Tarleton Revisited: Representation of the South in Fitzgerald’s Tarleton Stories

Year 2016, Issue: 45, 179 - 195, 01.10.2016

Gül Varlı Karaarslan

Abstract

Known as one of the major pens of the Jazz Age, F. Scott Fitzgerald narrates the cultural and historical panorama of the South at the beginning of the twentieth century in his early writings as well. Categorized under his early works, Fitzgerald’s Tarleton trilogy includes his stories “The Ice Palace” 1920 , “The Jelly Bean” 1920 , and “The Last of the Belles” 1929 . The stories take place in the fictional city of Tarleton that brings the Old South into existence through vivid city descriptions and characters. The author sketches the dramatic shift in the cultural, social, and economic spheres in the South. In addition, the stories provide a historical insight as the time moves towards the end of World War I. The economic impacts of World War I, the social mobility, the conflicts between the South and the North, and the reformation of gender roles are interconnected with the journeys of the characters who desire to accomplish their dreams. By reiterating the connections among the mentioned stories, this paper focuses on the use of physical space that closely interacts with the changing Southern culture represented by Southern tradition and women characters

Keywords

F. Scott Fitzgerald, “The Ice Palace, ” “The Jelly Bean, ” “The Last of the Belles, ” the Culture of the South

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