This Side of Paradise

F. Scott Fitzgerald uses numerous chapter and section titles throughout the novel. How do these titles reflect the meaning of each section and chapter? How does the novel’s fragmentary organization affect the narrative, and what is the relationship between the novel’s form and content?

Amory’s parents appear briefly in the text, but their influence strongly shapes Amory’s character and life trajectory. How are his father and mother depicted? In what ways does Amory reflect or differ from his parents? Why?

Discuss the novel’s exploration of identity by comparing and contrasting Amory’s character in Book 1 to his character in Book 2. How does he change? How does he stay the same? What does the novel suggest about identity formation and coming of age?

How does Fitzgerald portray female characters? How are gender dynamics and gender roles depicted?

Class dynamics are an important concern in the novel. How are class hierarchies depicted in the novel? What is the wider significance of class in the text?

Discuss the role religion plays in the novel. How is religious faith, or the lack of it, depicted in the novel? What is the wider significance of both belief and skepticism in the novel?

The novel contains numerous poems. Choose several poems and conduct a literary analysis of each of them. How does each poem’s meaning add to the novel’s overall meaning?

Compare This Side of Paradise to The Great Gatsby, which appeared five years later in 1925. What themes, motifs, and/or ideas do the novels have in common? In what ways, if any, do the novels differ in how they depict the Jazz Age?