Readings in Fiction First Paper January 28, 2014 When analyzing the cultural history of the United States, it helps to first look at the novels written from a specific time period. The first three novels read in this class, McTeague, The Great Gatsby, and The Sun Also Rises, help to demonstrate how the people of this nation reacted to the fast paced changes that spanned from the late 1890s through the 1920s. Throughout this paper I will show how each of these novels reflected the evolution of American culture through the stories they told. At the turn of the century, American culture started to see a large shift of people attempting to expand their horizons. Before this time, if your father was a farmer you would most likely be a farmer. The same goes for many other professions. When someone did take a different path than their parents, it was still in similar work. For example, the son of a miner may become a black smith. The core work is different; however it still involves some sort of manual trade labor. When the 1900s came around sons would try to break away from their family’s tradition of work. Instead of becoming a car boy, sons would become printing apprentices. Or in the case of McTeague, the son of a miner would go on to become a dentist. This was the trend of the time, people trying to create their own destinies. The Novel McTeague tells a story of this search for a new destiny, but in a way that depicts this pursuit as futile. This is because McTeague is a naturalistic novel. There are many ways to describe naturalism, but Stephen Matterson describes it best when he said that naturalism “emphasizes the limited ability of humans to impose will upon their own destiny” (Matterson).

The theme of naturalism seems to contradict what is occurring in the United States at the time McTeague was written, but Norris is able to cut through the romantic idea of success and free will to tell a true story of America. Taking a quick overview of McTeague it seems as though it is a story of a man who found success as a dentist, then falls on hard times after marrying a woman who has happened to win the lottery. The true story of McTeague, however, goes much deeper than this. McTeague, the son of a miner, was sent off in his teenage years with a traveling dentist in the hope that he would live a better life as a “white color” worker. As McTeague travels west, he eventually settles in San Francisco and opens his own dental shop. This is the same path that many other young men of his time followed. They would break away from family farms and mines, and would find themselves in various cities across the nation. This movement towards a new destiny helped many cities prosper and grow. As the novel progresses McTeague begins to fall into a nasty drinking habbit, which leads him to beat his wife Trina on a regular basis. While I cannot say that other Americans did this, I can say that this fits the idea of naturalism perfectly. While McTeague was attempting to find success for himself he slowly transformed into his father, who was a drinker and beat his own wife. This is a prime example of how individuals are unable to fulfil their own destiny. Most of the time they will end up back on the original path set for them. Another theme from American culture that this book depicts involves greed. While most people were attempting to find better lives for themselves, starting new chapters and being more successful than their predecessors, they became greedy. This idea can be seen in multiple characters including McTeague, Trina, and Marcus. Even though they were all living very comfortably, they each wanted a bigger piece of the pie when Trina won the lottery. They

allowed a sum of money that none of them needed to destroy their relationships. These actions of greed can be seen in American culture through politicians in the new cities fighting for more power, and the gold prospectors of California killing one another for an extra ounce of gold. McTeague and many other Americans allow the pursuit of success, and particularly money, to drive them back to their original destiny. It appears as though the harder they try to escape the stronger the pull is to where they should be. While most Americans were ending up where they started, there were a few success stories from this time that seemed to break the theory of naturalism. These successes consisted largely of individuals who were able to take advantage of the industrial revolution, and this is where The Great Gatsby picks up. The story is based in 1922 and has a theme that focuses on the successful individuals that came from McTeague’s time, compared to those who already came from wealthy backgrounds. Although Gatsby has made most of his money from bootlegging alcohol and not directly from the industrial revolution, he does fit the same mold of those who did make their money through industry. The character of Gatsby not only symbolizes those who have come into “new money,” but in many ways he symbolizes the life of Fitzgerald. Gatsby also stands in direct contrast with characters like Daisy and Tom Buchanan, who represent those who come from “old money.” While many people were in the pursuit of the American dream during this time period, they all seemed to be in pursuit for the wrong reasons. Take Gatsby, for example. If you put aside the fact that most of his money was obtained through illegal actions, you see that he is not simply trying to earn a living. He was not making money to build a better life or secure his future. Instead he was making money to impress a woman. This end goal led him to purchase

an extravagant mansion across the bay from the woman he desired. He would also spend large amounts of money on excessive parties, just hoping she would show up to one. This was the tale of many Americans in the same shoes as Gatsby. They found themselves with large amounts of money due to their successes, and rather than investing or saving it they would spend it on things like parties and outlandish luxury items. Some viewed this as individuals enjoying their riches, but the reality is that many of them were spending money faster than they could actually make it. A great comparison of this in the real world comes directly from the life of F. Scott Fitzgerald. With a very successful writing career to support them, Fitzgerald married a woman by the name of Zelda. They lived a very lavish lifestyle, which started on their honeymoon when they “were asked to leave [the hotel] because of a …raucous party” they were hosting (Merriman). This became a pattern for the couple, as they were known for throwing parties that were often attended by celebrities. This lifestyle was unsustainable, though, and the couple found themselves in debt more times than not. In contrast to this you had individuals who were also seeing success, yet they came from wealthy families. The example of this in the book is Tom and Daisy. They are both individuals who came from the social elite, and spend their money more wisely than those like Gatsby. They still try to enjoy themselves, but most of their leisurely time is spent at home relaxing or out to eat. The 1920s saw many new success stories as the economy started to boom, but as The Great Gatsby shows many of these success stories were doing it for the wrong reasons. What happens when you are on the opposite side of success, though? The people who are not looking for the American dream because they have lost faith in it. This is where The Sun Also Rises

comes in. The novel by Ernest Hemingway takes place around the same time period as The Great Gatsby, but focuses on those who have lost faith in the American dream because their involvement in the First World War. Although the novel takes place overseas in France and Spain, it is still about Americans and can be tied back to the darker side of post WWI America. It takes a closer look at those who were involved in the war, and the effects it had on them. The particular expatriate that the novel follows, Jake, is a veteran of the war living in France. While he seems to earn a decent living as a writer, he doesn’t seem to have a complete life. This is most obvious with his war injury, which has made him impotent and prevents him from being with the woman he loves. However, his incomplete life also comes to light through the tone of the novel. Jake goes through life not showing much emotion. He has a few friends, but you get the feeling reading the book that he does not really care about them, they are just there. The only person he truly cares about is Brett, and he cannot have her. He also tries to find various activities to fill his time, trying to feel something from one of them. He travels to the south of France to fish with a friend, than joins others for a fiesta in Spain. It is these actions that characterize Hemingway’s “lost generation.” He believes that they are not truly lost, just deeply affected from witnessing a world at war first hand. This tale of individuals who fought in the war is one that Hemingway can speak to directly. During the war Hemingway moved to Italy and “joined a volunteer ambulance unit in the Italian army” (Ernest Hemingway - Biographical). During his time in this unit he was wounded and spent a good amount of time in hospitals, much like Jake did from the novel. After the war had ended, Hemingway wondered the world only living in places for a short time until he settled in Cuba.

It was not only Hemingway who did this, though. Many Americans who fought in the war found themselves incomplete afterwards. Some traveled the world trying to find something to fill a void, and others remained in America trying to forget what they had been through. You could even argue that Gatsby’s lavish party habit was not only to attract a woman, but to try and forget what he had seen while serving in the war himself. These three novels together may not tell the whole story of America during the early twentieth century, but they do tell a true story of America. From those failing to create their own destinies to those who may have been lucky enough to break the mold, they are all represented in these stories. Even those who are trying to forget a brutal world war have their own story. These novels do a great job of reflecting life in America, and help to outline what the culture was actually like.

Bibliography
"Ernest Hemingway - Biographical." Nobelprize.org. Nobel Media AB, 2013. Web. 27 January 2014. Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York City: Scribner, 1925. "F. Scott Fitzgerald." Online-Literature.com. The Literature Network, 2007. Web. 27 January 2014. Hemingway, Ernest. The Sun Also Rises. New York City: Scribner, 1926. "1890s-1920s Naturalism." PBS.org. The American Novel, 2003. Web. 28 January 2014. "F. Scott Fitzgerald." PBS.org. The Literature Network, 2007. Web. 28 January 2014. Norris, Frank. McTeague: A Story of San Francisco. New York City: Doubleday & McClure, 1899.