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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
took me way too long to finish, partly due to the pacing and partly due to the emotional turmoil that Gloria and Anthony put me through. it’s kind of like driving past a bad accident on the highway: can’t look away, but feel bad for being morbidly interested and pitying the people involved
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
As a lover of classics, I'm surprised to say that I hated The Beautiful and the Damned. The characters, writing, plot and dialogue were all boring and poorly thought out.
For a book that reads like a character-study, the characters are surprisingly one-dimensional with little about them of interest - an unlikeable character who also has no personality makes this a tedious read.
Horrible characters can be some of the most interesting to explore, but here we see boring and privileged people have a very normal life, full of racism, classism, misogyny and drinking. Yet somehow none of them felt real or had any substance.
I was bored but forced myself to finish it because I thought it would get better as I usually love classics as well as character-based and slow plots (it did not).
It was painful to get through the first few chapters as they read like a character-sheet. The love interest, Gloria, is introduced and it seems that 30 year old Patrick is attracted to 22 year old Gloria because she's child-like - it was disconcerting how often her attractiveness is linked to her being likened to a young child. Although it seemed like the author knew that their characters were immoral and awful, there was no satire or commentary to show this or make it interesting.
The writing itself is boring and factual with no passion, feeling or descriptions.
This is some of the most boring writing, characters and plot I have experienced.
The dialogue was not only clunky but also written like a screenplay/script which makes it so difficult to get through.
This could have been good but misses the social commentary and/or satire that seems innate in the subject matter/plot, there are no descriptions - I don't know what any setting or character looks like and the writing was generally boring and factual. I think the dialogue was the worst of all.
I hated every second of reading.
For a book that reads like a character-study, the characters are surprisingly one-dimensional with little about them of interest - an unlikeable character who also has no personality makes this a tedious read.
Horrible characters can be some of the most interesting to explore, but here we see boring and privileged people have a very normal life, full of racism, classism, misogyny and drinking. Yet somehow none of them felt real or had any substance.
I was bored but forced myself to finish it because I thought it would get better as I usually love classics as well as character-based and slow plots (it did not).
It was painful to get through the first few chapters as they read like a character-sheet. The love interest, Gloria, is introduced and it seems that 30 year old Patrick is attracted to 22 year old Gloria because she's child-like - it was disconcerting how often her attractiveness is linked to her being likened to a young child. Although it seemed like the author knew that their characters were immoral and awful, there was no satire or commentary to show this or make it interesting.
The writing itself is boring and factual with no passion, feeling or descriptions.
This is some of the most boring writing, characters and plot I have experienced.
The dialogue was not only clunky but also written like a screenplay/script which makes it so difficult to get through.
This could have been good but misses the social commentary and/or satire that seems innate in the subject matter/plot, there are no descriptions - I don't know what any setting or character looks like and the writing was generally boring and factual. I think the dialogue was the worst of all.
I hated every second of reading.
Wow. This quickly became one of my new favorite books. The writing is absolutely beautiful, and the story is captivating.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"If Fitzgerald had not existed, it would have been necessary to invent him. Seldom has there been a character who personified, as well as chronicled, an age with such dexterity and verisimilitude."
-the Sunday Times
-the Sunday Times
I loved this. I am sure many other people have many more literary things to say. All I can say is that there are many beautifully constructed sentiments here, with classic Fitzgerald themes. Love!
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Beautiful and The Damned follows the story of Anthony Patch and his eventual wife Gloria. They live the 1910s up in glamour in high fashion and fast and easy as a leisurely class, often drinking the days away. The story follows the nihilism of this class, of the attitudes that nothing matters and that in a sense ‘God is dead’. Anthony Patch is waiting to inherit money from his rich Grandfather. He gets by from his ‘trustfund’. Throughout the novel he takes no interest in improving his well being or ‘working’ for a better life but living a life of ease and in latter half depravity and drunkenness. Eventually his grandfather after witnessing a horrific display of such-he’s a Prohibitionist cuts Anthony and Gloria out of the Will. After he dies Anthony brings a lawsuit contesting the will. His friends are almost all cynics towards life and it’s meaning. But some like Dick, work towards their hopes by putting in effort and even his friend Maury does eventually. In the end the novel is a tragedy of the rich and ultra rich how a life of everything leads to nothing, and how life matters in some ways. The ending ends after ww1 and prohibition with Anthony gaining $30million. However in the process he lost his mind and friends do to alcoholism and his high baller life. Gloria in the same pace, still maintained her beauty but lost her innocence and became forlorn and bitter towards her husbands life. Both characters lived lives of ruin and hatred towards each other, never holding a firm care in the world except for their lifestyle. The novel and the characters are a stark reminder of how wealth can corrupt and how the high class often is full of murky underline of issues. although I would not say Gloria became ugly, she aged as all people do and lost her beauty as a young woman. Anthony had succumbed to alcoholism and was implied to be mentally unstable and even wheelchair bound. In the end he implied he was owed the wealth thru just existing. overall a interesting look on the lives of the rich and how money changes them and how they feel owed. Gloria and Anthony both could care less for the world and it’s going ons prescribing they are above it all, and even mocking the concept of God. At one point Maury monologues of such. God is seen as a afterthought to them. Coming in the form of Biphilism it Gloria. The characters are cruel in their uncaring actions and thoughts towards others, often scoffing at those such as Richard who expounded upon his wealth by making something of himself thru writing. Or Joseph Blocekman.
While novels focussed on character-development are quite common, this is the first book I've read centred around characters' decay.
Anthony Patch, a grandson of a wealthy businessman, lacks ambition and meaning in life. Throughout the book he tries to become a historian, a fiction writer, a bond salesman, yet he is missing the fundamental drive and resilience to put effort and withstand failures as he awaits for a hefty inheritance. Anthony has a taste for extravagant lifestyle, an unapologetic sense of entitlement, yet at his core he is an unremarkable and uninteresting man.
Gloria Gilbert is a self-obsessed narcissist and a heartbreaker, trading beauty as her only currency. An entertainer at heart, Gloria is utterly bored when alone and therefore always wants company around her, be it friends or former love interests. She's fussy and peculiar about everything including small details such as her tomato sandwich that she would send back to the kitchen if it's not cooked the right way. A few times in the novel Gloria had a desire to become an actress, yet when she finally went for an audition, it was too late to play the roles she wanted.
The two meet and - surprise surprise - fall in love, forming a doomed marriage that will soon become toxic. The plot of this book is somewhat weak and not much is going on at the start - apart from the flamboyant parties with rivers of champagne and jazz. Yet as the financial pressures mount - the Patches live off Anthony's limited allowance while they wait for inheritance - the couple's relationship starts to disintegrate turning into a love-hate hell of jealousy, disrespect and even abuse (that disturbing scene on the platform) with the downs of their marriage swinging lower each time. And this is where the book gets really good.
As Fitzgerald had famously used his own marriage with Zelda for this book's inspiration, and some of these scenes may have happened in real life – in one form or another, the writer masters the portrayal of Anthony and Gloria's fights - demeaning, cruel and bitter.
Yet apart from gradually destroying each other, Anthony and Gloria are also destroying themselves. By the end of the novel Anthony turns into a gruesome alcoholic and Gloria loses her charm and vitality as her beauty starts fading with age.
Overall, this is a book about very unlikable people, the 1% of American elite, who didn't lift a finger to justify their lifestyle and wealth. Protagonists at first, they soon turn into antiheroes, and it becomes hard to root for them.
Despite its drawbacks, I rated this book 4/5 for its eloquent prose in drawing a sociological portrait of the Jazz Age generation: the extravagant parties of the roaring twenties, the Prohibition period and the flapper culture are all there, described to the finest detail. The novel also touches on the WW1 - although at first it's only mentioned in the context of Anthony and Gloria's disappointment as they cannot travel to Europe for their honeymoon. Later in the story Anthony is also sent to a military camp with the intention to go to France later, yet the war is won right before their regiment's departure date.
The bottom line...
Read this book if you are interested in Jazz Age, roaring twenties and the lost generation and enjoy eloquent prose.
Do not read this book if you can't stand unlikable characters and weak plots.
Anthony Patch, a grandson of a wealthy businessman, lacks ambition and meaning in life. Throughout the book he tries to become a historian, a fiction writer, a bond salesman, yet he is missing the fundamental drive and resilience to put effort and withstand failures as he awaits for a hefty inheritance. Anthony has a taste for extravagant lifestyle, an unapologetic sense of entitlement, yet at his core he is an unremarkable and uninteresting man.
Gloria Gilbert is a self-obsessed narcissist and a heartbreaker, trading beauty as her only currency. An entertainer at heart, Gloria is utterly bored when alone and therefore always wants company around her, be it friends or former love interests. She's fussy and peculiar about everything including small details such as her tomato sandwich that she would send back to the kitchen if it's not cooked the right way. A few times in the novel Gloria had a desire to become an actress, yet when she finally went for an audition, it was too late to play the roles she wanted.
The two meet and - surprise surprise - fall in love, forming a doomed marriage that will soon become toxic. The plot of this book is somewhat weak and not much is going on at the start - apart from the flamboyant parties with rivers of champagne and jazz. Yet as the financial pressures mount - the Patches live off Anthony's limited allowance while they wait for inheritance - the couple's relationship starts to disintegrate turning into a love-hate hell of jealousy, disrespect and even abuse (that disturbing scene on the platform) with the downs of their marriage swinging lower each time. And this is where the book gets really good.
As Fitzgerald had famously used his own marriage with Zelda for this book's inspiration, and some of these scenes may have happened in real life – in one form or another, the writer masters the portrayal of Anthony and Gloria's fights - demeaning, cruel and bitter.
Yet apart from gradually destroying each other, Anthony and Gloria are also destroying themselves. By the end of the novel Anthony turns into a gruesome alcoholic and Gloria loses her charm and vitality as her beauty starts fading with age.
Overall, this is a book about very unlikable people, the 1% of American elite, who didn't lift a finger to justify their lifestyle and wealth. Protagonists at first, they soon turn into antiheroes, and it becomes hard to root for them.
Despite its drawbacks, I rated this book 4/5 for its eloquent prose in drawing a sociological portrait of the Jazz Age generation: the extravagant parties of the roaring twenties, the Prohibition period and the flapper culture are all there, described to the finest detail. The novel also touches on the WW1 - although at first it's only mentioned in the context of Anthony and Gloria's disappointment as they cannot travel to Europe for their honeymoon. Later in the story Anthony is also sent to a military camp with the intention to go to France later, yet the war is won right before their regiment's departure date.
The bottom line...
Read this book if you are interested in Jazz Age, roaring twenties and the lost generation and enjoy eloquent prose.
Do not read this book if you can't stand unlikable characters and weak plots.