Dick Diver: A Great Gentleman In The Jazz Age

Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald is one of the greatest writers in the history of American literature and mouthpiece of the Jazz Age. He created numerous works through his whole life, covering novels, short stories, plays, poems and correspondence. The focus of his works, which have been rendered into many languages and sold well home and abroad, is on the lives of the upper class. His masterpiece The Great Gatsby brought him the great fame and fortune after its publication. Tender Is the Night, as the compulsory reading book of American students and the indispensable teaching material of American teachers in literary class, is widely acclaimed and now universally considered as his another masterpiece, more mature and profound, with great researching value. However, this edition was once ignored when published and compelled to revise to readers' taste. The published academic papers so far are mainly about its content, theme, structure, language and especially its protagonist Dick Diver, who is at large analyzed from the angle of his moral degeneration. This dissertation is intended to analyze Dick Diver both from the author Fitzgerald himself and the revelation of Dick Diver's behaviors under the social context at that time.This paper is developed from the following aspects. Firstly, it discusses the grounds for the formation of Dick's personalities. Then, it elaborates on how his personalities are reflected in his behaviors. Instances are listed as follows: his unselfish dedication to a mental patient, Nicole through his whole life out of love and kind personality despite her rejection after recuperation, his immense care of Rosemary at the beginning and true but intricate love for her in the end, and his help to other characters in the novel. Simultaneously, some main characters' behaviors in the Jazz Age act as foil to his great deeds. Finally, his gentle manner is further praised based on Fitzgerald himself.The conclusion based on the analysis and interpretation above is that Dick is a great gentleman because he invariably maintains helpful and kind to others and indifferent to money after experiencing several different cultural stages. Fitzgerald and his many characters are like Dick who constantly acts as a good gentleman though his dream is incompatible with reality and ends in failure. Such precious personalities are badly needed in such a society which is dominated by the pursuit of money and power.