Compare And Contrast F Scott Fitzgerald And The Great Gatsby

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F. Scott Fitzgerald used his novel, The Great Gatsby, demonstrate his rise from poverty to great wealth and expose the skewed morality of the upper classes of America. Born on September 24, 1896 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald, or as he is better known F. Scott Fitzgerald, would grow to be one of the greatest American writers of the 1920’s. Though he was the only son of Edward and Mary Fitzgerald, he did have one sister, Louise. As a boy, Fitzgerald attended St Paul’s Academy. It was here that he began writing stories for his school newspaper when he was only thirteen years old. Although he never went to war, Fitzgerald drafted into the armed forces in 1918 and stationed in Montgomery, Alabama. During this time, F.
Scott Fitzgerald and his fictional character Jay Gatsby. In chapter four, it is revealed that the mysterious Jay Gatsby was originally from the Midwest, until he is drafted into the armed forces and then moved south (Fitzgerald 70-73). Jimmy Gatz’s life before he became Jay Gatsby is very similar to the life of F. Scott Fitzgerald before he became a famous writer. Both fell in love with a Southern debutante while stationed in the south. Also, both Fitzgerald and Gatsby come from poorer backgrounds; they found their fortunes on their own, making them labeled as “new money”. While many similarities are present between the Jay Gatsby and F. Scott Fitzgerald, few differences are seen. Both Fitzgerald and Jay Gatsby attended college, but Gatsby never finished his education. Fitzgerald married the woman he fell in love with, Zelda; Gatsby never married Daisy. The way the two made their money was also very different. Fitzgerald earned his money through his writings. Gatsby was a bootlegger, selling illegal
The Great Gatsby only received a one paragraph review in the May 11, 1925 issue of TIME Magazine. In a 1933 article published in TIME, though, Gertrude Stein predicted “Fitzgerald will be read when many of his well known contemporaries are forgotten” (“Read...Gatsby’”). Little did she and many of the original reviews of The Great Gatsby know that this novel would become such a huge success. Ralph Coghlan, of the St. Louis Dispatch, reviewed the book on April 25, 1925 stating “Altogether is seems to us this book is a minor performance. At the moment, its author seems a bit bored and tired and cynical... is no ebullience here, nor...any mellowness or profundity. For our part, The Great Gatsby might just as well be called Ten Nights on Long Island” (Reach). Another critic from The Dallas Morning News

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