The author of The Great Gatsby, This Side of Paradise, Tender is the Night, and such exquisite short stories as “The Diamond Big as the Ritz” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald burned his way through the literary world of the early 20th century.
He was an Ivy League elite of the old guard, full of idealistic visions of duty and artistic taste. His intoxicating success and his chaotic romance with his wife Zelda aggravated his alcoholism, and his writing frayed in his later years. He died young, at the age of 44.
Below are some of the disillusioned, brilliant, beleaguered, and enamored writer’s best lines, drawn from his world-class canon and his private letters.
From a private letter to his daughter, Frances.Princeton UniversityThese lines appeared in Fitzgerald’s “Author’s Apology” at the beginning of This Side of Paradise. The photo shows a 16-year old Francis Scott. Princeton UniversityThe quote comes from the author’s notebooks. The image shows a manuscript page of This Side of Paradise. Princeton UniversityLines from This Side of Paradise. Wikimedia CommonsThe quote is from Tender is the Night. The photo shows Fitzgerald’s passport.Princeton UniversityFrom This Side of Paradise. Wikimedia CommonsThe quote is from “The Diamond as Big as the Ritz.” The photo shows Fitzgerald’s football team in St. Paul, Minnesota.Princeton UniversityFrom “The Diamond as Big as the Ritz.”Princeton UniversityFrom This Side of Paradise.Princeton UniversityThe quote is from “The Diamond as Big as the Ritz.” Wikimedia CommonsThis quote comes from The Beautiful and Damned, Fitzgerald’s second novel.Princeton UniversityFitzgerald wrote these words in a private letter to his daughter, Frances. The photo shows the author as a Princeton freshman. Princeton UniversityQuote from a private letter to a friend. Princeton UniversityThe quote comes from the author’s notebooks. Library Of CongressThe quote is from The Crack-Up. The photo shows Fitzgerald’s house in St. Paul, Minnesota. Library Of CongressQuote from the shot story titled “The Offshore Pirate.” Wikimedia CommonsFrom a letter to Zelda. Wikimedia CommonsFrom a letter to a friend. Wikimedia CommonsFrom a private letter.Library Of CongressFrom The Crack-Up. Wikimedia CommonsFrom The Crack-Up. Princeton University
