(Reports) - The Great Gatsby

Throughout this course, we’ve been able to work with the story of The Great Gatsby, starting with the reading of the original text by F. Scott Fitzgerald, to later visualize the film version of 1974, starring Robert Redford and the later 2013 version, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Firstly, regarding the book, from my personal experience it was the first time I adventured myself in reading a complete novel in English, a fact that at first caused me some uncertainty as to whether I was going to fully understand the text, or if it was going to be a much greater effort. However, I consider that it is a very easy story to follow, I managed to enjoy the reading and sometimes "forget" that I was not reading in Spanish. Likewise, it is a particularly attractive story despite the time in which it was written, I do not consider that it is an outdated work, but it gives the complete feeling that it can be an story written in this century which simply has a proper setting of the date on which it was originally published. That is why I consider that this text can be especially interesting in a second language classroom if we want to introduce students to the reading of the work.

 

Having said that, and as far as the viewing of the films is concerned, to my surprise, I feel that I ended up much more satisfied with the older version than with the later one. While viewing the 1974 version, I was especially comforted to see how everything I had read on paper came to life and molded perfectly to the image I had of the characters and story in my head.

 

That is why, in a way, I was disappointed to see the 2013 version, I think it is a somewhat failed attempt of a modern adaptation, where some original elements of the original version are modified. It is true that, if you don't know either the book or the first version, this one is especially interesting and entertaining, but the moment you compare them, you notice how many of the elements are altered.

 

Specifically, a small detail that caught my attention is the faceslap that Tom gives Myrtle in the story, I feel that in the original version they give it the importance that this moment deserves, being an act somewhat dramatic and that captures the attention in a negative way towards Tom's character. However, I think that in the 2013 version this moment is approached in a rather comical way when it is not the perspective it should receive, besides being a fact that goes completely unnoticed among the actions in which it is surrounded.

 

Thus, I think it is interesting to conclude with the idea that there are times when as teachers, we try to innovate by bringing to the classroom new elements and the most modern versions of many resources, when there are many other tools available that, although they have been created much longer ago, are sometimes even much more interesting and appropriate than the most modern resources, being the clear example, the two versions of The Great Gatsby.

 Having said this, see you in the other entries, old sport.