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Fragility In The Great Gatsby

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It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. In these words, Charles Dickens describes the grand scheme of the Roaring Twenties. Also known as the Jazz Age, this was a decade that for the most part, was full of extravagance. During this time, prominent writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald ruled American literature. Following his success in The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald found inspiration in his life of luxury, alcohol, and a mentally deteriorating wife, and this inspiration soon erupted into his fourth novel. Born to mixed reviews, Tender is the Night was often referred to as being too frivolous, and why shouldn't it be? Following The Great Depression, a novel whose setting is in the grand French Riviera and centered around the extravagant lifestyle of a seemingly perfect couple seems to only rub salt in the wounds of American hearts. However, it is in this frivolity that the novel truly shines. F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, Tender is the Night, uses the pinnacle of society to highlight human fragility in even the most soundest of structures. Dick's persistence in courting Rosemary as well as his alcohol related incidents showcase how easily someone can fall from grace. Beginning with Rosemary, Dick seemed to have a firm grasp on the situation. He showed maturity and elegance in how he went about his affair. However, that maturity and elegance flew out the window as soon as Rosemary's train escapade with Bill Hillis surfaced, and soon after, the pursuee became the pursuer. The significance in this is that all it took for Dick …show more content…

However, he was ultimately subdued by materialistic things as well as human nature and the destruction that ensues them. Dick’s descent from the apex of society is Fitzgerald’s ultimate way of conveying to his audience that no individual is safe from the vices that inhabit this world as humanity is not born without its

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This quote illustrates that Dick, being raised in a well environment, also had some faults. He could not achieve his American Dream due to lack of money that his family did not

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The Moral Decay of the Materialistic Although F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby debuted in 1925– before the Great Depression– it serves as a prophetic exemplification of the the material excess of the 1920s that drowned out signs of the coming Great Depression. The book’s plot follows the bootlegger Jay Gatsby as he pursues his old love Daisy Buchanan through flaunting his new extravagant lifestyle, mainly by throwing ostentatious parties. Yet, in the end, Daisy chooses her unfaithful husband Tom over Gatsby. Through Fitzgerald’s use of wealthy, materialistic characters, he comments on the effect of the material excess of the roaring twenties: moral corruption.

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Society is constantly under the criticism of authors. Many writers seek to expose certain aspects of American society and their scorn of it. Edith Wharton and F. Scott Fitzgerald are renowned for their work on this subject. In The Great Gatsby and The Age of Innocence, Fitzgerald and Wharton reveal their cynicism of the societal elite; they find the elite as a severe detriment to American society. Through symbolism and the characterization of their main characters, Wharton and Fitzgerald similarly depict the societal elite as depriving American society from a promising future by refusing to let go of the past.

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Between World War I and the Great Depression, the 1920’s were unique and special years in American history. The best way to represent that time would be by historian Frederick Lewis Allen providing the historical account of America in the 20’s in Only Yesterday and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famed novel, The Great Gatsby. Both of them reflect America in the Twenties by showing lifestyles and behaviors of people who lived in that time. We can follow their beliefs, actions, and morality through the works. While Allen was seeking to capture a decade, F. Scott Fitzgerald did a good job by pointing to the main issues during that time.

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He considers money is capable of corrupting even the most innocent of people, who were living in peace and tranquility. Fitzgerald paints a picture of the greed that infects our world to this day. He addresses the problem with the rich which is still a relevant problem today. Fitzgerald represents the social elite as

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Who, truly, was F. Scott Fitzgerald? Although some scholars persist that he was a sinful, evil drunkard who did not deserve his fame and others argue that he was a great American writer, but what anyone can see is that his life is talked about time and time again. One person discussing Fitzgerald is Scott Donaldson, who, in his writing of “A Few Words about F. Scott Fitzgerald”, used the methods of real life situations and evidence, Fitzgerald’s works and intelligent language to effectively convince his audience that Fitzgerald was a tragic American hero. Firstly, Donaldson builds up his argument by giving background on Fitzgerald’s tragic life and encounters.

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He is portrayed as a mastermind in the cold-blooded killing of the Clutters family, a man with little respect for the lives of others, which can be seen through Dick’s expression before the murder of the Clutters when he converses Perry, “We’re gonna go in there and splatter those walls with hair” (Capote 234). This sudden tone shift enables Capote to depict Dick as a cruel and immoral character. Dick’s lack of empathy and concern for other people beside himself allow him to commit crimes without remorse, which is in contrast to Perry’s moral contemplation after each bad actions they committed. Moreover, Dick is represented as the true criminal with evident motives in murdering the Clutters, while Perry is seen as a vulnerable victim who depends on Dick for validation and acceptance, something in which Dick happily provides in order to manipulate Perry, as Capote writes, “Dick became convinced that Perry was that rarity, ‘a natural born killer,’—absolutely sane but conscienceless, and capable of dealing with or without motive, the coldest-blooded deathblows. It was Dick's theory that such a gift could, under his supervision, be profitably exploited” (Capote 205).

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If society were more accepting towards independent women, there would have been a possibility for deeper characterization in Fitzgerald’s novel, with more enriched complexities rooted in the plot without the shackles of patriarchal

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