Chapter 1

About the lecture

In this module, we explore the first chapter of the novel, focusing in particular on the character of the narrator, Nick Carraway – his hopes and aspirations, his sense of decency, his loneliness and insecurity, and his contradictions.

About the lecturer

John McRae is Special Professor of Language in Literature Studies and Teaching Associate in the School of English at Nottingham University, and holds Visiting Professorships in China, Malaysia, Spain and the USA. He is co-author of The Routledge History of Literature in English with Ron Carter, and also wrote The Language of Poetry, Literature with a Small 'l' and the first critical edition of Teleny by Oscar Wilde and others.