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How is the setting of The Great Gatsby influenced by Fitzgerald's life?

The setting of The Great Gatsby is informed by the life of F. Scott Fitzgerald, for it was he who named the time period the Jazz Age. In addition, there is much that is autobiographical in the character of Jay Gatsby, who aspires to live with the rich, whom he feels hold magical qualities, just as did Fitzgerald himself. Certainly, the decadent lifestyle of those with whom Fitzgerald associated at times is illustrated in the...

The setting of The Great Gatsby is informed by the life of F. Scott Fitzgerald, for it was he who named the time period the Jazz Age. In addition, there is much that is autobiographical in the character of Jay Gatsby, who aspires to live with the rich, whom he feels hold magical qualities, just as did Fitzgerald himself. Certainly, the decadent lifestyle of those with whom Fitzgerald associated at times is illustrated in the parties given by Jay Gatsby and the irresponsible strangers who attend.


Further, the luxurious homes and cars and lifestyles of those in East Egg are created from the memory of Fitzgerald, who for a time lived in the East and, with his wife Zelda, associated with the wealthy as he pursued his American Dream.


Fitzgerald once wrote,



The idea that to make a man work you've got to hold gold in front of his eyes is a growth, not an axiom. We've done that for so long that we've forgotten there is any other way.



East Egg of The Great Gatsby is peopled with those who have forgotten that "there is any other way" to work and live. Indeed, Jay Gatsby believes that money is all he needs in order to win back his idealized Daisy and achieve his American Dream.

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