The Great Gatsby and its criticism of American society during the 1920s, F. Scott Fitzgerald claimed the distinction of writing what many consider to be the "great American novel." Critical Companion to F.

Publisher Description (unedited publisher data) Eleven specially-commissioned essays by major Fitzgerald scholars present a clearly written and comprehensive assessment of F. Scott Fitzgerald as a writer and as a public and private figure. No aspect of his career is overlooked, from his first novel published in 1920, through his more than 170 short stories, to his last unfinished Hollywood novel. Contributions present the reader with a full and accessible picture of the background of American social and cultural change in the early decades of the twentieth century. The introduction traces Fitzgerald's career as a literary and public figure, and examines the extent to which public recognition has affected his reputation among scholars, critics, and general readers over the past sixty years. This is the only volume that offers undergraduates, graduates and general readers a full account of Fitzgerald's work as well as suggestions for further exploration of his work. Library of Congress subject headings for this publication: Fitzgerald, F, Scott (Francis Scott), 1896-1940 Criticism and interpretation Handbooks, manuals, etc.

The dazzling, romantic fiction of F. Scott Fitzgerald manages to captivate each new generation of readers. This critical introduction, written specifically for students, offers insightful yet accessible literary criticism for five novels: ^UThis Side of Paradise, The Beautiful and Damned, The Great Gatsby, Tender Is the Night, and ^UThe Last Tycoon. A full chapter is devoted to examining each of these works, with an indepth discussion of character development, thematic concerns and plot structure. The introduction to each novel traces its genesis and the critical reception it received at the time it was written. The historical context sections examine the ways visionary works like ^UThe Great Gatsby offer both a chronicle and a critique of the attitudes, dreams, and illusions of American society during the period between the First and Second World Wars. Students will also get a vivid sense of how life and art converged in the fiction of F. Scott Fitzgerald, the man who christened the Jazz Age. This introductory study features a biographical chapter that relates Fitzgerald's life to his work and a chapter that places his fiction within its historical and literary contexts. Five chapters analyze not only the basic literary components of plot, character, and theme, but also provide an alternate critical interpretation of each novel that enriches reader's understanding of the work's complexity and vision. A complete bibliography of Fitzgerald's works and a selected bibliography of critical and biographical sources complete this volume.

Entries cover the life and writings of Fitzgerald as well as significant letters, movie projects, fictional characters, and friends, family, and associates

Explores many of the important social, historical and cultural contexts surrounding the life and works of F. Scott Fitzgerald.

This critical study "reveals many heretofore unknown facts about the golden writer of the twenties and re-evaluates his writing within the context of his personal drama." -- Book jacket.

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s second novel, The Beautiful and Damned, has frequently been dismissed as an outlier and curiosity in his oeuvre, a transitional work from the coming-of-age plot of This Side of Paradise to the masterful critique of American aspiration in The Great Gatsby. The Beautiful and Damned belongs to a genre that is widely misunderstood, the “bright young things” novel in which spoiled and wealthy characters succumb to decay because of their privilege and lack of purpose. Set between 1913 and 1922, Fitzgerald’s longest novel touches on many of the decisive issues that mark the passage from the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era into the Jazz Age: conspicuous consumption, income inequality, yellow journalism, the Great War, the rise of the movie industry, automobile travel, Wall Street stock scams, immigration and xenophobia, and the fixation with youth and aging. Published to coincide with the novel’s centennial in 2022, this collection approaches The Beautiful and Damned for its insights more than its faults. Prominent Fitzgerald scholars analyze major themes and reveal unappreciated issues with attention to history, biography, literary influence, gender studies, and narratology. While acknowledging the novel’s shortcomings, the essayists illustrate that The Beautiful and Damned has much more to say about its milieu than previously recognized. This collection provides a guide for understanding Fitzgerald’s aims while demonstrating the richness of ideas that this novel explores, alongside the anxieties and ambitions that reverberate within it.