The Green Light: An Attainable Hope or an Unrealistic Dream? Part One: Read what follows.

In a recent article in The New York Times (Feb. 17, 2008), writer Sara Rimer discusses the impact that The Great Gatsby has on many of todays high school students, particularly urban adolescents who are first- and second-generation immigrants. Jinzhao Wang, 14, who immigrated from China, says that the novels themes of possibility and aspiration speak to her, and that she is inspired by the green light at the end of the dock that represents hope (1). For Jinzhao, her green light is Harvard. Susan Moran, the director of the English program at Jinzhaos Boston Latin High School, says that students who relate to Gatsby all understand what it is to strive for somethingto want to be someone youre not, to want to achieve something thats just beyond reach, whether its professional success or wealth or idealized love or a 4.0 or admission to Harvard (1). Even though the students recognize the cautionary nature of Gatsbys tale and the obstacles that prevent contemporary Americans from achieving their versions of the American Dream, most of them find inspiration in Gatsby and develop their own versions of the green lightthe dream that they aspire to achieve. However, three days after the article appeared in the New York Times, there were two letters sent in response, and they were letters that disagreed very strongly with the message of Rimers article. The letters follow:
Reread Gatsby: The Dream Was Hollow
To the Editor: Re Gatsbys Green Light Beckons a New Set of Strivers (front page, Feb. 17): If F. Scott Fitzgerald knew that todays high school students would be comparing Jay Gatsbys elusive green light to admission to Harvard, he would be shaking his head in disdain. The Great Gatsby is not a novel that glorifies the rags-to-riches American dream. It is, in fact, the very opposite, and I find it most surprising that the students and faculty of the Boston Latin School featured in the article could be so misinformed. The light does give Gatsby hope, but between West Egg, where Gatsby is, and East Egg, where his hope is, there lies an insuperable cultural divide. The green light represents all of what we want, but that we never can attain. Jay Gatsby would never reach that light, for the end of his American dream saw him face down in his swimming pool. Nathaniel Eiseman Charlestown, Mass., Feb. 18, 2008 (The writer is a member of the class of 2008 at Boston Latin School.) To the Editor: The Great Gatsby is no Great American Fable of accomplished dreams; it is a cautionary tragedy. Its characters discard their morals to attain pleasure or to quench their ambitions, and, by the novels end, they all wind up hollow and disaffected. As a high school junior, I see many students make the same mistakes today. In the pursuit of the false happiness that a Harvard acceptance will bring, students ethical standards buckle. They cheat on tests. They lie on rsums. They live by mottos like Get Rich or Die Tryin. Then, suffering from the same malaise as the characters in Gatsby, they fry brain cells over the weekend. This is why I am extremely dismayed that Boston Latin students interpreted F. Scott Fitzgeralds masterpiece to be inspirational and hopeful. The Great Gatsby is our greatest testament to the perils of the American Dream, and my favorite book. Have they missed its point?

Robinson G. Meyer Pennington, N.J., Feb. 18, 2008

So, what do you think: is Gatsbys green light a symbol of dreams and hopes that we can aspire to, no matter how lofty? Or does the green light represent everything that we want and yet cannot attain? You make the decision and choose one of the following options for your assignment: 1. If you agree that the green light inspires people to hope, dream, and then strive to attain those dreams, then complete the My green light is sheet. Decide what your personal green light is, write it on the front, and then write one paragraph on the back that describes why that is your green light and how you plan to attain it. 2. If you agree that the green light is cautionary rather than inspirational and represents all that we desire but will never have, do not pick up the My green light is handout. Instead, write a paragraph that explains why you find your interpretation of the light to be valid, and include textual support from the book. DUE: Wednesday Feb. 1