Self Improvement Plan for Nick Carraway Narrator of Great Gatsby

you will be writing a 3 page lette to the narrator of The Great Gatsby, the character Nick Carraway. You will start by placing headers with to and from addresses (which can be made-up but remember Nick lives in West Egg, New York) and addressing your letter “Dear Nick.” Speak in first person as if you were an old friend, or any other creative person who would be likely to give Nick life advice, like a family member or therapist. You will need to choose 3 problems Nick faces in the novel to give him advice on how he should handle them. Note: you are not just pointing out his flaws. You are giving him 3 pieces of advice on how to correct them. You will support your advice with 1 quote per body paragraph showing where his dilemma occurred in the novel, and 1 quote per body paragraph from Benjamin Franklin or Henry David Thoreau supporting your advice. These are listed below and are little sayings that people of that time may have said to one another. Self Improvement Plan for Nick Carraway Narrator of Great Gatsby

Although this is a letter, you will organize it with an introduction that includes your thesis stating the three main problems you will help Nick with, 3 body paragraphs that focus on one dilemma each (in each body you will state the dilemma, use a quote from the novel showing wear it occurs, give your advice, and use a quote from Franklin/Thoreau to support your advice), and a conclusion restating your thesis with farewell statements.


Unit 3 Portfolio	SELF PLAN IMPROVEMENT (LETTER TO NICK) PORTFOLIO	English 11B

REQUIREMENTS AND EXPECTATIONS

Objective: Write a self-improvement plan for Nick Carraway, the narrator of The Great Gatsby.

Length: 3-4 pages

Format: Standard MLA Formatting; minimum 5 paragraph essay

Though most of Nick Carraway’s focus is on the troubled lives around him, he has his fair share of dilemmas. From life in a new city to reconnecting with his cousin to his blossoming relationship with Jordan, there are plenty of issues for which Nick could use some advice. For your portfolio project for this unit, you are going to give Nick the advice he needs. After examining some famous words of wisdom from two American authors and assessing Nick’s dilemma, you will write a self-improvement plan in a letter to Nick. Self Improvement Plan for Nick Carraway Narrator of Great Gatsby

Support: Include AT LEAST three examples (quotes) from the novel and three quotes from Benjamin Franklin or Henry David Thoreauas supporting evidence for your thesis.

Your letter will have three main components:

Introduction—Introduce and give an overview of 3 specific dilemmas that Nick faces in the novel and how you will address them.
Body Paragraphs (x3)– Each should focus on one identified problem. Support the existence of the problem by citing quotes and details from the novel. Then provide your advice and suggestion on how he can improve his life and resolve the problem. Give Nick general advice about values as well as activities and choices he should pursue to meet his goals. Use and cite quotes from Franklin or Thoreau to support your well-founded advice.
Conclusion – Restate Nick’s dilemmas and summarize your advice to him. Suggest a larger significance that he can anticipate if he were to follow your advice. Self Improvement Plan for Nick Carraway Narrator of Great Gatsby

Overall, you should take into consideration what you have learned about Nick’s preferences, values, and personality from reading the novel and from your role play in the Brainstorming: A Nick Carraway’s Problems.

Lessons in Connexus: In your Lessons, you will find the same handouts that are available on our English 11 Portfolio message board document by slightly different names to eliminate confusion as to what they are. Those in parenthesis below are how the resources are named on the message board document. Self Improvement Plan for Nick Carraway Narrator of Great Gatsby

In Unit 3, Lesson 6, on page 2 you will find:

SAS® Curriculum Pathways® activity

Nick Carraway’s Dilemmas in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby

(Brainstorming Ideas: A List of Nick Carraway’s Problems)

“Adages from Poor Richard’s Almanac”

(Quotes by Benjamin Franklin from Poor Richard’s Almanac)

“Adages from Walden by Henry David Thoreau,”

(Quotes by Henry David Thoreau from Walden)


Unit 3 Portfolio	SELF PLAN IMPROVEMENT (LETTER TO NICK) PORTFOLIO	English 11B

Your plan should reflect your knowledge of the philosophies of living expressed by Benjamin Franklin, Henry David Thoreau, and James Gatz, the young man who would become Jay Gatsby.

Self Improvement Plan for Nick Carraway Narrator of Great Gatsby Self-Improvement Plan (Letter to Nick) Graphic Organizer: Thought Web

Complete this to help you brainstorm a self-improvement plan of advice for Nick Carraway. Identify his dilemmas, support them with quotes from the novel, give pieces of advice, and support your advice with quotes by Thoreau/Franklin. Choose only 3 of the bubbles you brainstorm for your letter.

Have fun writing a creative letter!

Contact me if you need help!