Armory Blaine as a True American Character - Essay Example

Armory Blaine as a True American Character A true American is not always a Puritan or a Theist. America thrives on the spirit of freedom and people representing the country are always full of the freshness and zeal to discover and establish something new, by breaking through the old and keeping all inhibitions out of bay. The true American spirit is that of strength and innovation. When one studies the character of Amory Blaine from the Fitzgerald book, “This Side of Paradise” Blaine’s character comes across as a true American in many ways. We analyses and study these aspects in this article and try to elucidate that Puritanism is not the only tool to assess a true American. In the storyline, Amory is introduced to us as the young boy who has grown up under the care and guidance of a strong mother (Lewis, 1979), whom he does not completely understand but still loves and reveres with all he has. And it is from this pure love and reverence that he feels a feeling of abhor towards the acts of passion or selfishness. There are candid moments of self retrospection that the story uses to show how a true American refrains from treacherous thoughts and regains his self-control and spirit. True to the American spirit, Amory has showcased such tendencies at different points in the storyline. We study each of these cases one by one. Myra and the kiss Amory is forever the inquisitive boy who wanted to experience that he thought was worth. With his boyish inquisitiveness and a sense of steady personality, Amory ventured into the world of friends as one who was capable of delivering the best. While quite an American approach, his false notion of personality deceived his strengths. Myra looked as the young girl whom he could court, but when it came to the act of the first step of courting, he backed off. Amory had a feeling that everything about love and friendship would feel good. While friendship did feel good, his experience of kissing Myra did not. In anybody’s case, acts of courtship fail to seem fruitful in the absence of true love. Same was the case with Myra and Amory. Myra liked the experience while Amory did not, although he initially wanted it. In consecutive scenes we see Amory goes ahead of Myra and tries to befriend and court other girls at parties. His main understanding leads him to take them out and talk philosophy, something which in practicality, no girl appreciates. Amory, therefore in spite of the popularity and richness that he enjoys does not experience a successful courtship. Whether it is because of it his false notion of personality driven charms or friendship or his nature of staying away from convention, he ultimately falls a prey to his own conservativeness. The precepts of morality that he has grown up believing in take hold of him whenever he is on the verge of enjoying life, through cheap ways. And that is exactly where his true American nature shows up. He may fail, but he picks up and continues. Monsignor’s guidance and Amory’s reception Americans have the reputation of following their own understanding of the Church and its moral teachings. Amory does not realize that his moral inclinations (James, 2005) are what is creating these sudden bouts of guilt. He understands the dynamics of the conscience when he meets the priest while in college. His questions are answered by Monsignor even before he asks them, since the priest understand the boy’s conservative and stringent upbringing well and is able to show him where his notions are wrong and where they are right. “The priest seemed to guess Amorys thoughts before they were clear in his own head, so closely related were their minds in form and groove.” (Fitzgerald, 1995) Amory, although charmed and at ease with the priest explaining facts to him, is better off with his own thoughts. These show when he retaliates to the teacher in class or elders elsewhere. In short, his experience with the priest and his egotist learnings is an experience for a lifetime that he cherishes and finds enriching. It is here that we see a distinct American tendency (Piper, 1951) wherein all other aspects of life are considered insignificant in front of what priests and parishes have to say. Although the understanding of the truth is far from complete, the American society and Amory, show that they like to live life by following their understanding of charity and morality strongly. And in the process, if any other person, country or society is shown down, then it is only natural. Amory shows down his peers and considers them to be part of the evil every time he has a hallucination, or a realization that the path taken is wrong. Amory’s reluctance to follow convention With a conservative upbringing, Amory is always at conflicts with the kind of work that his friends and other members of the society he faces in his young days indulge in. He tries to match up to their expectations and even tries to enjoy their free style of living and enjoying life. However, a constant reminder gnaws at his heart that he is somehow indulging with the wrong kind of people. At a paty invite where brandy and fizz is offered, he decides to attend but also exclaims, "Im only going to stay half an hour," Fitgerald aptly brings out Amory’s unsure mind as soon as he reveals in the next sentence, ”He wondered if it sounded priggish” (Fitzgerald, 1995). Watching the way Amory tries to reason out between the prompts from his conscience to his actions, we have the feeling that the author has tried to portray the spirit of America in a subtle and a very clever way (Monk, 1995). Readers will relate to the true American spirit of Amory’s character which embraces freedom and adventure but refuses to go ahead in a path of unjust and selfish acts. How many times have the conservatives of America abhorred and openly criticized the practices of Hollywood in those days? Fitzgerald creates a similar scene when after his encounter or vision of the evil in an alleyway, Amory exclaims backs off his friendly adventures with Sloane. “Then Broadway broke upon them, and with the babel of noise and the painted faces a sudden sickness rushed over Amory.    "For Gods sake, lets go back! Lets get off of this—this place!"(Fitzgerald, 1995) Conclusion: In Fitzgerald’s book, Amory Blaine is a character who faces the evil watch all through his life. And just when he is petrified beyond doubt, he realizes that here is a good side to all his experiences. His fears and realizations are in many ways resonant with the evergreen American spirit that has no control over its experiences, loves freedom and adventure, and still tries to hold on to its ethical and moral learning and practices. By the end of the book, Amory showcases the bright spirit which never fails to look fear and failure in the face. Instead of backing out of the guilt, Amory tries to deal with it and successfully realizes the inner meaning of the visions and fears. Life thereafter, becomes a fruitful journey for him and people who get to know him. To take important lessons from his character, we also realize that Puritanism is not the only character that describes Americans. It is the relativity to morality and freedom that every American achieves that defines the spirit of America which in the author’s opinion should be able to fight its dark sides the way Amory does. References Fitzgerald, F. Scott. This side of paradise. Vol. 3. Cambridge University Press, 1995. James, Pearl. "History and masculinity in F. Scott Fitzgeralds This side of paradise." MFS Modern Fiction Studies 51.1 (2005): 1-33. Lewis, Lionel S., and Richard A. Wanner. "Private schooling and the status attainment process." Sociology of Education (1979): 99-112. Piper, Henry Dan. "Fitzgeralds Cult of Disillusion." American Quarterly 3.1 (1951): 69-80. Monk, Craig. "The Political F. Scott Fitzgerald: Liberal Illusion and Disillusion in" This Side of Paradise" and" The Beautiful and Damned"." American Studies International (1995): 60-70. Read More