Similarities Between The Great Gatsby And Ernest Hemingway

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F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway are among the most prominent exponents of literature of the twentieth century. Forming part of the Lost Generation, these authors not only develop similar themes throughout their works, but heavily influenced each other. The Great Gatsby being Fitzgerald’s magnum opus, serves as a prime illustration of the staples of contemporary literature. In the novel The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald, the author depicts himself through a character, Nick Carraway, conforming to other self depiction common in the Lost Generation, such as Hemingway in the Nick Adams stories. Nick Carraway and Nick Adams represent Fitzgerald and Hemingway, both serving as apertures into Fitzgerald’s and Hemingway’s view of the world. In the Great Gatsby, Carraway remarks, “I decided to go East and learn the bond business, so I supposed it could support…” (Fitzgerald, 1925, p. 3). Much like Carraway, Fitzgerald himself moved to New York after his enrollment in the army, seeking to find fulfillment. In Hemingway’s case, Nick Adams mentions, “...my medals and asked me what I had done to get them. I showed them the paper...:” (p. 208). Hemingway himself received medals after serving in the army, an experience he described to us through Adams’ memories. Through these characters, the writers present their personal critiques of society, reflective of them being part of the Lost Generation. In the short story, In Another Country, Adams says, “I had been given medals because I was …show more content…

He couldn't stand things, I guess." "Do many men kill themselves, Daddy?" "Not very many, Nick." (Hemingway, Indian Camp, p. ) Hemingway’s construction of gender identity is a theme intrinsically seen as part of his works. Since an early age, Adams displays a drastic construction of what he considers a man to be. Hemingway characterizes Adams with his own ideas regarding this field, and uses his a medium to justify how these came to