F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender Is The Night

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The Easterlin paradox was a concept that was created by a USC professor, Richard Easterlin who has stated that "...high incomes do correlate with happiness, but long term, increased income doesn't correlate with increased happiness." (Easterlin, 90). In the book, “Tender is the Night”, F. Scott Fitzgerald characterizes the calamitous and dangers of losing oneself while also eradicating the illusion of everlasting love in a world of the beau monde. F. Scott Fitzgerald was born on September 24, 1896 in Saint Paul, Minnesota. His mother, Mollie Mcquillan Fitzgerald was raised in the upper class while his father Edward Fitzgerald was raised in the middle class. Due to his opinion on his mother’s lack of beauty, F. Scott Fitzgerald was embarrassed…show more content…
He was also inspired to relive his college days from Princeton. This can connect to his patterns of including characters involved in a prestige group in his stories. Another inspiration was his wife Zelda. In the book, “Tender is the Night”, featured a schizophrenic character named Nicole Diver who was influenced by Fitzgerald’s wife’s condition. Many of Fitzgerald’s stories rely on his failed dreams of fitting in with the upper class. He knew that being in the upper class was more of a birthright despite all of his hard work. He continued to let his characters indulge in the fantasy of being a socialite who inherited their living. This connected with Fitzgerald’s other works such as This Side of Paradise, The Beautiful and Damned, and his most popular work, The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald’s works were unsuccessfully appreciated during their releases therefore he did not win any literary awards and considered himself to be a failure. One reason that “Tender is the Night” failed, was due to the event arrangement and of how the timeline jumped from past to present with an inconsistent flow which made it difficult for the reader to…show more content…
Scott Fitzgerald’s writing varies for everyone has their own opinion. In a positive criticism, William E. Doherty states in the article "Tender is the Night and Ode to a Nightingale", “...Has the ability for the author to reveal his personal life into the main plot and have the characters reflect himself, his wife, the people he wished to be and deliver it so the reader could relate.” (Doherty, 184). Also, due to the large storylines, the reader is is able to choose how they perceive the large, deeper meaning of the book. “Tender is the Night” was greatly revised since F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote the book within nine years. William E. Doherty also describes F. Scott Fitzgerald’s writing techniques stating, “...shows a promising side of a beautiful garden in an illusionary world.” (Doherty, 181). Yet there are critics out there who do not agree or enjoy F. Scott Fitzgerald’s writing style. Since the book was written within nine years, the author’s tone changed which can be both confusing and difficult for the reader to follow. Also, some people consider “Tender is the Night” as too complex and how it is the “usual” F. Scott Fitzgerald storylines. Although that may be the case, it is written beautifully and the complexity adds to the realness of how difficult life can
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