F. Scott Fitzgerald (Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald) was known for his short stories and novels of times in the 1920's. He was wealthy and often wrote about wealthy people.
Fitzgerald was born on September 24, 1896 in Saint Paul, Minnesota. His father, Edward, was a salesman and his mother, Mary, was a wholesale grocer. He began to write and had his first story published, "The Mystery of the Raymond Mortgage" in 1909. He attended Princeton University from 1913 to 1917 and dropped out because of bad grades.
He joined the U.S. Army for a while then left that too and worked at an advertising agency for short time in 1919. Another story, "Babes in the Woods", was published. He met another aspiring writer, Zelda Sayre, in 1918 and they later got married in 1920. His first novel was This Side of Paradise. Fitzgerald celebrated his great success by throwing extravagant parties.
Zelda gave birth to their first child in 1921. The Beautiful and Damned was his second novel and did not achieve the successfulness of his first novel. In 1924, he moved to Europe and met other writers such as Ernest Hemingway and Gertrude Stein. The Great Gatsby was published and Fitzgerald was not satisfied with the money the book made.
He traveled between the U.S. and Europe for the next five years and his marriage struggled. He worked as a Hollywood screenwriter for a while and then did not write anything between 1934 and 1936. Fitzgerald was an alcoholic and Zelda had many mental breakdowns causing publicity. In 1937, he met a gossip columnist, Sheilah Graham. He spent the rest of his life living with her. He began another novel The Last Tycoon and never finished it because of his death on December 21, 1940. Zelda later died in 1948.
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Plot Synopsis Nick Carraway, the narrator, moves to a wealthy area in New York from Minnesota. Nick’s neighbor is Jay Gatsby, who Nick has never met and is a mystery. Nick goes to have dinner at his cousin, Daisy Buchanan's, house and her husband, Tom. Nick is introduced to Jordan Butler and that Tom has a secret lover, Myrtle Wilson. Soon after, Nick travels with Tom to visit Myrtle.
Eventually, Nick gains an invitation to one of Gatsby's famous parties. He finally meets Gatsby who is a friendly, young man. Nick soon learns Gatsby had a romantic past with Daisy and is still madly in love with her. Gatsby throws these parties to impress Daisy. He wants Nick to organize a meeting for them. Gatsby is worried Daisy will not want to see if she knows how much he still loves her. Nick invites Daisy to his house. Gatsby and Daisy fall in love with each other again and they start an affair.
Tom begins to become suspicious of Daisy and Gatsby’s relationship. He eventually figures out about their affair. Even though he is involved in an affair himself, he is livid. He confronts Gatsby at the hotel and claims Daisy and him have something special. He brings up the fact that Gatsby has made all of his money by being a bootlegger.
As Nick, Jordan, and Tom drive home, they find that Myrtle, Tom's secret lover, has been killed in a hit and run accident. When they arrive home, Nick learns Daisy was driving the car but Gatsby is going to take the blame… Now what will happen? Will Daisy and Gatsby stay together? Read to find out!
Genre:The Great Gastsby has several genres. Modernist novel, Jazz Age novel, novel of manners are possible genres. This story takes place during the Jazz Age and it greatly influences the events in the book. This story focuses more on the development of the character then the plot.
Style: The author likes to begin a sentence with an idea, person, or location and then it end somewhere totally different. He draws great connections.The Great Gatsby is told from the point of view of Nick Carraway, one of the main characters. Nick gives the reader flashbacks to give background on Gatsby then flashes forward to foreshadow. Nick is then influenced by Gatsby through observations about experiences. The setting is an important part of The Great Gatsby. The East and West Egg have similar contrasts in the culture. The setting is also important to the characters because most of the setting takes place where the characters live. Some of the main characters started off in the West then moved to the East. Nick cannot adapt to life in East Egg and ends up moving back to the Midwest. Another importance is the ash heaps between New York City and Long Island. This is where modern life destructs the past values. Nick believes the modern world is that God is dead and the men make a valley of ashes.
Literary Analysis
Nick Carraway’s observations and feelings towards the events and characters of the book are fundamental to The Great Gatsby. This is Nick’s way to understand the meaning of his role in the story. Nick does not have a positive reaction to New York expect for meeting Gatsby. Nick admires Gatsby even though what makes up Gatsby is what Nick dislikes most about New York. Nick truly admires Gatsby because he compares Gatsby to Jesus Christ to compare the formation of his identity. “[Gatsby] was a son of God—a phrase which, if it means anything, means just that—and he must be about His Father’s business” (98). The idea stays dedicated that even though the challenges society gave the fulfillment of his dream to become wealthy and successful. Nick does not find out Gatsby's hidden agenda until the end which helps him understand Gatsby more. The information is first passed through Jordan. "I beg your pardon, but Mr. Gatsby would like to speak to [Jordan Baker] alone" (50). Gatsby set this whole thing up so Nick could get him and Daisy back together. I understand where Gatsby is coming from by asking Nick to reunite them again. Gatsby has not talked to Daisy since they were together and is concerned if she would want to see him. He must be nervous to see the love of his life after many years of no communication.
In the world of East Egg, the truth is often covered. Tom and Daisy’s marriage seems pleasant on the outside but is the opposite. Tom is full of himself and untruthful. He is involved in a fairly public affair. "[Jordan] thought everyone knew" (15). Jordan is telling Nick about Tom's affair when the mistress calls during dinner. Daisy attempts to be shallow because women are supposed to be like that. "And I hope she'll be a fool-that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool" (17). If Daisy has a daugther, she wants her to be a fool. A girl was supposed to have more fun if she is beautiful. Jordan Baker’s doubt, boredom, and deceitfulness are going against her wealth and beauty.
Criticism
Over all, The Great Gatsby was a great read. The only criticism I have is the affair between Tom and Myrtle. I did not find their relationship as important to the story. It only added another character that was hardly in the book. Myrtle is a very flat character and much is not know about her. She has one slightly significant role in the book when she is killed. From what was described in the book, Tom and Myrtle did not have much of a relationship. They did not talk or meet often and did not add to the plot of the story.
On the other hand, F. Scott Fitzgerald does a great job at describing the setting. He uses very descriptive words and while i was reading I could picture the setting in my head. The setting is an important part of this book since is relates to the author's style. Most of the other characters have developed well and have a significant role in the story. Nick and Gatsby are the main characters and Gatsby is described in depth. Even though Nick is the narrator, not much background is given about him. His opinions on the other characters are very clear but not so much as him as a person.
The Great Gatsby
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Author Biography
Fitzgerald was born on September 24, 1896 in Saint Paul, Minnesota. His father, Edward, was a salesman and his mother, Mary, was a wholesale grocer. He began to write and had his first story published, "The Mystery of the Raymond Mortgage" in 1909. He attended Princeton University from 1913 to 1917 and dropped out because of bad grades.
He joined the U.S. Army for a while then left that too and worked at an advertising agency for short time in 1919. Another story, "Babes in the Woods", was published. He met another aspiring writer, Zelda Sayre, in 1918 and they later got married in 1920. His first novel was This Side of Paradise. Fitzgerald celebrated his great success by throwing extravagant parties.
Zelda gave birth to their first child in 1921. The Beautiful and Damned was his second novel and did not achieve the successfulness of his first novel. In 1924, he moved to Europe and met other writers such as Ernest Hemingway and Gertrude Stein. The Great Gatsby was published and Fitzgerald was not satisfied with the money the book made.
He traveled between the U.S. and Europe for the next five years and his marriage struggled. He worked as a Hollywood screenwriter for a while and then did not write anything between 1934 and 1936. Fitzgerald was an alcoholic and Zelda had many mental breakdowns causing publicity. In 1937, he met a gossip columnist, Sheilah Graham. He spent the rest of his life living with her. He began another novel The Last Tycoon and never finished it because of his death on December 21, 1940. Zelda later died in 1948.
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For more information on the author: Biography 1 Biography 2
Plot Synopsis
Nick Carraway, the narrator, moves to a wealthy area in New York from Minnesota. Nick’s
Eventually, Nick gains an invitation to one of Gatsby's famous parties. He finally meets Gatsby who is a friendly, young man. Nick soon learns Gatsby had a romantic past with Daisy and is still madly in love with her. Gatsby throws these parties to impress Daisy. He wants Nick to organize a meeting for them. Gatsby is worried Daisy will not want to see if she knows how much he still loves her. Nick invites Daisy to his house. Gatsby and Daisy fall in love with each other again and they start an affair.
Tom begins to become suspicious of Daisy and Gatsby’s relationship. He eventually figures out about their affair. Even though he is involved in an affair himself, he is livid. He confronts Gatsby at the hotel and claims Daisy and him have something special. He brings up the fact that Gatsby has made all of his money by being a bootlegger.
As Nick, Jordan, and Tom drive home, they find that Myrtle, Tom's secret lover, has been killed in a hit and run accident. When they arrive home, Nick learns Daisy was driving the car but Gatsby is going to take the blame… Now what will happen? Will Daisy and Gatsby stay together? Read to find out!
For more information check this out! The Great Gatsby J.H.
Literary Information
Genre: The Great Gastsby has several genres. Modernist novel, Jazz Age novel, novel of manners are possible genres. This story takes place during the Jazz Age and it greatly influences the events in the book. This story focuses more on the development of the character then the plot.
Style: The author likes to begin a sentence with an idea, person, or location and then it end somewhere totally different. He draws great connections. The Great Gatsby is told from the point of view of Nick Carraway, one of the main characters. Nick gives the reader flashbacks to give background on Gatsby then flashes forward to foreshadow. Nick is then influenced by Gatsby through observations about experiences.
The setting is an important part of The Great Gatsby. The East and West Egg have similar contrasts in the culture. The setting is also important to the characters because most of the setting takes place where the characters live. Some of the main characters started off in the West then moved to the East. Nick cannot adapt to life in East Egg and ends up moving back to the Midwest. Another importance is the ash heaps between New York City and Long Island. This is where modern life destructs the past values. Nick believes the modern world is that God is dead and the men make a valley of ashes.
Literary Analysis
Nick Carraway’s observations and feelings towards the events and characters of the book are fundamental to The Great Gatsby. This is Nick’s way to understand the meaning of his role in the story. Nick does not have a positive reaction to New York expect for meeting Gatsby. Nick admires Gatsby even though what makes up Gatsby is what Nick dislikes most about New York. Nick truly admires Gatsby because he compares Gatsby to Jesus Christ to compare the formation of his identity. “[Gatsby] was a son of God—a phrase which, if it means anything, means just that—and he must be about His Father’s business” (98). The idea stays dedicated that even though the challenges society gave the fulfillment of his dream to become wealthy and successful. Nick does not find out Gatsby's hidden agenda until the end which helps him understand Gatsby more. The information is first passed through Jordan. "I beg your pardon, but Mr. Gatsby would like to speak to [Jordan Baker] alone" (50). Gatsby set this whole thing up so Nick could get him and Daisy back together. I understand where Gatsby is coming from by asking Nick to reunite them again. Gatsby has not talked to Daisy since they were together and is concerned if she would want to see him. He must be nervous to see the love of his life after many years of no communication.In the world of East Egg, the truth is often covered. Tom and Daisy’s marriage seems pleasant on the outside but is the opposite. Tom is full of himself and untruthful. He is involved in a fairly public affair. "[Jordan] thought everyone knew" (15). Jordan is telling Nick about Tom's affair when the mistress calls during dinner. Daisy attempts to be shallow because women are supposed to be like that. "And I hope she'll be a fool-that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool" (17). If Daisy has a daugther, she wants her to be a fool. A girl was supposed to have more fun if she is beautiful. Jordan Baker’s doubt, boredom, and deceitfulness are going against her wealth and beauty.
Criticism
Over all, The Great Gatsby was a great read. The only criticism I have is the affair between Tom and Myrtle. I did not find their relationship as important to the story. It only added another character that was hardly in the book. Myrtle is a very flat character and much is not know about her. She has one slightly significant role in the book when she is killed. From what was described in the book, Tom and Myrtle did not have much of a relationship. They did not talk or meet often and did not add to the plot of the story.
On the other hand, F. Scott Fitzgerald does a great job at describing the setting. He uses very descriptive words and while i was reading I could picture the setting in my head. The setting is an important part of this book since is relates to the author's style. Most of the other characters have developed well and have a significant role in the story. Nick and Gatsby are the main characters and Gatsby is described in depth. Even though Nick is the narrator, not much background is given about him. His opinions on the other characters are very clear but not so much as him as a person.
Other Books You Might Enjoy:
This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Love of the Last Tycoon by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby Movie Trailer