F scott fitzgerald gay
Lavender Menace
The early 20th century celebrated homophobic writers of high reputation. We were taught their work in school. They were reviewed in quality publications. And they were looked up to as wise men.
No matter how brilliantly written, many 20th century novels have homophobic elements. How can these noted novels help us get homophobia?
One cautionary note: Looking at homophobic content in novels is not the same as saying that a writer’s work is worthless. People are mosaics, and prejudice can occur side by side with courage and creativity. But we can learn something from scrutinising the attitudes in these books, and perhaps it’s long past time – queer writers had to suffer sceptical, sometimes patronising reviews for generations.
What is homophobia?
Most of us think of homophobia as if it were something toxic in the air or the liquid. Equal marriage laws and visible queer people build us feel it’s getting better. Homophobic laws love the ‘LGBT-free’ zones in Poland make us touch less hopeful.
During his Literary Salon event on 18 February this year, discussing his tv series It’s A Sin with presenter Dam
The Queering of Nick Carraway
In the middle of a class discussion of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby some years ago, a student raised his hand and asked, in essence: What are we supposed to make of the scene where Nick Carraway goes off with the gay guy?
And I said, in essence: Wait, what male lover guy?
He pointed me to the scene that closes Chapter II. This is the chapter in which Nick accompanies Tom Buchanan and his mistress, Myrtle, to an apartment Tom keeps in Manhattan. Myrtle invites her sister and some neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. McKee, to join them, and they cast a raucous party that ends with Tom breaking Myrtle’s nose. Amid the blood and the screaming, Mr. McKee awakens from an alcoholic slumber:
Then Mr. McKee turned and continued on out the door. Taking my hat from the chandelier, I followed.
“Come to lunch some day,” he suggested, as we groaned down in the elevator.
“Where?”
“Anywhere?”
“Keep your hands off the lever,” snapped the elevator boy.
“I implore your pardon,” said Mr. McKee with dignity, “I didn’t know I was touching it.”
“All right,” I agreed. “I’ll be glad to.”
…I was standing beside his bed and he was sitting up between the sheets, clad in hi
Hem and Scott
I just finished a guide about the animation of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald called “Z.” It was interesting. Zelda’s hatred for Hemingway came across loud and clear. I know that it’s historically true. However, there’s a claim that Hemingway came on to her, which didn’t strike me as true based on all that I’ve read and Hem’s feelings toward/against her. And there’s another portion in which she wonders if her husband, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Hemingway were closet homosexuals who had an attraction to each other. I don’t know that much about F. Scott Fitzgerald, but there’s not anything in the volumes that I’ve peruse about Hemingway and his past that would even slightly suggest that. I’ve read all of the hypotheses that Hemingway went ultra-macho to compensate for homosexual feelings. I don’t see that but everyone can have an notion. Those comments aside, I found that I had empathy for Zelda’s plight and her frustration in her experience with F. Scott Fitzgerald.
I also couldn’t help comparing Fitzgerald, of course, to Hemingway. When Heming
Queer Representation: Revitilizing F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Place in the American Literary Canon
Degree Type
Honors College Thesis
Academic Program
International Business BSBA
Department
Management and International Business
First Advisor
Monika Gehlawat, Ph.D.
Advisor Department
English
Abstract
F. Scott Fitzgerald is colloquially known as one of the great American writers. His acclaim is most commonly attributed to his depiction of heterosexual romances set during the Jazz Age. However, under the surface, many of the male characters that he represents display queer behaviors that subvert this idea. The texts analyzed here include “The Rich Boy” (1926), Tender is the Night (1934), and The Great Gatsby (1925). These men commonly elude perpetuating heteronormative culture, projecting a general air of cynicism towards the institution of marriage, and a subtle inclination towards feminine characteristics and queer love. Overall, the inclusion of these characters does not only serve to complicate our understanding of main themes in Fitzgerald’s writing, but also further testifies to the presence of queer people and behavior throughout history.
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