Fitzgerald was still dedicated to writing novels even if he became famous. But his wife paid attention to ostentation and extravagance, and later she had mental illness, which brought great pain to him. He couldn’t afford to live, so he had to go to Hollywood to write scripts in order to make a living. Unfortunately, he was infected with lung disease in 1936. At the same time, his wife was severely ill, so he could hardly create works. He was in the edge of collapse and got dunk all day long. Finally at the age of 44 years old, he died of heart disease on December 21st in Losangeles.

Fitzgerald not only wrote novels, but also wrote short stories. In addition to the above two works, the masterpiece works were Tender is the Night (1934) and The Last Tycoon (1941). His novels vividly reflected the “American Dream” of the 20’s, showing the spirit of the “wasteland” during the great depression. He was most known for his description of the 

“Jazz Age”, and that was the time he lived in. Jazz era referred to the period when the capitalist economy of the United States was relatively stable and prosperous while the social ideology of the era was changing greatly from the end of the war to the economic crisis during ten years. People believed in their own feelings after the traditional values had been changed.

Tender is the Night was published in 1934, which was his last novel that he had finished before his death. The background of the novel was set in European continent, which the author was familiar to and the time span was from 1917 to 1930, but the novel showed the scene of “Jazz Age” in the United States.来*自-优=尔,论:文+网www.youerw.com

The novel introduces the strong feelings of nostalgia and regret, the hope of loss, the illusion of disillusion and the pision of personality.

Tender is the Night is an autobiographical novel, exploring a process where the author experienced the despair of emotion and spirit. It is the most emotive novels written by Fitzgerald. The story comes from the real experience and life of Fitzgerald. “Dick seems to be the author himself but he surpasses the author further.” ( Cheng 13 ). 

Chapter One Tragedy in Dick’s Character

Dick’s tragedy is mostly caused by the era and society in which he lives. However, the defect in his character cannot be ignored. There are some fatal defects in his character such as fancy, vanity, cowardice and so on.