Determinism as a Defining Element in Fitzgerald’s Oeuvre, 1920-1940: Literary Naturalism and “The Cut-Glass Bowl,” “The Ice Palace,” The Great Gatsby, Tender is the Night, The Last Tycoon, The CrackUp, and Other Texts

Year 2016, Issue: 45, 33 - 108, 01.10.2016

Kim Moreland

Abstract

Fitzgerald’ın erken dönem eserlerinin determinizm etkisi altında olduğuna ancak olgunluk dönemi eserlerinin bu felsefeden uzaklaşarak, karakterlerin daha aktif olduğu modernizmin etkisi altına girdiğine dair genel bir kanı vardır.Ancak Fitzgerald’ın hem kurmaca olan hem de kurmaca olmayan eserleri üzerinde determinizmin etkisi o kadar güçlüdür ki, bu unsurun göz ardı edilmesi eserlerindeki çok önemli noktaların kaçırılması ve bu eserlerin bugüne kadarkinden daha farklı açılardan incelenememesi ile sonuçlanacaktır.Bu amaçla, bu makale Fitzgerald’ın birçok eserini, aralarındaki bağlantıları vurgulayarak edebi natüralizm açısından incelemeyi hedeflemektedir.

Keywords

F. Scott Fitzgerald, Edebi Natüralizm, Determinizm, Natüralist Fitzgerald, Sosyal Darwinizm

Determinism as a Defining Element in Fitzgerald’s Oeuvre, 1920-1940: Literary Naturalism and “The Cut-Glass Bowl,” “The Ice Palace,” The Great Gatsby, Tender is the Night, The Last Tycoon, The CrackUp, and Other Texts

Abstract

It is widely accepted that Fitzgerald’s apprentice work is marked by determinism while his mature work abandons that philosophy, with victims transformed into agents when he grows into modernism. Yet the impact of the philosophy of determinism on Fitzgerald’s works of fiction and non-fiction alike is so powerful that to ignore it is to miss a central element in his oeuvre, and thereby to miss the opportunity to provide a richer interpretation of these works than has heretofore been accomplished. To this end, this article analyzes many of Fitzgerald’s works through the lens of literary naturalism, emphasizing the interconnections among them

Keywords

F. Scott Fitzgerald, Literary Naturalism, Determinism, Fitzgerald the Naturalist, Social Darwinism

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