference. 

TS Elliot’s ‘The Wasteland’: http://www.bartleby.com/201/1.html

In ‘To Brooklyn Bridge’ Crane is speaking to the bridge, admiring it from afar because of its immense size and beauty. He notes how the sun hits the bridge and admires the way the bridge seems to hang free in the air. A person runs to the top of one of the towers, pauses for a moment and then jumps to their death. Crane discusses an obscurity the bridge possesses. The bridge seems to represent the anonymity of people and, much like time, makes them feel small and anonymous. This explains why the identity of the person who jumps is not noted (gender, age etc.) and they are just a stranger seen from afar. As night falls on the bridge, Crane sees the lights on the bridge as endless, again drawing a parallel to the bridge and the passage of time, comparing the bridge to an eternity. Throughout the poem, Crane uses many religious symbols, calling the bridge ‘obscure as that Heaven of the Jews’ in reference to a mysterious heaven in Jewish scriptures. He also ends the poem asking the bridge ‘of the curveship lend a myth to God,’ meaning to descend a level and fill a gap God has left.

Vladimir Mayakovsky: Brooklyn Bridge

Mayakovsky (19893-1930) was a Russian poet and member of the Social Democratic Labour Party. As a child, he was dismissed from grammar school and spent time in prison due to political activities with the Labour Party. His early poetry showed him to be an originator of a writing style called Russian Futurism, which rejected traditional elements of poetry to favor experimentation. Mayakovsky’s works lacked a traditional metrical structure and he rather relied on forceful rhythms and street language that was viewed as not poetic at the time. He wrote the poem in 1925 while visiting the United States. He viewed himself as being ‘larger than life’ and in his writing is saluting the bridge as an equal, from one large force to another.

He begins the poem by marveling at the physical size and beauty of the bridge. He compares himself to a devout religious follower entering a great church, humbled by what he sees. He also feels like a conqueror and feels ‘drunk with power’ and ‘clambers with pride’ when he set foot on the bridge. He feels a sense of great pride when thinking of the bridge, which is sort of odd seeing that he is not a native of the US but is from Russia. He is so in awe that he goes as far as saying that if the world was to end, the bridge would not only survive and withstand the world ending but be the influence in future people recreating the modern world. He goes into a darker area of his writing, referencing the many people that come to the bridge to commit suicide. This is interesting because in the first few lines he writes ‘I too will spare no words about good things’ and intends to write only good things about the bridge. He sees future generations acknowledging the bridge where he was inspired to write his greatest work as he see the bridge as place of great inspiration.

Edmund Wilson: The Finale at the Follies and Thoughts of Leaving New York for New Orleans

Edmund Wilson, born in New Jersey on May 8, 1895, had a formal education, which was gained through attending prep school and Princeton. At Princeton he befriended F. Scott Fitzgerald. They were lifelong friends and Wilson even edited his final books, ''The Last Tycoon'' and ''The Crack-Up''. He would go on to review books for Vanity Fair. Edmund Wilson was the first person to review Hemmingway. He believed Hemmingway’s work to be a ''distinctively American development in prose.'' Hemingway declared that Wilson's opinion was the only one ''in the States I have any respect for''. He went from there to be the literary editor of the New Republic sharing his concern of culture with his readers. This is where our two texts come from. Once the depression hit, Edmund Wilson turned to political topics. This led to his travel of various countries and production of one of his most famous works, ''To the Finland Station''. It looked at the different views of how society should be ran in Europe. Wilson then joined the New Yorker and a few years later was confronted on writing his views on the ongoing war (WWII), which he was completely against the US joining, let alone the ways they acted. He focused on this for years to follow. When the Cold War started, again he was against the one up way of America. He even refused to pay federal taxes at the time to prove a point. He wrote a book on the topic and explained he was not paying for America wanting to impose democracy. He actually received a Presidential Medal of Freedom from Kennedy in 1968 (Johnson, however, performed the ceremony) and acquitted some of his tax evasion charges. He went on to teach at Wesley University. He died on June 12, 1972.

The Finale at the Follies is a description of a dress rehearsal of the finale for musical that is set in Mexico. From the scenery (mission and cactuses) and from the costumes (sombreros). The text is a typical newspaper description.

The Thoughts of Leaving New York for New Orleans(1926) is also an account of what Wilson sees, but set in poetry. Every stanza is a different scene from different types of New Yorkers and areas of New York on a typical winter night. Each stanza includes less than three sentences. He points of every walk of life actions/thoughts that others would not know in the beginning. Wilson injects a line of about the scenery vague every now and then. The second half is descriptions of specific places and their residence. The first part of this half is the actions of these people and the second is how everyone is contradicting themselves or others.

Sources: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/04/books/review/04TOIBIN.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Wilson#.22Edmund_Wilson_Regrets....22

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you think Crane succeeded in writing a poem more optimistic then Elliot's? Why, do you think, if he was trying to sound optimistic, would he include the anonymity of a stranger committing suicide?

2. What do the religious symbols add to the poem and what do they say about the Brooklyn Bridge itself?

3. What effect does the format of the text of Mayakovsky's poem have? Why do you think Mayakovsky wrote his poem in this style?

4. Why do you think Mayakovsky would express such pride in an American engineering feat when he himself was Russian?

5. Why, if promising only good words in the opening lines, does Mayakovsky (and Crane, for that matter) reference the suicides that occurred on the bridge?

6. Why do you believe Wilson wrote The Thoughts of Leaving New York for New Orleans as a poem, unlike his other review?

7. What problem(s) do you believe he was trying to highlight?

8. Do you think Wilson favored a set of people? (Remember he was a close friend of Fitzgerald)

9. What was Wilson's motive for the title?

Greenwich Village Writers: Barnes and Millay

Djuna Barnes

Djuna Barnes, born on June 12, 1892 in Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York, was home schooled by her father, and did not receive a formal education until her early twenties. At that time, in 1912, she moved to New York City and became a student of Pratt Institute. There she became a writer an illustrator of the Brooklyn Eagle, in which she wrote mostly feature interviews and articles. In 1915, she enrolled in the Art Students League and she also published her first work, which was a collection of her writings and drawings, titled The Book of Repulsive Women.

In 1921, Barnes made a trip to Paris and wrote articles for Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, Charm, and multiple others of the sort. Two year later, in 1923, she published another collection of her works, this time simply titled A Book. Barnes remained in Paris for nearly twenty more years after this, where she became part of a group of women that soon became known as 'The Academy of Women,' but later as 'The Literary Women of the Left Bank.' Barnes later wrote about this group in a satirical work called Ladies Almanack. She also wrote Nightwood, arguably her greatest work, in 1936 while in Paris.

By the time of her death in 1982, she had moved back to the United States to live in Greenwich Village, where she wrote very little. She did, however, publish a verse drama, called The Antiphon in 1958. After her death, Creatures in an Alphabet and Smoke, and Other Early Stories were found a published. Barnes had just turned ninety when she died.

Source: Djuna Barnes Biography

"Come into the roof garden, Maud" was written in Barnes' days before Paris, and after her formal schooling. Within this piece, she writes about the seemingly strange craze of roof gardens and the people that inhabit them. She goes on to describe said people, noticing that all of them are far too obsessed with the way that they look and are viewed by others to truly have fun at such an event.

Barnes directs most of her attention to the women of the event, stating multiple things about quite a few. For one, she mentions how a woman will pick at any food she is given, leave to dance, then return as if expecting it to be gone. Such a women would essentially ignore all attractions of food, even though Barnes is sure that she must be starving. She also points out the woman that is seemingly only concerned with what the man she is with is doing.

She then goes on to write about the illogical woman, and how unsurprising she finds it. Barnes writes of the woman, who wonders why they are not on the roof, though they are. The woman is mistaken, clearly thinking that, since she cannot see the sky, they must not yet be on the roof. Barnes then realizes that the woman is confused because, had women been the sole creators of the roof gardens, an artificial roof would not exist. The women, so obsessed with talking, they would be happy to just sit under their own little umbrellas.

Edna St. Vincent Millay

Millay was born in Rockland, Maine in 1892 and lived until 1950. She produced sixteen poetry collections during her lifetime as well as six plays. After she graduated from Vassar College she moved to New York City which most likely influenced the settings of her poems. Her first major poem was “Renascence” which she entered into a poetry contest in The Lyric Year. Her poem got fourth place, but Orrick Johns (The first place winner) felt that Millay’s’ poem was better. The second place winner even offered to give her the prize money.

Recuerdo

The poem that we read was first published in May of 1919. The title of the poem fittingly represents the sentiment of the subject. ‘Recuerdo’ in Spanish means ‘I remember’, and throughout this poem the speaker recalls events that took place between her and an unnamed friend.

The poem mimics the way someone would remember an event by constantly skipping time between the notable times during the day, and the descriptions we are given show more of the overall mood of what happened rather than the specifics.

Although the poem never mentions what city they were in we know that New York has both subways and ferries, so the poem could be set there.

The speaker in the poem is a woman who obviously was very happy during the time of this memory. She also is very kind, because her friend and she gave an old lady all the money they had, and the apples and pears they had left.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you think Barnes' home schooling had anything to do with her apparent dissent for the women that frequented the roof gardens? Why or why not?
2. In "Come into the roof garden, Maud," Barnes briefly talks about the 'French sisters.' She essentially says that they have little room in their mouths to speak intelligently, but plenty of room for lipstick. Do you think this viewpoint accompanied Barnes when she went to Paris?
3. While there is no evidence to suggest the women, (or the men for that matter,) have not had a good education like Barnes, do you feel that she thinks of herself as much more intelligent than her company?
4. In the first few sentences of the piece, Barnes describes the roof gardens so holistically, one would be tempted to want to visit one. Did you expect the piece to take such a turn when she began to talk about the people attending the event?
5. Do you feel there is a connection between Barnes and Edith Wharton when Barnes writes in such criticizing ways?
6. Why do you think Millay made the title in Spanish when there are no other instances of Spanish in the rest of the poem?
7. Why do you think Millay never actually names the city where the poem is set?
8. The speaker in 'Recuerdo' takes about a third of the poem on a hypothetical situation where she learns of the death of a friend. Do you think that the speakers' friend actually died? Why or why not?
9. Why do you think that the speaker says she could not cry aloud in the subway if she learned of her friends' death?
10. Why do you think Millay never actually names the speakers' friend throughout the poem?
11. What connection between Barnes' piece and Millay's piece can you find, if any?

Beat Poets- Ginsberg and Burroughs

The Beat Movement

The Beat movement developed in the 1940s, mainly in New York City and San Francisco.  The Beat poets were men and some women who experienced the Great Depression, World War II, racial segregation and other social injustices.  They responded to the world they lived in by rebelling against conformity and advocating a change in the perception of the world. They often used hallucinogenic drugs, dressed in unconventional ways, meditated, and were involved in liberation movements.
Source:(http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/5646 )

Allen Ginsberg - Mugging

Allen Ginsberg and his friends Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs were some of the most influential Beat poets.  His writings were controversial (his publisher was arrested in San Francisco for publishing his famous book, Howl and Other Poems) but they were also regarded as powerful and revolutionary.  He had a hard life, marked with periods in prison and heavy drug use. He was influenced by other writers, such as William Carlos Williams who taught him the style of writing the way people actually think and speak, with natural pauses for breath. He was actively involved in anti-war demonstrations (and was arrested multiple times) and coined the term "flower-power." Source: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/allen-ginsberg

Theme: Spirituality

     Common themes of Ginsberg’s writings (and Beat work in general) were politics and spirituality.  Since spirituality can be seen in the piece, Mugging, we will focus on that.

Buddhism had a major influence on Beats writers.  The meditative mindset can be seen in the narrator of the Mugging.  Buddhism stresses awareness of surroundings and detachment to physical possessions.  In the beginning of the piece, the narrator is reflecting on the sights he sees daily.  He finds beauty in the ordinary.  He is aware of nearly everything around him and yet he does not sense his attackers’ bad intentions.  He observes the “young fellows with their umbrella handles and canes” but he does not suspect that they will use the objects as weapons against him.   As the narrator is being attacked he repeats “Om Ah Hum.” This mantra is associated with the purification of the body, speech, and mind. 

(om-ah-hum.com)

     In the second part of the piece you get a sense of the commonality of mugging in the way people reacted when he went for help.  No one is shocked.  Despite the number of people the narrator described the minutes before he was mugged, no one admits to seeing anything.   Witnesses are too afraid to speak up about what they saw. When the police arrive, they follow procedure and do the minimum: they briefly check the ground for his wallet and ask the victim to fill out a form.  Life goes on. 

Setting: East 10th Street

(image of present day East 10th Street from Google maps)

 

William Burroughs- Background

William S. Burroughs is another famous Beat poet. He lived from 1914-1997 and had many interesting experiences throughout his lifetime.  As a child, Burroughs grew up in St. Louis, Missouri and came from a wealthy family.  From a young age Burroughs knew that he was homosexual, but did his best to hide it until later in his life.  After high school Burroughs attended Harvard University for English literature.  He travelled a lot and looked into the homosexual cultures of places like New York, Austria, and Hungary.  It was on his journeys that he met his first wife who he would later divorce.  When Burroughs returned back to America he joined the Army, but was ultimately unhappy and had his mother get him released.  After being released he met his second wife, Joan Vollmer, and a man named Herbert Hunke who would play a large role in his book Junky and introduce him to drugs.  Junky put Burroughs on the map as a talented writer, but at the same time it made the police aware of his illegal activities involving heroin.  He was constantly on the move to avoid getting in trouble with authorities, especially after shooting his second wife in the head.  Burroughs’s life was messy, but many of the events in it became topics for his writings.   In 1997 his life came to an end after dying of a heart attack. 

Source: (http://www.egs.edu/library/william-burroughs/biography/)

Character Descriptions in Junky

Source: http://www.clt-photography.com/wp-content/uploads/120422_103rdStreet_1280.jpg

 

The excerpt that we read written by William Burroughs came from his book Junky.  Ginsberg pushed Burroughs to write it because he saw Burroughs’s potential.  The book primarily focuses on his time as a heroin addict and drug dealer.  In the beginning of the excerpt, Burroughs describes the location that the “oldtime” junkies revolved around. 103rd street and Broadway was a prime location for them because it was very busy.  Throughout the excerpt Burroughs talks about the junkies that work the street and the way a drug deal goes down. A quick description of each character can be seen as follows:

“Irish”- Drug peddler, fifty years old but looked thirty, “Irish face”, unreliable

“George the Greek”- Kind, went to jail for 3 years, won’t be a pusher anymore, arbiter, usually sick, his face bore marks of a constant losing fight, disappeared
 

“Joe the Mex”- Lined and ravage face but not old looking, bright and young eyes, a liar

“Louie the Bellhop”- Shoplifter, wore long shabby overcoats, disliked by George

“Fritz the Janitor”- Pale thin little man, acted crippled, spent 5 years in prison, dope peddler

“The Fag”- Successful drug dealer, always on top of things, top lush-worker, made homosexual passes, dressed well in tweed sports coats and gray flannels, European charm, envied

There are many symbolic elements in Burroughs’s writing.  For example in the second paragraph he uses the terms “haunts” and “ghost” when referencing heroin suggesting that drugs are something that follow you for life.  He also makes many references to nationalities as well as age and appearance.  Each of these things is important to Burroghs’s message and is why the descriptions of the characters are so important.  Additional ideas behind this will be addressed in the questions below! 

Source: http://ginsbergblog.blogspot.com/2014/02/william-s-burroughs-junky-canadian-tv.html

This is an interview with Burroughs that talks about his life.

This is an interview with Burroughs that talks about Junky and his opinion on drugs.

 

 

Here is a link to listen to Burroughs read our section of Junky!

 

Questions:
 

1) Why do you think Ginsberg wrote this piece? Do you think he did a good job in explaining what it feels like to be mugged or did the narrator perceive things and respond in a way most people would not?

 
2) Did Ginsberg introduce the setting well?  Did you feel like you were there?  What kind of descriptions stood out to you?

 
3) What effect does the point of view of the poem have on the reader? 

 
4) What kind of structure does the poem have?  Do the spelling and grammar errors enhance the poem in any way?
 
5) What is the significance of appearance in Burroughs’s descriptions of the junkies? How do they compare to one another and how are they different?  How do you think Burroughs’s appearance in the interview correlates to the emphasis that he places on appearance in this section?

6) Throughout the excerpt Burroughs refers to the men as “oldtime junkies”.  If this is the case then why is it significant that he describes some as having young faces when talking about their appearances?

7) After watching part of the clip were you surprised by Burroughs sense of humor?  Can this humor be seen in his writing style?  Why or why not?
 
8) Why does Burroughs constantly reference nationality in this piece?  Do you think that his travels had any influence on these perceptions?  Explain the quote, “They were of various nationalities and physical types, but they all looked alike somehow. They all looked like junk”.  How does Burroughs personify junk?
 
9) In the other interview of Burroughs he explains how he doesn’t feel that using drugs is a bad thing.  What is your opinion on this?  Do you think that good writing must come from personal experience?
 
10) What similarities, if any, can you see in the pieces written by Ginsberg and Burroughs?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Harlem Poets and Writers

The Harlem Renaissance, otherwise known as the Great Migration, was a massive movement of African Americans from the Deep South to Harlem, New York. The movement began around 1890, shortly after the abolition of slavery in the United States. The installment of the Jim Crowe laws along with the uprising of numerous hate groups in the South encouraged many African American to relocate to the North. Many African Americans found themselves segregated into urban slums. The largest was Harlem. Many found that they shared similar experiences while being enslaved, and as a result, they embraced their heritage and a cultural eruption ensued. The result was the emergence of jazz music, ragtime music, writers, poets and actors, all of whom, for the first time, embraced their African American heritage.

Source: http://www.ushistory.org/us/46e.asp

                Claude McKay was born in Jamaica 1889. By 1912, he had already published a book of verses called the Songs of Jamaica. He then traveled to the United States where he attended both Tuskegee Institute and Kansas State University (“Claude McKay,” 1). McKay later wrote on issues concerning the political and social injustice that the African American population faced (“Claude McKay,” 1). He also wrote extensively about his homeland in Jamaica (“Claude McKay,1”). In the 1920s McKay traveled abroad to Russia and France to study communism (“Cladue McKay,” 1). In 1934, he returned to the United States and moved to Harlem, New York where he continued to write for the remainder of his life “Claude McKay,”1). McKay’s writing in the early years of the Harlem Renaissance helped to set the tone for many writers and poets of the great movement.

Source: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/25

               In the Tropics of New York, McKay is reminiscing about the beauty of his homeland. He longs to be under the blue skies and fruit trees of Jamaica once again. As he looks out the window, he realizes that New York is no paradise. It does not contain the vibrant colors and beautiful sounds of the tropics. The realization brings him to tears, for he does not hunger for the sweet fruit of the trees, but his homeland itself.

               In The Harlem Dancer, McKay begins by describing the lavish Harlem night clubs. The prostitute dances as young men watch and applaud. Though her job seems harsh, her voice is compared to a soft flute. He also adds a picnic day to his description, which is completely opposite of the night club. His other comparison is to a palm tree, “grown lovelier for passing through the storm.” This suggests that she is very strong as has most likely gained this strength due to the hardships of her job. The end of the poem brings a reality to the night club. The prostitute is objectified and is truly a victim.  

James Weldon Johnson was born in Jacksonville, Florida in 1871 (“James Weldon Johnson,” 1).  At a fairly young age, he attended Atlanta University and became a principal in Jacksonville for a few years (“James Weldon Johnson,” 1). He moved to New York in 1901 to work with his brother as a composer, where he became a songwriter for Broadway (“James Weldon Johnson,” 1). Soon thereafter, Johnson became a civil rights activist for the NAACP. He also acted as a diplomatic consul to both Venezuela and Nicaragua.

Source: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/72

In his novel The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, Johnson follows the life on an African American man who faces the issue of racial identity in the time of the Harlem Resonance. The description that Johnson gives of New York City is one which is beautiful on the surface, yet hidden beneath this beauty lies corruption and injustice. In this small excerpt, the narrator gives a detailed description of his first night in New York. He describes his experience at two different apartment clubs, which he tours with a group of young men. The first was a home that had been converted into a bar. It is here that the narrator has his first experience with gambling. He describes how he initially had no interests in the game, yet upon winning first game, he gained an intoxicating thrill from his actions. He described how such feelings were what led men to become addicted to the game. This inevitably led many men to lose all of their possession. He hints that, over time, he was consumed by this game as well. The second home the group visited had been converted into a night club. The narrator was elated with the idea of the glitz and glimmer of this New York lifestyle. The narrator spends a great deal of time discussing ragtime music, which was playing in the club. This form of music was novel at the time of the Renaissance. He describes the musicians as immensely talented, yet despite all of their talent, this genre was often ignored by many, especially the Caucasians. In Johnson’s words “The fact is, nothing great or enduring, especially in music, has ever sprung full-fledged and unprecedented from the brain of any master” (Johnson, 394).  In his final words, Johnson describes Harlem as having the same unrest as the ragtime music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFeF_yFtssk

Langston Hughes, a poet and playwright and writer of the Harlem Renaissance, was first recognized during this time. He was born in Joplin, Missouri, and eventually moved to Mexico with his father. At just thirteen, he moved to Illinois, to live with his mother who then settled in Cleveland, Ohio. He acquired many jobs, including an assistant cook, launderer, and busboy while studying in Columbia University in New York City. In 1924, he moved to Washington D.C. and wrote his first book of poetry called The Weary Blues. In Lincoln, Pennsylvania, he finished his college career and wrote his first novel, which won the Harmon Gold Medal for literature.

Source: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/83

In one of his autobiographies, The Big Sea, Hughes provides a summary of his experience in this era and the distinction between blacks and whites at this time. He describes the shows, music, and African culture that were signature to Harlem, which, at the time, was a place untouched by tourists and the rest of society. Hughes then describes the impact the whites had on this culture. The white patronage at Harlem clubs was typically received happily by owners, but blacks did not feel they were welcome. According to Hughes, once the white tourists began to discover the night clubs, entertainment shifted to appeal to them, and African culture lost its authenticity. As he states, “The old magic of the woman and the piano and the night and the rhythm being one is gone,” (Hughes, 634). This was also true for writers, as they began to focus their literature on amusing white people. In order to avoid tourists, he spent weekends at house-rent parties, which were becoming very popular at the time. According to Hughes they were more amusing than any night club in town.

In addition to a changing Harlem society, Hughes describes how the Negro Renaissance was not as extravagant as it seemed, and people often had the wrong idea about it. The negroes themselves had not even heard of this renaissance. 

              

Discussion Questions:

1.      How does McKay’s poem, The Tropics of New York, imply what New York City may have looked like in reality? How does this contrast with the fantastic descriptions of New York during the Roaring Twenties?

2.      Is the prostitute the only victim in the night club? Who else may have been a victim?

3.      Johnson states, “The fact is, nothing great or enduring, especially in music, has ever sprung full-fledged and unprecedented from the brain of any master” (Johnson, 394). Do you think that Johnson is not only describing ragtime music, but the equality of African Americans during this time as well?

4.      Johnson describes New York City by stating, “She sits like a great witch at the gate of the country, showing her alluring white face and hiding her crooked hands and feet under the folds of her wide garments (Johnson, 487). What corruption could he possibly be referring to? How does this description relate to the mindset during the Harlem Renaissance?

5.      Hughes describes how “everything goes, one way or another.” The 20’s are gone and Harlem lost its unique charm when it became a commercial place for tourists. Does this still happen today? Where are some examples?

6.      How do the feelings the American Americans had towards the whites compare to today? Do you think that African Americans still believe that their cultural explosion was suppressed by Caucasians?

                  

Great Gatsby Chapter 7

The Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald is one of the great works of New York City Literature of all time. Chapter 7 of the Great Gatsby is when much of the rising action and growing conflict really comes into full view. The chapter starts with us learning that Gatsby has fired all of his old servants and replaced them with people in relation to Wolfsheim. Gatsby did this because he wanted people around that "would not gossip". Daisy had been spending a lot of time at Gatsby's house lately. Gatsby then informs Nick that Daisy would like him to go to her house for lunch tomorrow with Gatsby and Jordan Baker. Daisy was so thrilled that Nick said he would go, making Nick suspicious that something may be going on.

When Nick arrives the next day Tom is on the phone with his apparent mistress. When Tom enters the room Daisy sends him to make drinks, then kisses Gatsby and tells him that she loves him. After a brief visit from her child, Daisy suggests that they all go into town. After Tom sees the way Gatsby and Daisy act towards each other he convinces himself that there are feelings there and makes the decision that they will all go to town. Gatsby drives Tom's car and Tom drives Gatsby's car into town. Tom stops at Wilson's garage and learned of Myrtle's plans. Tom panics, he believes that he is losing both his wife and mistress at the same time.

In town Tom starts to verbally attack Gatsby. He questions him about being an Oxford man initially, but then Tom finally comes out and says that Gatsby is trying to take his wife from him. Gatsby tells Tom that Daisy loves Gatsby and has never loved Tom. Daisy is very indecisive throughout this whole argument. Tom confidently tells Gatsby to take Daisy home. Tom, Nick, and Jordan leave after Gatsby and Daisy. On the way they see a scene. They learn that someone has hit and killed Myrtle than drove away. They learn that it was Gatsby and Daisy. At Tom's house Tom comforts Daisy and treats her far more kindly kindly than Gatsby expected. Nick finds Gatsby in the bushes outside Tom's house. Nick learns that Daisy was the one driving the car. Gatsby insists that he needs to stay and wait outside of the house, in case Daisy needs him.

Gatsby constantly tries to relive the past. This theme reoccurs throughout the novel, and this chapter really brings it out. Gatsby is in love with Daisy, however he is really in love with the memory of Daisy. When Gatsby looks at the green light across the dock it brings back all of his memories of Daisy. Gatsby tells Tom that Daisy has never loved Tom because Gatsby only knows what he remembers: being the sole object of Daisy's affection.

Gatsby becomes obsessive over trying to win Daisy which ultimately compromises his person. We have seen this already throughout the novel. The shadiness of his companion Wolfsheim has an impact on Gatsby. We see this with the poor mannered men that Gatsby replaces his butlers with. Gatsby would rather surround himself with these people than good hearted people if it means he will be closer to Daisy. He will even give up his lavish parties just to try and impress Daisy. However, we see the full extent at the end of chapter 7. After killing Myrtle the only thing concerning Gatsby is if Daisy is alright not that he was just involved in murdering another person.

Fitzgerald has some wonderful examples of figurative language throughout this chapter. Daisy is constanty complaining about the heat, even some of the other characters do as well. This eludes to the impending drama that is about to unfold between all parties involved. Daisy cannot stand the heat, and she cannot stand when Gatsby and Tom go after each other as well. When Daisy and Jordan sit on the couch and say that they can't move has additional meaning as well. This represents that all this adultery and lying, in fact the entire lifestyle these people have adopted and has pushed them into a position where they "can't move".

Biographies:

http://www.pbs.org/kteh/amstorytellers/bios.html

L.A. Women driver's ban:

http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2010/02/23/1920-proposal-to-ban-female-drivers/
 
Discussion Question:

·     1. When the group is going into town and they encounter a sickly Wilson, it is obvious to Nick that Wilson discovered Myrtle’s infidelity. Tom seems not to notice, even though he made a similar discovery about Daisy only a short time before. Is Tom really oblivious to Wilson’s deduction, or is he just trying to save face?

·     2. When Tom and Gatsby are arguing over Daisy in the hotel, Daisy says very little for herself, and is reluctant to make a clean break with Tom as Gatsby urges her to. Do you think Daisy is still in love with Tom, and perhaps wanted to maintain relationships with both men? How does her forced choice between them contrast with the unchallenged way Tom had both a wife and a mistress?

·     3. Do you think either Gatsby or Tom truly loves Daisy?

      4. Why is it important to the scene for Nick and Jordan to be there during the confrontation?

 

      5. Would Gatsby really take the blame for Daisy hitting Myrtle?

6. Why doesn't Gatsby feel he can confront Tom in Tom's house? Why does Tom start with personal attacks on Gatsby before addressing the issue of Gatsby and Daisy's affair?