Born in 1896 in Saint Paul, Minnesota to an upper middle class Catholic family, Fitzgerald was named after his famous second cousin, Francis Scott Key, but was referred to as "Scott," hence the pen name F. Scott Fitzgerald. He was also named after his deceased sister, Louise Scott, one of two sisters who died shortly before his birth. His parents were Mollie and Edward Fitzgerald.
Childhood
Scott spent the first 10 years of his childhood primarily in Buffalo, New York (1898–1901 and 1903–1908, with a short time in Syracuse, New York between 1901 and 1903). His parents, both practicing Catholics, sent Scott to two Catholic schools on the West Side of Buffalo, first Holy Angels Convent and then Nardin Academy. His younger years in Buffalo revealed him to be a boy of unusual intelligence and drive with a keen early interest in literature, his doting mother ensuring that her son had all the advantages of an upper-middle-class upbringing. In a rather interesting style of parenting, Scott attended Holy Angels with the peculiar arrangement that he go for only half a day, and was allowed to choose which half.
Teen- College
When Scott was ten years old, his father was fired from Procter & Gamble, and the family returned to Minnesota, where Fitzgerald attended St. Paul Academy in St. Paul from 1908–1911. His first published work, a detective story, was published in a school newspaper when he was 13. When he was 16, he was expelled from St. Paul Academy for neglecting his studies. He attended Newman School, a prep school in Hackensack, New Jersey, in 1911–1912, and entered Princeton University in 1913 as a member of the Class of 1917.
There he became friends with future critics and writers Edmund Wilson and John Peale Bishop, and wrote for the Princeton Triangle Club and the Princeton Tiger. His absorption in the Triangle, a kind of musical-comedy society, led to his submission of a novel to Charles Scribner's Sons where the editor praised the writing but ultimately rejected the book.
Influences
The 1920s proved the most influential decade of Fitzgerald's development. The Great Gatsby, considered his masterpiece, was published in 1925. Fitzgerald made several excursions to Europe, mostly Paris and the French Riviera, and became friends with many members of the American expatriate community in Paris, notably Ernest Hemingway. Fitzgerald’s friendship with Hemingway was quite vigorous, as many of Fitzgerald’s relationships would prove to be. Hemingway did not get on well with Zelda. In addition to describing her as "insane" he claimed that she “encouraged her husband to drink so as to distract Scott from his work on his novel."
While at a country club, Fitzgerald met Zelda Sayre (1900–1948), the "golden girl," in Fitzgerald's terms, of Montgomery, Alabama youth society. Fitzgerald attempted to lay a foundation for his life with Zelda. Scott returned to his parents' house at 599 Summit Avenue, on Cathedral Hill, in St. Paul, to revise The Romantic Egoist. Recast as This Side of Paradise, about the post-WWI flapper generation, it was accepted by Scribner's in the fall of 1919, and Zelda and Scott resumed their engagement. Scott and Zelda were married in New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral. Their only child, Frances Scott "Scottie" Fitzgerald, was born on October 26, 1921 and died on June 16, 1986.
Questions
1. In all honesty Fitzgerald left because of Zelda's influence and prohibition. When alcohol was banned in America he needed somewhere to drink.
2. Fitzgerald did not do all that much notable work, his reasoning behind Paris I feel mainly must have been Zelda's choice.
Sample of Art
Fitzgerald did no work in Paris but his most well known work must be the great gatsby.
"I hope she'll be a fool--that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool... You see, I think everything's terrible anyhow... And I know. I've been everywhere and seen everything and done everything."
- F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Ch. 1
3. I love the Great Gatsby it's extremely inspirational to me. It's one of the greatest literary works of the century. Fitzgerald's writing style and tone are absolutely captivating.
4. I would love to read more work by Fitzgerald. But sadly there is not much work done by Fitzgerald in the height of his life.
No comments:
Post a Comment