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Great Gatsby Influences

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Imagine Paris circa 1925. This is the city of light, the creative capital of the world: automobiles are accessible, modern art as well as jazz music is starting to take off, and the Great War is over. Back in America, women have the right to vote, the economy has never been better, and prohibition is in full swing. Despite all these developments, most positive, many have never felt so empty. However still, literary geniuses such as T.S. Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald all found inspiration after WWI in Paris; the city that, at this time, beckoned many artists on account of its wealth of inspiration. Gertrude Stein, advisor for many of these writers said, “You are all a lost generation,” describing perfectly their irresolute …show more content…

Literary movements were making huge strides in development as the Harlem Renaissance was underway in Northeastern America and the Lost Generation was emerging in Europe. In Paris all kinds of art movements such as the Cubists, Surrealists, and jazz culture were prominent as well. The Great Gatsby featured a lot of these cultural changes and the norms during this time period. In particular, Fitzgerald demonstrates the emptiness and lack of morals in the wealthy upper class through his characters as well as represents their carelessness and rather whimsical materialistic lifestyle. However, one of the more positive aspects of this society is also represented in this novel, as well as many other works produced by this group. Women are shown more liberally than ever before as the stereotypical “flapper.” The flapper was the modern woman of the day with shorter hair as well as a shorter, looser and more masculine wardrobe. The flapper also possessed a sense of independence that was not seen in women of previous generations. Poetry of the author T.S. Eliot also explores the new developing gender roles of women and men which was influenced by the changing status of women after the women’s suffrage movement and the establishment of the 19th amendment in 1920. As well as writing about the new role that women had, T.S. Eliot wrote about the new modern man. More cynical yet self-aware, this man was featured in poems such as “The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock.” Some of T.S. Eliot’s other work has themes of humanity’s demise, which was what many people viewed their situation to be. Winter Dream by F. Scott Fitzgerald also revealed many aspects of the negative side of the “American Dream.” Some of this novel’s themes emulated a distaste for the American ideals; an attitude which many of the authors of the Lost Generation

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In the beginning of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the audience is introduced to Nick, the narrator. He begins the book by describing his life for the duration of the entire first chapter. The first impression he lays upon the audience is a quote of his father’s wisdom: “‘Whenever you feel like criticizing any one’ he told me, ‘just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had’”(1). This shines light into Nick’s life: how he was raised and the type of people he had as influences. In using this method, he opens a door to the audience that seems personal and allows them to connect with him, which leads the audience to believe that he is a good honest man.

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Psychological Perspective Passage: “‘Please don’t.’ Her voice was cold, but the rancor was gone from it. She looked at Gatsby. ‘There, Jay,’ she said-- but her hand as she tried to light a cigarette was trembling. Suddenly she threw the cigarette and the burning match on the carpet.

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767 Words | 4 Pages

Faith Anez-Robinson Mrs. Kraus College Literature 10 October Characters of Gatsby Through out the years the American culture has changed significantly. The values and goals have gone from very conservative, to more carefree outgoing lifestyles. This is especially true for women during the 1920s. Even though women did not have as many rights as men did at the time, they knew how to make up for their disadvantage.

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F. Scott Fitzgerald, the icon of beautiful lyricism, uses many intriguing patterns within his novel, The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald, in his writing of the 1920s, introduces the reader to the world after the Great War; a world of overindulged wealth, unrealistic dreams, and undeniable poverty. Where there is wealth it is not used in an honorable way; where dreams may form, they are impossible to accomplish due to their exorbitant standards; and where dust accumulates, there poverty gathers as well. Throughout his novel, Fitzgerald uses the pattern of dust and ashes to display his essential themes of immorality, poverty, and death.

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614 Words | 3 Pages

The Not So Great Gatsby In the cataclysmic novel, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald utilizes an array of rhetorical strategies to produce a tortuous and stratified narrative of unrealistic wealth, passion, and aspirations of ambitions. In Chapter eight this can be revealed by Fitzgerald using a shifting tone from solemness, to peaceful, then imagery to capture the painless death of Gatsby, and lastly an insightful perspective to recount the tragedy of the many deaths occurring in this final, fatal chapter of the book. Fitzgerald asserts the fantastical ethos of the Roaring Twenties. However he also censures the American Dream and how it manipulated the domination of wealth and authority in order to propose the idea that it will never be more than an illusion.

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249-269. Print. Gloria Steinem is best known as a leader in transforming the image of women in American. Within this article, where she discuss the issue of voicing women’s opinion in ad. She argue how men belittle women’s intelligent and knowledge of many things.

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The American Dream suggests that every American citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work. One of the major ways that Fitzgerald portrays this is by alluding to outside events or works of literature specifically from that time period. Another major relationship that develops in The Great Gatsby is between Tom and Daisy. F. Scott Fitzgerald alludes to things such as the World’s Fair and “The Love Nest” to display the eventual dismantling of Tom and Daisy’s relationship. Both of these separate plots consolidate under the idea of Gatsby trying to become the epitome of the American Dream, as seen through his strive for a “perfect life.”

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1421 Words | 6 Pages

In the thrilling novel The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, it depicts the dreams and reality of The Jazz Age through the major characters. During that period of time, the American Dream, social status, and money were all important and powerful to people. Despite a time of corruption, there was hope to achieve all of that and become successful. The author uses colors throughout the story to develop a theme of the American Dream, identify the character’s true personalities, and distinguish social class and its corruption.

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Great Gatsby In The Great Gatsby, it presents various themes which are, value, power, and a lot of unfaithfulness throughout the book and also the movie. There are great homes and jobs, also offering great American lives in the 1920s. Fitzgerald purposely sets up his book with these themes to bring out a message in the book and movie, every get together has its own problems to fight with, leaving a different theme behind in its path. There were different types of social classes throughout the book which were old money, new money, and then there's the no money which were the poor people living around both of the towns.

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822 Words | 4 Pages

Lastly, Fitzgerald wrote during the Jazz Age. The Jazz Age glorified urban life which relates to The Great Gatsby since it takes place in New York

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1228 Words | 5 Pages

The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, sets in the 1920’s. The 1920’s were also known as the roaring twenties or the Jazz age,due to its economic and social change. F. Scott Fitzgerald sets his novel in a time of paradise and dreams where anything could happen. In his novel, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald describes the life of a man named Jay Gatsby, known just as Gatsby, struggling to conquer his American Dream. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald examines the rich and the downfall of the American Dream during the Roaring Twenties.

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Of all the themes, perhaps none is better developed than that of social stratification. The Great Gatsby is regarded as a brilliant piece of social commentary, offering a vivid peek into American life in the 1920s. Fitzgerald carefully sets up his novel into distinct groups but, in the end, each group has its own problems to contend with, leaving a powerful reminder of what a precarious place the world really is. By creating distinct social classes — old money, new money, and no money — Fitzgerald sends strong messages about the elitism running throughout every strata of

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209 Words | 1 Pages

In The Great Gatsby, many aspects of Fitzgerald 's life are reflected in the construction of the history of this book, in the conflict, in the environment and personalities of the characters, but mainly he represents his self in the book as Gatsby, a sensitive young man who idolizes wealth and luxury, that also wants to be accepted by society and who falls in love with, beautiful young woman. At the same he involves himself with Nick’s personality too, which is the opposite of Gatsby. Besides, is really interesting how this decade proved to be a very progressive and revolutionary decade for women. Flappers also developed, demonstrating the development of a more rebellious, independent generation of women. One example of this independent, free

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764 Words | 4 Pages

The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald was a prime piece of literature during the Harlem Renaissance, otherwise known as the Jazz Age (coined by Fitzgerald). The Harlem Renaissance was a spike in jazz music, black culture, and more. Fitzgerald’s novel encapsulated this age in America. While Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and the artists and authors of the Harlem Renaissance share black people achieving the American Dream in common, only The Great Gatsby portrays this ambition as inaccessible and unachievable for women.

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862 Words | 4 Pages

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby shows little, if any attention to political issues at the time. In the 1920s, also known as the “Jazz Age” the lifestyle is mostly driven by the wants and desire of individuals. Fitzgerald raises the lack of political concern at the time derived from the characters of the novel. The main political conflict is the fissure between the rich and the poor.

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