English 11
April 25, 2011
Ms. Swift
Found Poem
The Great Gatsby
Assignment: Write a “found poem” about the character of Jay Gatsby that responds to the
question, Who is Gatsby?
1. as a class:
 Accumulate words, phrases, and sentences from the novel as raw material (share, on
the board, the words and phrases you were assigned to find individually).
o These words and phrases should pertain to Gatsby (primarily from Ch. 3 & 4, but
a few can be from previous chapters); these are words and phrases that
 describe Gatsby (by Nick or others)
 are spoken about Gatsby
 Gatsby speaks about himself
o You may not add words of your own
o
Note: in addition to using words and phrases that we put on the board in class,
you should return to the text to find additional words and phrases that are
unique to your “reading” of the character, and incorporate some of these in
your poem.
2. as an individual writer:
 Play with the words and phrases you’ve accumulated:
o Cut up, shuffle, and re-arrange phrases and lines.
o Choose vivid images and powerful, concise language.
o Make selections and discard the leftovers.
 Create a unifying idea for the poem, one that responds poetically to the question: Who
is Gatsby?
o Use that unifying idea to make additional selections and deletions, and to edit
and shape a coherent whole.
 Arrange line breaks to emphasize sound and meaning.
o Keep in mind that a poem must make sense—it should be more than a series of
words and images placed side-by-side
 Create an original title that relates to the central idea of the poem.
3. for homework:
 Put finishing touches on the poem.
 Bring a printed version of your poem to class on Friday.
Total points: 10