Great GatsbyBackground Notes

February 18, 2008

F. Scott Fitzgerald1. Born in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1896, family

lived off his mother’s inheritance2. Attended Princeton for a year, then joined the

army in 19173. Zelda 1st broke off engagement because she

was unwilling to live on his small salary in the advertisement business

• Later married him in 1920 after his first novel This Side of Paradise was successful

4. They had frequent domestic rows and their daughter “Scottie” attended boarding school

Fitzgerald cont’d5. Started writing Great Gatsby while in France in

1924• Gatsby received great praise from critics but

disappointing sales6. Met Ernest Hemingway in Paris, then unknown

as a writer7. Zelda had a mental breakdown and spent the

rest of her life in sanitariums starting in 1932• Zelda wrote an autobiography while a patient,

angering her husband for stealing his material8. Fitzgerald died of a heart attack in 1940 with

his obituaries calling him a failure as a writer

Fitzgerald Clip

QuickTime™ and aSorenson Video 3 decompressorare needed to see this picture.

The Lost Generation1. Phrase “the lost generation” first coined by Gertrude

Stein but popularized by Ernest Hemingway2. Refers to the generation of young people coming of

age in the US during and shortly after WWI3. They were disillusioned with the large number of

casualties during WWI and prudish Victorian notions of morality

4. Some complained that American art lacked breadth of European work, causing them to spend large amounts of time in Europe

5. They produced jazz music - first distinctly American art form

6. Five members include Sinclair Lewis, Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot, Cole Porter and F. Scott Fitzgerald

Flappers in the Roaring Twenties1. Before WWI the Gibson Girl with long

straight skirts and high collars was fashionable - allowing women to participate in sports like golf

2. WWI vets found it difficult to settle down to a humdrum routine as if nothing had happened

• After nearly a generation of men died at war, women were not willing to waste away their youth waiting for spinsterhood, but decided to enjoy life

Flappers cont’d3. Flappers described young girls in the

US and Britain who were ideally “lovely, expensive and about nineteen”

4. Defined as “a giddy, attractive and slightly unconventional young thing…inclined to revolt against the precepts and admonitions of her elders”

5. New trends included losing corsets and dropping waists to the hipline, hair was bobbed and more makeup was worn

Prohibition1. 1st began in the 1840s by Methodists, revived in 1880s with

Women’s Christian Temperance Union and the Prohibition Party and the Anti- Saloon League in 1900s

2. The 18th amendment enacted Prohibition from 1920-1933• The 19th amendment granted women the vote3. 18th amendment specifically prohibited the “manufacture, sale,

or transportation of intoxicating liquors within or into the US” but the the Dry Law allowed small quantities of home made wine for personal use

4. Mississippi was the last state to repeal in 19665. Social problems included the black market and racketeering

when powerful gangs corrupted law enforcement agencies6. Three fun facts = the KKK strongly supported Prohibition, Carrie

nation fought for Prohibition by destroying bottles with a hatchet, and other activists enforced by entering saloons singing and praying

Prohibition Clip

QuickTime™ and aSorenson Video 3 decompressorare needed to see this picture.

Long Island1. Fitzgerald lived in Great Neck area of Long

Island which became West Egg in the book

2. Long island is almost 1400 square miles with a current population of 7.5 million3. So named because it is much longer than it is wide but the Native American name was Paumanok meaning “the island that pays tribute”

Long Island cont’d4. Known for affluence and high

quality of life (2nd richest county in New York State behind Manhattan)

5. Suffolk county known for its beach towns, including the renowned Hamptons

6. Also known for its strong middle class and people committed to family living and community events

Stoddard’s Rising Tide of Color1. Usually paired with racism and white supremacy2. Written in 19203. Stoddard argued that the number of non-whites

was growing rapidly and would soon overtake the white hegemony

4. Stoddard thought the Japanese were the most serious threat with highly intelligent children who could quickly overtake Western techniques

5. Stoddard’s “hope” for the future is that whites would rediscover that “race is destiny”

6. Similar books of the time include Mankind at the Crossroads and Race and National Solidarity

Black Sox Scandal1. Cincinnati Reds beat Chicago White Sox 5

games to 3 - but it was fixed!2. “Sleepy Bill” Burns and Billy Maharg first

initiated, getting white sox players Ed Cicotte and Arnold “Chick” Gandil’s initial support

3. Eight players were indicted and banned for life4. “Shoeless” Joe Jackson seemed relatively

innocent because he set a record with 12 hits and the only home run hit during the entire series

5. “Shoeless” Joe is quoted saying before he died, “I am going to meet the greatest umpire of all - and He knows I’m innocent.”