The 1920s and 1930s encompassed a period known as the Dazzling Jazz Age; a time known for famous musicians, speakeasies and dancing. It was during this time that an icon for this era emerged. F. Scott Fitzgerald made his presence known amongst key figures of this era as he composed many timeless classics including This Side of Paradise, The Beautiful is Damned, Tender is the Night, and most notably, The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald often consulted experiences in his own life in composing his literary works. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald creates the characters of Jay Gatsby and Nick Carraway by drawing from his own personality and lifestyle.
             Born in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1896, Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald attended St. Paul Academy and later the Newman School, where he was encouraged to write. After two years in the Newman School, Fitzgerald went to Princeton University; there he joined the Princeton Triangle Club and was a contributor to the Princeton Tiger. However, because of academic difficulties and the unlikelihood of graduation, Fitzgerald joined the army in 1917. One year later he met Zelda Sayre and they were engaged shortly after. The engagement intensified the hope Fitzgerald had for his novels. But because of his small salary and lack of success, Zelda broke off the engagement. In 1920, This Side of Paradise was published and Fitzgerald became an instant celebrity, and a week later he finally married Sayre. They had an extravagant life, travelling between Europe and America with endless parties on each coast. Fitzgerald's biggest hit came with the novel The Great Gatsby, in 1924. Although he died believing he was a failure at the age of 44, his novels were considered masterpieces and he achieved a permanent place among America's great writers.
             Fitzgerald's most prized work, The Great Gatsby, was, in a sense, based on his own experiences in life. Nick Carraway, the narrator of the story, is a young man who...