Book 1, Chapter 1 Summary

This classic novel traces the story of Amory Blaine from his boyhood and university years through his experiences in World War I, and it explores how his life and ideals unravel as he embarks on adult life. Amory Blaine is the epitome of the rich and privileged American youth that F. Scott Fitzgerald studies throughout his career as a novelist. The reader watches Amory develop into a spoiled teenager and then fall apart when he is left to fend for himself.

Amory Blaine is raised by his mother, Beatrice, who spoils him and takes him around the country looking for amusement. At age thirteen, his appendix bursts on a ship heading for Europe. After an emergency return to the U.S., he lives with his aunt and uncle in Minneapolis. In Minneapolis, he develops a reputation for speaking strangely and trying...