F. Scott Fitzgerald's stories “The Great Gatsby” and “Babylon Revisited” challenge standard notions of the term “love”. From failed marriages to secret mistresses, the concept and expression of love is consistently problematized. Love is consecrated in the act of marriage in these stories and yet it is hardly enough to maintain stable relationships. What does this mean for Fitzgerald's leading ladies? Are they able to manipulate the standard of love to gain autonomy and respect?
Fitzgerald’s short story Babylon Revisited was published six years after the release of his critically acclaimed novel The Great Gatsby. Known for his autobiographical sketches, Fitzgerald’s tales of post World War I fantasticism detail the journey of romantic ideals between man and woman. Both of these publications, alongside their motion picture counterparts, demonstrate that Fitzgerald’s presentation of love is not always through the romantic ideals that the emotion endorses. In an era where fantasy and extravagance were the norm, Fitzgerald’s demonstration of love transforms the emotion into a physical possession. Love becomes a purchasing power that Fitzgerald’s women use to gain autonomy and respect.
Table of Contents
- History Repeating
- A Daughter's Undertow
- Furtive Fools
Objectives and Key Themes
This work aims to analyze F. Scott Fitzgerald’s portrayal of love in his short story “Babylon Revisited” and novel "The Great Gatsby," considering their historical context and the author’s personal life. The analysis explores the concept of love as a power dynamic and how it is manifested in Fitzgerald’s female characters.
- Love as a form of power and control
- The relationship between love and autonomy
- The role of the “flapper girl” in Fitzgerald’s works
- The contrast between romantic ideals and reality
- The cyclical nature of love and its transmission through generations
Chapter Summaries
This section will offer summaries of each chapter of the text.
History Repeating
This section examines Fitzgerald's life and personal experiences, providing context for his depictions of love. It highlights the impact of his early relationship with Ginevra King and his later marriage to Zelda Sayre. The author's own romantic pursuits and their relationship with his writing are explored.
A Daughter's Undertow
This section analyzes the dynamics between Charlie Wales and his daughter Honoria in "Babylon Revisited." It focuses on how Honoria manipulates love as a bargaining chip to gain power over her father, demonstrating the influence of "flapper girl" ideals on younger generations. The section also explores the role of other female characters, such as Charlie's sister-in-law, Marion, who control his access to his daughter.
Furtive Fools
This section delves into the character of Daisy Buchanan in "The Great Gatsby," examining how she uses love as a currency for her own convenience. The section highlights her manipulation of Gatsby and her desire for a life of luxury and indulgence. It further examines the character's relationship with her daughter, and her desire for her to be a "fool" in a world where love is a commodity.
Keywords
The main keywords and focus topics of this text include love as power, "flapper girls," autonomy, manipulation, romantic ideals, Fitzgerald's personal life, and the works "Babylon Revisited" and "The Great Gatsby."
- Quote paper
- Charlotte Ljustina (Author), 2014, Love as Power in F. Scott Fitzgerald's “The Great Gatsby” and “Babylon Revisited”, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/307716
