* Watch this video, which is author John Green discussing "The Great Gatsby: Living the Dream in the Valley of Ashes":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VhYMdnAsyM&feature=youtu.beWARNING: there is a mild swear word at approximately minute 1:30 in the video. If you wish to avoid this, you can easily skip from 1:29 to 1:32 and miss the word without missing any important information.
After you have watched the video, write down some thoughts about the two questions John Green asks at the end of the video: (1) To what extent do you think Gatsby is a hero/to what extent do you think Gatsby's quest is heroic? (2) Is your quest heroic?
We will be discussing your thoughts about these questions in class.
* Complete the first part of your final project, that is, your choice of project options from section A on the project assignment sheet. Please shoot me an email BY FRIDAY MORNING at the latest letting me know which option you have chosen, so I can email you the grading rubric for that option.
* Choose your option for section B of your final project.
**If you choose to do the compare/contrast movie/novel option, please let me know right away so that I can email you the packet of graphic organizers that you will need to complete as part of this project.
**If you choose to write an essay on one of the topics for option 2, please let me know which essay topic you have chosen. Note that I am open to your writing your essay on a topic other than one of the topics listed. However, you MUST get approval from me on your topic.
For next week, if you have chosen the essay topic option, you should have an essay outline (with your thesis statement in bold and a hook for your introduction) to bring to class. If you have chosen the compare/contrast of the novel/film option, you should have your graphic organizers mostly complete AND a thesis statement for the writing assignment.