This review may contain spoilers. Caveat emptor.
What a lovely little novel this is, one beautifully dripping with sarcasm. (Oh, Fitzgerald.)
This book is simply about what the title states: it’s about the beautiful and damned. It deals with the lives of two persons who make it a point to live as gorgeously as possible, with damning consequences.
(This book rather reminds me of Becky Sharp of Vanity Fair. The two ladies (Becky and Gloria) seem to live the same life, although the cunning Becky cannot compare to the lovely Gloria. Becky’s more proactive, too. (highlight for spoilers))
The storytelling is incredibly sarcastic. It tickles my bones and touches my heart with its sadness all at once. (I suppose that’s how it is, as there’s comedy in tragedy.) What’s interesting about the sarcasm and irony here is the fact that, I believe, this is STILL applicable of modern times. (As it is just like the railroads to come out with new schedules containing new mistakes, instead of the old ones that the commuters had grown used to.)
While it follows the lives of the angelic Gloria and the handsome Anthony, this story is also briefly about the people they meet, the people whose lives they touch. It would be funny to say that they are all in the same boat, but while this is true, the couple definitely outshines the rest in living as they do. (And they all do live quite fashionably and lavishly.)
Upon getting deep into this book, I got this feeling as if I definitely know where all this was headed. The placement of too much trust in “friends”, the refusal to take on any job lower than being a diplomat or an accomplished author, the unending parties and overflowing wine, the arrogance without conceit and beauty with pride. There was something wrong with the picture, but the entire scene held on anyway. You caught your breath, seeing Gloria in a new dress, while waiting for Anthony to come home from peddling Heart Talks. You smiled at Dick’s latest book, while listening with awe to the quiet but intelligent Maury. You looked over the brim of your wineglass to see Geraldine give her chaste kisses, and you chuckle at Bloekman’s stare at the hostess. You hear the quiet sobs of Dorothy as you look over Muriel’s sway of the hips. This house of cards will fall, this ticking bomb will go off, this wisp of smoke will vanish into thin air… But, for the moment, it doesn’t.
There are so many issues here. You smell the stench of war, you see the lure of moving pictures, you hear the disdain for philantropists, you taste the bitterness of tired love, you feel the howl of wind in a house too expensive to be kept. There’s a funny little Japanese here, who seems to be a spy for the enemy. There’s a little southern girl here, whose reputation was compromised by sullied lips. There’s a knowledgable attorney here, who worked for the cause of the undeserving. There’s a worried-but-not-worried little lady here, who is excited about the baby but who could really not care less about motherhood. So many stories revolving around two persons without a care.
This is an enjoyable book. I particularly liked the intelligent (and sarcastic, of course) snippets here (and therefore adore Maury). The ending was surprising and, well, quite expected. The spiral of degradation was imminent, but the journey towards that was pleasant, albeit fraught with notices for unpaid rent.
This is probably a book not be taken too seriously, unless you can get used to the words I don’t care. There are thoughts here that lie beneath the book’s surface that are definitely worth reading. All in all, it’s an interesting journey with an interesting ending. Great read.
The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
