Perkins is an instructor of English and American literature and film. In this essay, Perkins considers Fitzgerald's short story in relation to his novel The Great Gatsby.

Fitzgerald wrote his short story "Winter Dreams" while he was drafting The Great Gatsby, which became one of the most celebrated novels of all time. The two works share several thematic and stylistic elements as they each center on a young man from a modest background who strives to be a part of the exclusive world inhabited by the woman he loves. A close comparison of the two works will reveal that while The Great Gatsby becomes a more complex and penetrating critique of the pursuit of the wealth and status, the short story stands on its own as a compelling portrait of a man who is forced to face the illusory nature of his "winter dreams."

There are strong...