Character Clues

Character Analysis

Direct Characterization

When it comes to character development, Fitzgerald isn't afraid to tell us directly what his characters are like. He even starts off the novel this way, saying that,

Amory Blaine inherited from his mother every trait, except the stray inexpressible few, that made him worthwhile. (1.1.1)

Apart from being a huge burn on Amory's mom, this line tells us a ton of information that in turn sets the tone for our reading of the entire book. Fitzgerald follows this same pattern when introducing other characters, too, and he often returns to tell us more stuff directly about Amory even after we've gotten to know him pretty well. The reason it works so well is that one line from Fitzgerald can tell us a ton about his characters.

Family Life

Fitzgerald makes no bones about the fact that Amory's mother Beatrice has made a deep and lasting mark on Amory's personality. The sad thing is that the narrator often describes this influence as a negative one (check out the book's opening line).

But the narrator and Amory Blaine end up blaming so many of Amory's problems on Beatrice Blaine's influence that you have to wonder whether Fitzgerald (a.k.a. Amory) is just denying his own responsibility for his personal flaws. At what point does a dude stop blaming his mom and just admit to the fact that he's in charge of his own life and his own problems?

Names

Amory Blaine is a pretty unusual name, and it tells us a lot about our protagonist. The word Amory sounds like "amour," the French word for love. It's true that Amory fancies himself a romantic, especially since he is so devastatingly handsome.

But his name can also sound like "armory," which is a type of military building. This second meaning reminds us that Amory is a deeply defensive person who's scared about the outside world making fun of him or taking advantage of him. Meanwhile, Fitzgerald fills this book with people like Kerry Holiday (whose last name clearly tells us how much Kerry likes to have fun and party) and Eleanor Savage (who savagely runs her horse off of a cliff).

Physical Appearances

One of the first things we learn about Amory Blaine is that he's extremely handsome. It's important to know how central Amory's appearance is to his personality, because it keeps him from becoming an outcast. When he's young, Amory is a social misfit because he thinks he's superior to everyone.

But people keep making excuses for him because he's so dreamy. It's clear that a less attractive person would never get this much benefit of the doubt. Which is a shame really, because it's this same kind of superficial thinking that Amory will try to fight so hard against in his later years.

Sex and Love

Amory Blaine's romantic relationships mark some of the biggest milestones in his life, starting with his relationship will Isabelle Borgé. The truth is that Amory's romantic relationships tend to be metaphors for his life in general.

It's easy for him to get into relationships based on his handsomeness. But once he and his romantic partner see the complexity beneath one another's appearances, things get painful and messy. Amory's ultimate disappointment is his failed relationship with Rosalind Connage, which leaves him feeling jaded about love and life in general. By the end of the novel, it's still unclear whether he'll ever recover from this disappointment.