Amory Blaine Research Paper
Paul D Menges
Professors McGrath & Spedaliere
LITR 221: American Literature since the Civil War
March 22, 2015
Amory Blaine: Quintessentially American
Amory Blaine is introduced as a “romantic egoist,” whose narcissism remains a core character trait. Even if only based on his frivolity and life of riley, Amory would be a quintessentially American hero. Yet there is more to Amory’s American spirit than mere egoism. A contemporaneous reviewer in the 1920 The New York Times notes that Amory is “doing just what hundreds of thousands of young men are doing in colleges all over the country,” which is, not taking life too seriously and engaging in lively affairs and parties (“With College Men”). The 1920s were roaring boom years for the nation, and especially its upper middle class youth like Amory. Furthermore, Amory embodies a “glorious spirit of abounding youth,” and somewhat of a Peter Pan complex (“With College Men”). An increasing obsession with youth and a burgeoning youth culture do characterize the early decades of the twentieth century. Other features that make Amory Blaine uniquely American include his patriotic participation in the war effort, coupled with his sense of invincibility that derives at least in part from his never having to worry overly much about money. …show more content…
Amory also demonstrates the prevailing gender norms, shifting in light of the universal suffrage movement. His eternal freedom, his views toward work, his attitudes toward class and gender, his eternal youthfulness, and carefree attitude, and particularly his egotism combine to make Amory Blaine an “essentially American” character.
Descriptions of his father in the opening chapters of This Side of Paradise show that Amory’s apple did not fall far from the tree. His father is described as “an ineffectual, inarticulate man with a taste for Byron and a habit of drowsing over the Encyclopedia Britannica,” (p. 1). The contrast between his “taste for Byron” and his being “inarticulate” reveal the many class-based fissures prevalent in American society during the 1920s. Later in the novel, characters like Rosalind Connage highlight the fact that some Americans might still cultivate social hierarchies, but Amory’s world is one in which social class is self-determined. After all, Amory’s father did not grow wealthy from his own labors, but rather, inherited money from his brothers. Amory’s mother came from a wealthy background herself. As a result, Amory grew up in an atmosphere that taught that money might grow on trees, and that social class is only what one makes of it. As The New York Times reviewer put it, “Amory Blaine has a well-to-do father and a mother who lives the somewhat idle, luxurious life of a matron who has never known the pinch of even economy, much less of poverty, and the boy is the creature of his environment.” Thus, when Amory decides he will attend Princeton, it is not as if he has any bold or sweeping dreams for his future. He simply wants to have fun. Princeton turns out to be the ideal collegiate environment for the young man. Its campus life is characterized by its “riotous gayety, its superficial vices, and its punctilious sense of honor,” (“With College Men”).
By the 1920s, the United States had cultivated an image of itself as being invincible. Budding imperialistic tendencies, the campaigns of Theodore Roosevelt and the Spanish-American War, and other contextual variables would have impacted Amory’s own psyche. His ongoing egoism reflected the character of his birth nation. Likewise, Amory’s sense of self-importance and invincibility mirrored those traits in the United States. When Amory does not receive the accolades at Princeton he feels he deserves, instead of working harder, he simply quits. Amory reflects on his time at Princeton not in terms of how his education might enrich his soul or improve his ability to contribute to humanity. Instead, he muses on what good his education did for his ego. “He had conformed, he had succeeded, but as his imagination was neither satisfied nor grasped by his own success,” (Chapter 3). Amory is not the only one; his classmates likewise cultivate a sense of disillusionment with academia. Amory looks down on those who take school too seriously. “Amory was struck by Burne's intense earnestness, a quality he was accustomed to associate only with the dread stupidity, and by the great enthusiasm that struck dead chords in his heart,” (Chapter 4). For Amory and his peers, the American Dream meant achieving wealth through as little work possible, and living with as few responsibilities and obligations as possible, too. Because Amory achieves both of these goals admirably, he emerges as Fitzgerald’s classic American hero.
Amory’s name hints at the importance of romance in his life, and indeed, his romantic interludes become key moments in the character’s development. His affairs are as shallow and self-serving as Amory himself. He has numerous flirtations while in college and a few steady relationships. Isabelle he finds “theatrical,” a term that highlights his not taking life too seriously. Amory also admits outright he prefers what he calls “all-American” girls who are beautiful, perky, independent, and as interested in the pursuit of leisure above all else (Chapter 5). In addition to be attracted to the same type of personage as he, Amory divulges his taste in modern women who would be willing to subvert the outmoded Victorian gender norms. Women, as well as men, want to party and have fun. They are also interested in frivolous and lighthearted affairs with men, making the sexes “well matched,” (“With College Men”). Rosalind also lives up to Amory’s romantic ideal. She brags about the men she has kissed and is as self-absorbed and narcissistic as the egoist Amory himself. They make a perfect match, and the intensity of their affair consumes them both in a manner that is quintessentially American because it represents a type of escapism. Both Amory and Rosalind have left behind their dreams to do well in school or make something of their lives; both have relied on their families to provide for their financial needs; and both seek out maximum freedom.
Yet by the time Amory develops an intense enough attraction for Rosalind to consider spending the rest of his life with her, his family has lost most of its money. The seemingly unending font of security gone, Amory finds himself in the unique position of having to work for a living, and he chooses a profession conducive to his self-image, his egoism, and his idleness: writing. Writing was little more than a “useful concept” for Amory (West 54). The manner by which Amory’s family burned through its money is indicative of American spendthrift nature, its sense of invincibility and tendency to live just for the present moment. These uniquely American qualities are what made the nation’s youth culture as vibrant as it was, but also led to a roller coaster of emotions, successes, and failures such as those experienced by Amory. Unlike Rosalind, Amory values his freedom and lifestyle even more than money itself, for he develops a sense of self that transcends the desire to merely be wealthy or a member of a specific social class. After Rosalind breaks up with him, Amory’s reaction matches his personage as a free spirit; he overindulges in alcohol. Amory lives up to his name by revealing himself to be a die-hard romantic. His emotions consume him. As stubborn, willful, and short-sighted as American foreign policy would become during Amory’s lifetime, the man seeks comfort in the escapism of alcohol.
The dichotomies in Amory’s character are also definitively American. Prohibition was one of many dichotomous, ironic periods in the history of the nation. Like slavery or the prohibition of women from voting, prohibition represented the curtailing of freedoms in a nation that prided itself on the provision of freedoms. Amory remains a free man throughout This Side of Paradise, but his freedom constrains him and does not necessarily give him happiness. All he wants to do is party, but the pursuit of endless leisure leaves him alone and empty. Amory is deeply romantic and idealistic and yet cynical at the same time. He longs for the company of the educated and literate elite, but shuns opportunities to conform to an upper class lifestyle. Amory has a “profound distaste” for poverty, and yet he finds himself penniless (Book II, Chapter 5). The panoply of ironies that comprise Amory’s character reveal the connection between his persona and the personality of America itself.
When he meets Eleanor, Amory becomes willing to love and trust again after the despair of losing Rosalind but her own erratic behavior hits too close to home. The narcissist seems himself in the mirror and it shocks Amory to the point where his self-reflection becomes more honest. Amory is finally faced with the fact that he needs to mature and confront his faults, which is why the final section of the novel is called “The Egotist Becomes a Personage.” Yet even in his self-searching, Amory remains unwilling to change on a deeper level. He is self-absorbed and cynical to the end, unable to use self-reflection to any constructive ends. Without any hopes or dreams other than those that would serve the shallowness of his ego, Amory ends up a profoundly lonely and depressed man who nevertheless receives exactly what he always wanted: freedom.
The final line of This Side of Paradise also shows how Amory Blaine is an essentially American man.
“’I know myself," he cried, "but that is all.” The early twentieth century in America was a time of contradiction, hope, and idealism. Abuzz with newfound wealth from the industrial boom era, poised to become a global superpower, and drunk on its own success, America prided itself on its love of freedom and liberty. Yet beneath the surface remained a nation unwilling to confront some of its darker nature. Amory’s character parallels the growth of the nation through its late adulthood, as both the man and his country must become willing to take on greater responsibilities and a more global
outlook.
Works Cited
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. This Side of Paradise. Digital Copy: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/805/805-h/805-h.htm#link2HCH0003
West, James L. “The Question of Vocation in This Side of Paradise and The Beautiful and Dammed.” Chapter 3 in The Cambridge Companion to F. Scott Fitzgerald. Ed. Ruth Prigozy. Cambridge University Press, 2002.
“With College Men.” The New York Times. 9 May, 1920. Retrieved online: http://www.nytimes.com/books/00/12/24/specials/fitzgerald-paradise.html
Professors McGrath & Spedaliere
LITR 221: American Literature since the Civil War
March 22, 2015
Amory Blaine: Quintessentially American
Amory Blaine is introduced as a “romantic egoist,” whose narcissism remains a core character trait. Even if only based on his frivolity and life of riley, Amory would be a quintessentially American hero. Yet there is more to Amory’s American spirit than mere egoism. A contemporaneous reviewer in the 1920 The New York Times notes that Amory is “doing just what hundreds of thousands of young men are doing in colleges all over the country,” which is, not taking life too seriously and engaging in lively affairs and parties (“With College Men”). The 1920s were roaring boom years for the nation, and especially its upper middle class youth like Amory. Furthermore, Amory embodies a “glorious spirit of abounding youth,” and somewhat of a Peter Pan complex (“With College Men”). An increasing obsession with youth and a burgeoning youth culture do characterize the early decades of the twentieth century. Other features that make Amory Blaine uniquely American include his patriotic participation in the war effort, coupled with his sense of invincibility that derives at least in part from his never having to worry overly much about money. …show more content…
Amory also demonstrates the prevailing gender norms, shifting in light of the universal suffrage movement. His eternal freedom, his views toward work, his attitudes toward class and gender, his eternal youthfulness, and carefree attitude, and particularly his egotism combine to make Amory Blaine an “essentially American” character.
Descriptions of his father in the opening chapters of This Side of Paradise show that Amory’s apple did not fall far from the tree. His father is described as “an ineffectual, inarticulate man with a taste for Byron and a habit of drowsing over the Encyclopedia Britannica,” (p. 1). The contrast between his “taste for Byron” and his being “inarticulate” reveal the many class-based fissures prevalent in American society during the 1920s. Later in the novel, characters like Rosalind Connage highlight the fact that some Americans might still cultivate social hierarchies, but Amory’s world is one in which social class is self-determined. After all, Amory’s father did not grow wealthy from his own labors, but rather, inherited money from his brothers. Amory’s mother came from a wealthy background herself. As a result, Amory grew up in an atmosphere that taught that money might grow on trees, and that social class is only what one makes of it. As The New York Times reviewer put it, “Amory Blaine has a well-to-do father and a mother who lives the somewhat idle, luxurious life of a matron who has never known the pinch of even economy, much less of poverty, and the boy is the creature of his environment.” Thus, when Amory decides he will attend Princeton, it is not as if he has any bold or sweeping dreams for his future. He simply wants to have fun. Princeton turns out to be the ideal collegiate environment for the young man. Its campus life is characterized by its “riotous gayety, its superficial vices, and its punctilious sense of honor,” (“With College Men”).
By the 1920s, the United States had cultivated an image of itself as being invincible. Budding imperialistic tendencies, the campaigns of Theodore Roosevelt and the Spanish-American War, and other contextual variables would have impacted Amory’s own psyche. His ongoing egoism reflected the character of his birth nation. Likewise, Amory’s sense of self-importance and invincibility mirrored those traits in the United States. When Amory does not receive the accolades at Princeton he feels he deserves, instead of working harder, he simply quits. Amory reflects on his time at Princeton not in terms of how his education might enrich his soul or improve his ability to contribute to humanity. Instead, he muses on what good his education did for his ego. “He had conformed, he had succeeded, but as his imagination was neither satisfied nor grasped by his own success,” (Chapter 3). Amory is not the only one; his classmates likewise cultivate a sense of disillusionment with academia. Amory looks down on those who take school too seriously. “Amory was struck by Burne's intense earnestness, a quality he was accustomed to associate only with the dread stupidity, and by the great enthusiasm that struck dead chords in his heart,” (Chapter 4). For Amory and his peers, the American Dream meant achieving wealth through as little work possible, and living with as few responsibilities and obligations as possible, too. Because Amory achieves both of these goals admirably, he emerges as Fitzgerald’s classic American hero.
Amory’s name hints at the importance of romance in his life, and indeed, his romantic interludes become key moments in the character’s development. His affairs are as shallow and self-serving as Amory himself. He has numerous flirtations while in college and a few steady relationships. Isabelle he finds “theatrical,” a term that highlights his not taking life too seriously. Amory also admits outright he prefers what he calls “all-American” girls who are beautiful, perky, independent, and as interested in the pursuit of leisure above all else (Chapter 5). In addition to be attracted to the same type of personage as he, Amory divulges his taste in modern women who would be willing to subvert the outmoded Victorian gender norms. Women, as well as men, want to party and have fun. They are also interested in frivolous and lighthearted affairs with men, making the sexes “well matched,” (“With College Men”). Rosalind also lives up to Amory’s romantic ideal. She brags about the men she has kissed and is as self-absorbed and narcissistic as the egoist Amory himself. They make a perfect match, and the intensity of their affair consumes them both in a manner that is quintessentially American because it represents a type of escapism. Both Amory and Rosalind have left behind their dreams to do well in school or make something of their lives; both have relied on their families to provide for their financial needs; and both seek out maximum freedom.
Yet by the time Amory develops an intense enough attraction for Rosalind to consider spending the rest of his life with her, his family has lost most of its money. The seemingly unending font of security gone, Amory finds himself in the unique position of having to work for a living, and he chooses a profession conducive to his self-image, his egoism, and his idleness: writing. Writing was little more than a “useful concept” for Amory (West 54). The manner by which Amory’s family burned through its money is indicative of American spendthrift nature, its sense of invincibility and tendency to live just for the present moment. These uniquely American qualities are what made the nation’s youth culture as vibrant as it was, but also led to a roller coaster of emotions, successes, and failures such as those experienced by Amory. Unlike Rosalind, Amory values his freedom and lifestyle even more than money itself, for he develops a sense of self that transcends the desire to merely be wealthy or a member of a specific social class. After Rosalind breaks up with him, Amory’s reaction matches his personage as a free spirit; he overindulges in alcohol. Amory lives up to his name by revealing himself to be a die-hard romantic. His emotions consume him. As stubborn, willful, and short-sighted as American foreign policy would become during Amory’s lifetime, the man seeks comfort in the escapism of alcohol.
The dichotomies in Amory’s character are also definitively American. Prohibition was one of many dichotomous, ironic periods in the history of the nation. Like slavery or the prohibition of women from voting, prohibition represented the curtailing of freedoms in a nation that prided itself on the provision of freedoms. Amory remains a free man throughout This Side of Paradise, but his freedom constrains him and does not necessarily give him happiness. All he wants to do is party, but the pursuit of endless leisure leaves him alone and empty. Amory is deeply romantic and idealistic and yet cynical at the same time. He longs for the company of the educated and literate elite, but shuns opportunities to conform to an upper class lifestyle. Amory has a “profound distaste” for poverty, and yet he finds himself penniless (Book II, Chapter 5). The panoply of ironies that comprise Amory’s character reveal the connection between his persona and the personality of America itself.
When he meets Eleanor, Amory becomes willing to love and trust again after the despair of losing Rosalind but her own erratic behavior hits too close to home. The narcissist seems himself in the mirror and it shocks Amory to the point where his self-reflection becomes more honest. Amory is finally faced with the fact that he needs to mature and confront his faults, which is why the final section of the novel is called “The Egotist Becomes a Personage.” Yet even in his self-searching, Amory remains unwilling to change on a deeper level. He is self-absorbed and cynical to the end, unable to use self-reflection to any constructive ends. Without any hopes or dreams other than those that would serve the shallowness of his ego, Amory ends up a profoundly lonely and depressed man who nevertheless receives exactly what he always wanted: freedom.
The final line of This Side of Paradise also shows how Amory Blaine is an essentially American man.
“’I know myself," he cried, "but that is all.” The early twentieth century in America was a time of contradiction, hope, and idealism. Abuzz with newfound wealth from the industrial boom era, poised to become a global superpower, and drunk on its own success, America prided itself on its love of freedom and liberty. Yet beneath the surface remained a nation unwilling to confront some of its darker nature. Amory’s character parallels the growth of the nation through its late adulthood, as both the man and his country must become willing to take on greater responsibilities and a more global
outlook.
Works Cited
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. This Side of Paradise. Digital Copy: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/805/805-h/805-h.htm#link2HCH0003
West, James L. “The Question of Vocation in This Side of Paradise and The Beautiful and Dammed.” Chapter 3 in The Cambridge Companion to F. Scott Fitzgerald. Ed. Ruth Prigozy. Cambridge University Press, 2002.
“With College Men.” The New York Times. 9 May, 1920. Retrieved online: http://www.nytimes.com/books/00/12/24/specials/fitzgerald-paradise.html