Francis Scott Fitzgerald - a brief biography
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Born 1896, Minnesota, USA
• Second cousin of Francis Scott Key (author of US National Anthem)
• Elegant father (Edward), albeit a mediocre businessman with limited success
• Mother (Mollie) was the daughter of an Irish immigrant who made a small fortune
• The Fitzgeralds were not seen as rich although lived on outskirts of a wealthy suburb
• As a child, Fitzgerald mixed and played with the wealthy kids in the neighbourhood
• From 1908-1922, he spent his time at boarding school, Princeton University, the army (he was a second lieutenant in the infantry in WW1), and in New York City
• His parents saw to it that Scott met and mingled with the “right” people
• Attended elite prep school and dancing classes
• At boarding school, some students considered him arrogant; he was not a top scholar
• He had dreams of personal distinction, and by 1913, his literary achievements began to grow (through scripts and musical lyrics)
• Fell in love with 18-year-old Zelda Sayre
• She refused marriage until he could support her in the manner to which she was accustomed
• Fitzgerald moved to NY and worked for an advertising agency, but Zelda got tired of waiting and called off engagement
• One week after publication of This Side of Paradise (1919), they were married in NY
• His new novel was an instant success and the couple found themselves in social limelight
• They became synonymous with life in the 1920s (the Jazz Age) with stories of drinking, dancing and extravagance
• Travelled widely in USA and Europe (especially Paris, where they became part of “The Lost Generation” of American expatriates)
• Their domestic life was plagued with hardships – heavy drinking, frequent fights, and financial difficulties
• 1930 – Zelda had her first of three nervous breakdowns and was institutionalised
• Her third breakdown in 1934 left her institutionalised for life (she died in a hospital fire in 1948)
• Fitzgerald worked hard to keep Zelda comfortably hospitalised
• Scott eventually met and fell in love with Sheilah Graham, a movie columnist, with whom he spent the last few years of his life
• He died in 1940
• By the time of his death, he had slipped into relative obscurity – none of his books remained in print
• Obituaries about him were condescending, focusing on his life’s hardships
• Rebirth of his fiction after WW2
• By the 1960s he had secured his place among the great 20th Century writers, his life and work seen as a reflection of the youthful exuberance of the 1920s
• Second cousin of Francis Scott Key (author of US National Anthem)
• Elegant father (Edward), albeit a mediocre businessman with limited success
• Mother (Mollie) was the daughter of an Irish immigrant who made a small fortune
• The Fitzgeralds were not seen as rich although lived on outskirts of a wealthy suburb
• As a child, Fitzgerald mixed and played with the wealthy kids in the neighbourhood
• From 1908-1922, he spent his time at boarding school, Princeton University, the army (he was a second lieutenant in the infantry in WW1), and in New York City
• His parents saw to it that Scott met and mingled with the “right” people
• Attended elite prep school and dancing classes
• At boarding school, some students considered him arrogant; he was not a top scholar
• He had dreams of personal distinction, and by 1913, his literary achievements began to grow (through scripts and musical lyrics)
• Fell in love with 18-year-old Zelda Sayre
• She refused marriage until he could support her in the manner to which she was accustomed
• Fitzgerald moved to NY and worked for an advertising agency, but Zelda got tired of waiting and called off engagement
• One week after publication of This Side of Paradise (1919), they were married in NY
• His new novel was an instant success and the couple found themselves in social limelight
• They became synonymous with life in the 1920s (the Jazz Age) with stories of drinking, dancing and extravagance
• Travelled widely in USA and Europe (especially Paris, where they became part of “The Lost Generation” of American expatriates)
• Their domestic life was plagued with hardships – heavy drinking, frequent fights, and financial difficulties
• 1930 – Zelda had her first of three nervous breakdowns and was institutionalised
• Her third breakdown in 1934 left her institutionalised for life (she died in a hospital fire in 1948)
• Fitzgerald worked hard to keep Zelda comfortably hospitalised
• Scott eventually met and fell in love with Sheilah Graham, a movie columnist, with whom he spent the last few years of his life
• He died in 1940
• By the time of his death, he had slipped into relative obscurity – none of his books remained in print
• Obituaries about him were condescending, focusing on his life’s hardships
• Rebirth of his fiction after WW2
• By the 1960s he had secured his place among the great 20th Century writers, his life and work seen as a reflection of the youthful exuberance of the 1920s