The Great Gatsby Research Paper

F. Scott Fitzgerald was born on September 24, 1896, in St. Paul, Minnesota and died December 21, 1940, in Hollywood, California. Growing up, his father, Edward Fitzgerald, was a salesman for Procter & Gamble which caused his family to move back and forth between Buffalo and Syracuse, New York until Fitzgerald was twelve. In 1908, Fitzgerald’s father lost his job so they moved back to St. Paul and lived off of his mother’s, Mary McQuillan’s, inheritance. As a child, Fitzgerald was wise and his parents were proud of him. An article published by A&E Network says, “Fitzgerald was a bright, handsome and ambitious boy.” (Unknown). He went to excellent schools and had dreams of being a writer. Fitzgerald attended the St. Paul Academy. When he was

His Midwestern background helped him write The Side of Paradise and The Great Gatsby since they both have characters from the Midwestern. Also his wife, Zelda, came from an upper-class family which allowed him to write about wealthy people which are often in his novels. Zelda had schizophrenia and spent time in hospitals for that reason. While she was hospitalized, Fitzgerald wrote Tender is the Night. This novel is about a man who is a psychoanalyst and his patient who is also his wife. 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

Edmund Wilson would write letters to Fitzgerald discussing each other’s work. He wrote novels such as To the Finland Station in 1940 and Axel’s Castle: A Study in the Imaginative Literature in 1931. Ernest Hemingway wrote The Sun Also Rises in 1926 and A Farewell to Arms in 1929. One of Fitzgerald’s greatest accomplishments is The Side of Paradise. It was his first novel and was published in 1920. This novel made him a known author and gave him celebrity status. The Great Gatsby was his third novel and is considered to be the greatest. Although it was popular when it was first published, it wasn’t until the 1950’s and 1960’s that it became known as one of the best novels ever written, which was long after Fitzgerald’s death. According to The New York Times the author writes, “A curious book, a mystical, glamourous story of today.” (Clark) The Great Gatsby was given a lot of praise when it was first published. It also became the picture of the “Roaring