This Side of Paradise: Summary
Summary
This Side of Paradise chronicles the life of Amory Blaine. Born the son of a wealthy and sophisticated woman, Beatrice, he attends St. Regis prep school. He is handsome, quite intelligent and he earns admission to Princeton. He makes many acquaintances who have the same interests as him and who become his friends such as Tom, Burne, Kerry and Dick. Toward the end of his college career, Amory dutifully enlists for World War l. Upon his return to America, Amory meets the young debutante Rosalind Connage. The two fall deeply in love, but because of his family's poor investments, Amory has little money, and Rosalind does not wish to marry into poverty. Rosalind breaks off their engagement in order to marry a wealthier man, Dawson Ryde. He goes on a three week drinking binge, and becomes very depressed. Amory's quest for self-knowledge begins to be realized. He has a short summer romance with the wild Eleanor. He gives up chasing love, conformity and money and tries to find his place and his purpose.
Similar themes
Falling of the american dream
This side of paradise
Gets a normal job at an advertising company to show her that he is worthy of her and that he could support her. It was not enough and Rosalind goes on and marries a wealthier man
Great Gatsby
Before Gatsby left, daisy promises to wait for him. She broke that promise and marries tom for an extravagant lifestyle. Gatsby comes back from war and is heartbroken because daisy left. He throws parties every night in hopes that he will catch daisy's attention.
Conflicts between social classes
This side of paradise
•Amory resented the upper class but only because he wasn’t part of it.
•He would idolise Dick Humbird because he “seemed to be an external example of what the upper class tries to be”.
The Great Gatsby:
• West Egg (new money) which was less fashionable compared to “the white palaces of fashionable East Egg ” , also known as new money.
•Like Amory, even though he was wealthy
This Side of Paradise chronicles the life of Amory Blaine. Born the son of a wealthy and sophisticated woman, Beatrice, he attends St. Regis prep school. He is handsome, quite intelligent and he earns admission to Princeton. He makes many acquaintances who have the same interests as him and who become his friends such as Tom, Burne, Kerry and Dick. Toward the end of his college career, Amory dutifully enlists for World War l. Upon his return to America, Amory meets the young debutante Rosalind Connage. The two fall deeply in love, but because of his family's poor investments, Amory has little money, and Rosalind does not wish to marry into poverty. Rosalind breaks off their engagement in order to marry a wealthier man, Dawson Ryde. He goes on a three week drinking binge, and becomes very depressed. Amory's quest for self-knowledge begins to be realized. He has a short summer romance with the wild Eleanor. He gives up chasing love, conformity and money and tries to find his place and his purpose.
Similar themes
Falling of the american dream
This side of paradise
Gets a normal job at an advertising company to show her that he is worthy of her and that he could support her. It was not enough and Rosalind goes on and marries a wealthier man
Great Gatsby
Before Gatsby left, daisy promises to wait for him. She broke that promise and marries tom for an extravagant lifestyle. Gatsby comes back from war and is heartbroken because daisy left. He throws parties every night in hopes that he will catch daisy's attention.
Conflicts between social classes
This side of paradise
•Amory resented the upper class but only because he wasn’t part of it.
•He would idolise Dick Humbird because he “seemed to be an external example of what the upper class tries to be”.
The Great Gatsby:
• West Egg (new money) which was less fashionable compared to “the white palaces of fashionable East Egg ” , also known as new money.
•Like Amory, even though he was wealthy