Drinking Until Disinheritance: A Review of The Beautiful and the Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Drinking Until Disinheritance: A Review of The Beautiful and the Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
By: a.d. elliott | Take the Back Roads - Art and Other Odd Adventures
A Rite of Fancy Book Recommendation and Review
Drinking until disinheritance!
A short summary:
In The Beautiful and the Damned, F. Scott Fitzgerald follows the charming but self-destructing lives of Anthony and Gloria Patch, a wealthy young couple who believe they are destined for greatness without effort. As they drift through parties, ambition, and endless leisure, their dependence on the expectation of inheritance replaces meaningful purpose. What begins as glittering privilege slowly corrodes into bitterness, alcoholism, financial desperation, and emotional collapse, exposing the gap between imagined potential and lived reality. Fitzgerald paints a quietly tragic portrait of squandered youth, revealing how waiting for wealth can be as destructive as never having it at all.
My favorite quote from the book:
"Intelligence is a mere instrument of circumstances."
F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Beautiful and the Damned.
Questions to ponder while reading:
The Fitzgerald question - What does one do with oneself when one has nothing to do?
Does self-absorption cause laziness or vice versa?
My review:
This book always feels like the darkly funny study of rich people’s problems, sipping cocktails while waiting for reality to arrive. Gloria remains a girl after my own heart: she wants to nap, read, dream, think, and drift through life while an imaginary servant brings lemonades and tomato sandwiches. Honestly, same. My only disagreement with her philosophy is ownership; I want the gentle leisure but also my own money, thank you very much. Beneath the humor, though, Fitzgerald’s message slices deep: drifting without purpose turns luxury into rot, and entitlement into erosion. It’s an entertaining, exasperating, and quietly sobering read that makes idleness look far less glamorous than it’s ever been sold to be.
****** *********************************
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller living in Salem, Virginia.
In addition to her travel writings at www.takethebackroads.com, you can also read her book reviews at www.riteoffancy.com and US military biographies at www.everydaypatriot.com
Her online photography gallery can be found at shop.takethebackroads.com
#TaketheBackRoads
Like my page? Please consider supporting my work by visiting my sponsors and webshop or buying me a cup of coffee!
