Gatsby+connection+to+Fitzgerald

In //The Great Gatsby//, parallels can be drawn between the novel and Scott Fitzgeralds own life. Parallels that can be drawn between //The Great Gatsby// and its author include Gatsby and Fitzgerald's desire for success through failure, the fact that Gatsby and Fitzgerald both "loved and lost", as well as Fitzgerald and Gatsby's shared quirks, such as alcoholism.

The first parallel that can be drawn between //The Great Gatsby// and Scott Fitzgerald's own life is the dreams of success that drive both Jay Gatsby and Scott Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald was never able to attain the fame that he pursued throughout his literary life, but was able to live out his dreams of wealth and success through Jay Gatsby. Like Fitzgerald, Gatsby came from unextrordinary begginings. Fitzgerald may not have started out Gatsby with mounds of wealth simply to make his own situation more realistic. In other words, Fitzgerald was still clinging to the hopes of prosperity despite not being born into lavish wealth.

The next similarity between Fitzgerald's life and Jay Gatsby's life is both of their strong opinions of alcohol. In the nove, Gatsby was portrayed as a strong anti- alcoholic, who never touched an alcoholic beverage, not even at his own parties. He acts this way because in his earlier life, Gatsby had to take care of a man who was drunk all the time. His experiences convinced Gatsby of the harmful effect alcohol has on the body. Like Gatsby, Fitzgerald also has his share of experiences with alcohol. Fitzgerald was a heavy alcoholic through most of his life, but attempted abstinence later in his life. His experiences of withdrawl were probably the basis of Gatsby's choice to abstain from drinking.

The last parallel that can be drawn between Gatsby and Fitzgerald is their love lives. In //The Great Gatsby//, Gatsby devotes his life to wooing the beautiful Daisy Buchanan. Like Gatsby, Fitzgerald also devoted much of his time to trying to impress the lovely Zelda. Unlike Gatsby, however, Fitzgerald succeeded in his quest for love and ended up marrying Zelda.

Because of the obvious similarities between Scott Fitzgerald's life and the storyline of //The Great Gatsby//, it is obvious that Fitzgerald has used experiences in his own life to shape the world Jay Gatsby lives in.

In addition to giving insignt into Scott Fitzgerald's personal life, The Great Gatsby also has several references to the 20's time period throughout his book. Examples in each chapter are shown as follows:
 * Chapter 1 - The novel begins with the narrator, Nick, entering a rich community. Chapter 1 helps reflect the "live for today" lifestyle that is supported in the novel.
 * Chapter 2 - Chapter 2 itterates that not everything is as it seems in this time period. Just outside of the rich community is a bleak place, called the "City of Ashes." The poorer inhabitants are shown in contrast to the rich ones, who cannot fully appreciate their social positions so many dream of.