The Appeal of Good Character in The Great Gatsby

The Appeal of Good Character in The Great Gatsby

After Jay Gatsby loses the love of his life, he sets out on a rhetorical mission to win her back. He needs to find a way to persuade Daisy that she loves him more than the man she married instead of him. In fact, he feels the need to persuade her that she has only ever loved him, and that the two of them are destined to be together. So for the next several years, Gatsby will begin crafting a strategy to make himself more appealing to his audience (Daisy). How does he try to garner this appeal? He concentrates on enhancing the appeal of his character (ie, ethos).

Like many boys from the wrong side of the tracks, Gatsby is sensitive about his lack of means and his low social standing. His humble beginnings have shaped his character for better and for worse and he imagines that this lack of polish and sophistication ultimately led Daisy to reject him and accept the proposal of that dashing polo player from Yale University, Tom Buchanan.

Toms character, unlike Gatsbys, has been shaped by the money, the values, and the prejudices of the extremely well-off. And, as Gatsby sees it, thats the character of the man Daisy prefers. So Gatsby sets out to re-write his character, to out-Tom Tom. Everything he does after returning home from WWI is part of his effort or self-reinvention. Step by step, he constructs a new
character for himself, a sort of mask or role he will wear in order to woo Daisy away from Tom.

This rhetorical effort of persuasion is what I want you to analyze here. What traits of character does Gatsby imagine Daisy prefers? How does he set out to embody those traits? How successfully does he embody them? How well does he read Daisys own character and the kind of man she desires? And ultimately, SPOILER ALERT, what are the fatal flaws in Gatsbys rhetorical strategy that cause him to lose Daisy forever?

Youll want to keep the Lecture Note on Ethos handy while you write this and to refer directly to Aristotles two theories of the ethical appeal both of which are brought to bear in Gatsbys illfated courtship. And youll want to read and re-read Chapter 7 of the novel the climax of the rhetorical duel between Gatsby and Tom. I think a detailed, blow-by-blow analysis of this rhetorical smackdown would make an excellent ending for this essay.
Assignment Length: 1,500 words.
INSTRUCTOR TIPS
Just like Essay 1 — except that now you’re focusing on how Gatsby uses some of the seven different types of appeal to pathos that I cover in my lecture note.

What’s Gatsby’s rhetorical situation? What’s he hope to convince someone to believe and/or to do? Why might that audience be reluctant to buy what Gatsby’s selling?

The body of your essay should develop an analysis of several things Gatsby says and does in order to manipulate his audience. Explain how these persuasive tactics correspond to some of Aristotle’s types of ethical appeal. Explain in detail how each appeal makes Gatsby’s position more enticing to his otherwise hesitant audience.

Other than these general guidelines, I give you guys a lot of creative freedom. You can focus on Gatsby’s rhetoric when he talks to Nick OR you can focus on Gatsby’s rhetoric when he talks to Daisy. You can move step by step through the novel and reconstruct the whole trajectory of Gatsby’s rhetorical project OR you can zoom-in on just one scene in the novel and give me a super-detailed, blow-by-blow analysis of all the ethical appeals you can spot.

Whatever you want to concentrate on, make sure that this focus is clearly established in your intro-paragraph — especially in your thesis stmt.

Another tip: when you discuss the three kinds of appeals to ethos that Aristotle discusses in Book 2, Chapter 1, you should use the Greek terms. In the free online version, Rhys Roberts translates these terms in a really loose and misleading way.

The appeal to arete is not exactly an appeal to “good moral character.” “Arete” literally means “strength” in ancient Greek. and in this context where we’re dealing with ethics, arete means “strength of will.” This is all about the “strength” it takes to adhere to one’s principles. If an orator can demonstrate that he or she has this strength, their argument will seem more agreeable to an audience. It’s not about declaring that one has solid principles. It’s more about demonstrating that one can make tough decisions and make personal sacrifices to uphold a principle. The BEST appeals to ethos, ie the most convincing ones, involve asking one’s audience to demonstrate their own commitment to a principle by taking the orator’s side: eg, “If you really value free speech in America, then you’ll join me in defense of this disgusting perve, Larry Flynt, and vote for his acquittal.”

The appeal to eunoia is not really an appeal to “good will,” as Rhys Roberts says. “Eunoia” literally means the well being and happiness of OTHERS. The Latin word for this is more commonly used by us: “Altruism.” Altruism means that you are more interested in the public good or the good of others than you are in your own personal good. Eunoia means you’re willing to take one for the team. When an orator hints that he or she is looking out for the good of others and not at all motivated by selfish interests, then that orator is making an appeal to eunoia.

The appeal to phronesis is not exactly an appeal to “good sense.” Phronesis literally means practical, hands-on skill. This is not the same thing as knowledge or “book-smarts.” It’s more like “street smarts.” Appealing to phronesis means demonstrating that you know how TO DO something useful. Lots of people might be able to talk about this useful thing, but Aristotle is basically saying that knowing how TO DO that thing in a real-life situation is more appealing. It’s all about showing that you know how to walk the walk. Gekko appealed to phronesis when he talked about the budgets and accounting reports of Teldar paper. By presenting these financial details, he demonstrated that he knew precisely what concrete changes would turn Teldar Paper around. He knew how TO DO something that, he claims, will fix this company.

The Greek terms are much more precise than Roberts’ English translations suggest. That’s one reason to use them in your essay. Another reason is that using Greek words suggests that you are super smart. In other words, it suggests to me that you can not only TALK ABOUT Aristotle; you can also DO SOME ARISTOTLING or your own. (I know, that’s not a real word. ) In other words, you can USE Aristotle’s treatise to get inside of Gatsby’s rhetorical moves — all the things he says to Daisy and/or Nick in order to manipulate them. Using Greek words is one way that YOU can appeal to phronesis as you try to convince ME to give you an A on this essay.

Last Completed Projects