This Side of Paradise Themes

Marriage is kind of a big deal in This Side of Paradise. For starters, Amory's mother and father married for convenience more than love, and this decision has a lasting impact on his life. Beatrice...

Amory's got pride. And when we say pride, we mean that the kid has been bred by his mother to be a complete egomaniac. At one point in the book, Amory eve suffers from a lack of energy because he s...

Paging Dr. Freud: Amory's early family life has a huge effect on his personality. For starters, his mom spoils him rotten and raises him to think he's a god among mortals. Yuck. In many cases, This...

After Rosalind breaks his heart (and his engagement), Amory Blaine spirals into some pretty serious drunkity-drunk-drunk shenanigans. The only thing that saves him from liver failure is Prohibition...

Amory spends much of his youth (and, consequently, most of This Side of Paradise) thinking that he's the greatest thing since sliced bread. But once he hits prep school and university, he realizes...

There are lots of different ways to get an education—going to a fancy prep school and fancier university is just one of them. In fact, it's hard to tell whether Amory learns more from his life in...

One of the first things we learn about Amory Blaine is that he's a total hottie. In fact, it's his good looks that get him through most of his young life without becoming a total outcast. Amory is...

Amory looks for all kinds of ways to make his life more fulfilling. And being a romantic, he decides that love is one of his best options. Little does he know that love will turn out to be way more...