SCOTT FITZGERALD’S LIFE. The critic Terry Teachout changes his mind in this post and this post about Scott Fitzgerald’s life. In the first post, Teachout expresses what I have thought about the pain and degradation that Fitzgerald’s alcoholism brought him. In the second, a commenter points out that Fitzgerald remained kind and generous throughout his decline and that he continued to write honestly. The commenter changed my mind as well as Teachout’s with his praise for how Fitzgerald dealt with his demons. Fitzgerald’s kindness and generosity show in his writing. One of the things that makes GATSBY a great book is the wisdom of the narrative.
Categories
Archives
Recent Comments
- ARE PEOPLE LESS VIOLENT? (COMMENT). (2)
- Dick Weisfelder: My prior comment was just in the context of sports. Whether or not from Pinker, I have seen the...
- erik: It seems doubtful that human nature has changed. The most likely explanation would be that modern culture gives...
- HOW BANKS PREPARED FOR A U.S. DEFAULT. (2)
- GREECE’S ADVANTAGE IN THE CHICKEN GAME. (2)
- Nick: That makes sense. It reminds me of the stories Pater Familias would tell me about how in Boston the person with...
- Dick Weisfelder: Greece seems to me to be playing a game that Karl Deutsch called “underdog.” While one...
- FOOTBALL PLAYERS DELIBERATELY CAUSING CONCUSSIONS? (3)
- Nick: It was my understanding that boxing gloves were to protect the puncher’s hands and not the...
- Dick Weisfelder: Remember the Roman arenas? Bare knuckled boxing? Such injuries were taken as natural and accepted in...
- Mary Jane Schaefer: This isn’t about football. Or even sportsmanship. Well, it is about sportsmanship. But what...
- A 25 % CHANCE OF A EURO DEFAULT? (1)
- Nick: The fact that this has gone on for so long is pretty perplexing. The Economist is referring back to articles it...
- DECIDING WHAT KIND OF PATIENT YOU ARE. (1)
- Dick Weisfelder: One can be very open to new technology, but also risk averse. The recent debates about how to...
- THE EUROZONE—A CHICKEN GAME WHERE EVERY MEMBER CAN BLOW IT UP? (1)
- Mary Jane Schaefer: This is not a matter of chicken. These are all turkeys.
- ARE PEOPLE LESS VIOLENT? (COMMENT). (2)
Meta
Today in class Dr. Mangum read Hemingway’s recollection of first meeting Fitzgerald and it was amazingly insulting—he might as well have come out and called Fitzgerald a dandy fop. Still, there seemed to be a slight sense of some sort of respect present.
Also of interest was a replica of Fitzgerald’s ledger that was shown, in which he kept exhaustive notes of when he completed, revised, and sold stories, what he got paid, etc. Dr. Mangum commented that it’s amazing a writer who had such a messy life could have kept such a record.
But boy, did those guys do some heroic drinking!