Committee Chair
Shaheen, Aaron D.
Committee Member
O'Dea, Gregory; Smith, Joyce C.
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Publisher
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Place of Publication
Chattanooga (Tenn.)
Abstract
Eric J. Leed postulates a theory of restraint and release as formative forces in the trenches of the European fronts. I examine F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel The Great Gatsby for its portrayal of release that is tied to the presence of automobile “accidents.” These events emblematize the suppressed memory of mechanized violence. My first chapter addresses Gatsby and his fantasy of release in pursuing Daisy and the implications of release for morality in the post-war world. My second chapter is concerned with Tom Buchanan, whose traditional ideas about “civilization” are juxtaposed with the mechanistic violence of his defense of those ideals. My third chapter explores the relationships the novel’s characters possess to the automobile as a character, and further, how automobility enables release. My conclusion will synthesize the evidence in Fitzgerald’s novel to make observations about the disconnect, forged out of a new age of mechanized warfare, between individuals and their actions.
Degree
M. A.; A thesis submitted to the faculty of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Arts.
Date
5-2015
Name
Fitzgerald, F. Scott -- (Francis Scott), -- 1896-1940 -- Criticism and interpretation.
Document Type
Masters theses
DCMI Type
Text
Extent
iv, 70 leaves
Language
English
Rights
https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en
License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/
Recommended Citation
Powers, Clayton Lawrence, ""So we drove on towards death": release and mechanized violence in The Great Gatsby" (2015). Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations.
https://scholar.utc.edu/theses/176
Department
Dept. of English