Apart from Anthony, Gloria, and old Adam Patch, the early friend of Anthony's, Maury Noble (artfully described as very catlike in appearance and demeanor) and Richard Caramel are the principal personages in The Beautiful and Damned. The function of these two men is largely to act as counterpoises to Anthony. At first, both are close to him and spend much time at parties; but, soon, Richard takes up his task of writing seriously, becomes successful, and loses sight of Anthony for a long time; Maury keeps on idling for a while, but later starts to work and earns large sums of money. Meanwhile, except for a brief stint in the army, Anthony does nothing of a vocational nature.

Gloria, who has been identified as one of Fitzgerald's images of the quintessential flapper, simply loses her beauty (largely from irregular hours, drink, and lack of activity) and...