F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, and the Roaring 20’s

Mr. Moccia’s English III IB

Some books attract the label “American novel”

What do we mean when we say this? What characteristics would we expect of a

novel of this label? The Scarlet Letter, Huck Finn, Grapes of

Wrath, Catcher in the Rye, Slaughter House Five, On the Road, To Kill a Mockingbird

A Brief Sketch of the Man

Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald: 1896 – 1940

Widely regarded as one of the twentieth century's greatest writers

Early Life

Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, to an upper-middle class Irish Catholic household Aggressive mother and retiring father

He attended

a prep school

in Hackensack,

New Jersey

College Years

Entered Princeton University

A poor student, Fitzgerald left Princeton to enlist in the US Army during World War I

However, the war ended shortly after Fitzgerald's enlistment

Zelda Sayre

Fitzgerald met Zelda Sayre and they were engaged in 1919

He was unable to convince Zelda that he would be able to support her, leading her to break off the engagement

Zelda continued…

This Side of Paradise (1919) about the post-WWI generation His big break, publically and financially

Zelda and Scott resumed their engagement Scott and Zelda were married in New York's

St. Patrick's Cathedral Video game?

The Roaring 20’s!

The 1920s proved the most influential decade of Fitzgerald's development (Gatsby)

Fitzgerald made several excursions to Europe, notably Paris and the French Riviera, and became friends with many members of the American expatriate community in Paris Ernest Hemingway

An Odd Couple…

The marriage was mixed—both destructive and constructive Fitzgerald drew largely

upon his wife's intense and flamboyant personality in his writings

Argued and fought --- both drank --- she gets Schizophrenia

There were other women after (and during?) Zelda

Tough Times

Fitzgerald supplemented his income by writing short stories for such magazines “whoring myself”

Fitzgerald had been an alcoholic since his college days, and became notorious during the 1920s for his extraordinarily heavy drinking, leaving him in poor health by the late 1930s

Later Life

Worked for Hollywood (whoring)

Had either tuberculosis or alcoholism

Fitzgerald suffered two heart attacks in late 1940

Died in his apartment on Dec 21

His Legacy

His work, while popular for a time, was generally ignored by his death He died thinking he was a failure

It wasn’t until after his death that he became extremely popular

And it wasn't until a little after this that he became the legend he is today

The Great Gatsby

A product of his most prosperous time in the roaring 20’s He named these times the

“Jazz Age” Not popular upon its initial

printing Second in the Modern Library's

list of the 100 Best Novels of

the 20th Century

Roaring Twenties!

Age of decadence Flappers Time of prohibition (1920-

1933) Jazz Age

Ford Model T

The Flappers

Novel invites the reader to enter the Jazz Age: fast cars, wild parties, and shady business dealings

Promotes discussion of values-glittering world of the Roaring Twenties as well as the artificiality and moral bankruptcy of the society Fitzgerald depicts

Gatsby’s world is characterized by excessive opulence

"That was always my experience-- a poor boy in a rich town; a poor boy in a rich boy's school; a poor boy in a rich man's club at Princeton ... . However, I have never been able to forgive the rich for being rich, and it has colored my entire life and works."

-F. Scott Fitzgerald