this side of paradise
Many critics have complained, with justice, that a great flaw in This Side of Paradise (aside from its loose, rambling structure) is the fact that the author seems uncertain as to his own attitude. He mocks the romantic delusions or emotional melodrama of his "little rich boy," Amory Blaine, while too often he shares, or seems to share, in the delusions themselves. There is, in short, a kind of "smart" pseudo-sophistication imbedded within the narrative itself-a series of "clever comments" inserted for the sake of the cleverness rather than for any aesthetic purpose. And one result of this aesthetic self-indulgence is that the reader may find it difficult to take either Amory or his adventures with any degree of seriousness at all. Indeed, one feels as though the author himself were doing what Amory does during the course of the narrative: he merely holds the posture of writing about what actually is a very slight matter. The need for some sort of imposing or melodramatic gesture is, of course, one of the chief qualities of Amory Blaine as an adolescent. That neither Amory nor his creator-F. Sc
There is a group of opposing powers which, struggling in the same individual, produces a high pitch of frenzied activity leading, finally, to self-neutralization, or self-immolation, and so producing nothing at all: a kind of ineffectuality created not by lack of power, but rather by the multi-directional proliferation of power in terms of romance and perpetual "desire. And then occurs an abrupt change from "romantic" mood ("their lips brushed like wild flowers in the wind," writes Fitzgerald) to one of actual repugnance: Amory, having touched the actual flesh of the girl, feels merely a "sudden revulsion . The advantage, of course, is that failure permits the protagonist to maintain his "superiority" unchallenged by the demands of achievement. The result, inevitably, is a continual disaffection with reality, together with an equally persistent dissatisfaction with the Ideal. "Futility And Desire The paradox of Amory Blaine, indeed, is the paradox of Fitzgerald himself. Failure As A Theme Failure emerges as a basic theme of This Side of Paradise - and of Fitzgerald's work as a whole. " The effect, of course, is that of a woman for whom all action is a matter of calculated performance. "You lack judgment," says Clara, "the judgment to decide at once when you know your imagination will play you false, given half a chance. Regis', he attempts to differentiate between the "philosophers" and the "slickers" of the campus world-which is, of course, a microcosm of the American world itself. Clair, for example, he is enchanted with the young girl until he actually kisses her. " For Clara perceives that Amory Blaine does not simply oppose reality with his own Idealism, but rather confuses one with the other, so that reality is virtually reshaped according to a dream-image that will be "spoiled" by any sort of real consummation. It is Clara Page, who-refusing to be turned into an object by Amory's emotional unreality-defines what is, perhaps, his essential weakness, and the weakness of the Fitzgerald Hero as a type.
Common topics in this essay:
Amory Blaine,
St Regis',
Princeton Amory's,
Chapter Paradise,
Blaine Beatrice,
Son Beatrice,
Isabelle Borge,
St Clair,
Beatrice Blaine,
Man' Amory,
amory blaine,
chapter paradise,
reality own,
amory blaine indeed,
ideal unwilling,
clara page,
beatrice blaine,
amory course,
st regis',
intellectual pursuits,
lack substance,
|
Acceptance Essays
