Arthur Mizener
Arthur Mizener | |
|---|---|
| Born | Arthur Moore Mizener September 3, 1907 |
| Died | February 15, 1988 (aged 80) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Princeton University Harvard University |
| Occupation | Biographer |
| Years active | 1951–1975 |
| Notable work | The Far Side of Paradise (1951) |
| Spouse | Rosemary Paris |
| Children | 1 |
Arthur Moore Mizener (September 3, 1907 – February 15, 1988) was an American professor of English, literary critic, and biographer.[1] In addition to authoring the first biography of Jazz Age writer F. Scott Fitzgerald titled The Far Side of Paradise (1951), Mizener introduced the popular interpretations of Fitzgerald's magnum opus The Great Gatsby as a criticism of the American Dream and the character of Jay Gatsby as a false prophet of the American Dream.
Biography[edit]
Born on September 3, 1907, in Erie, Pennsylvania, he was the son of Mason Price and Mabel Moore Mizener, who married in Cuyahoga, Ohio.[1] After graduating from Princeton University—Fitzgerald's alma mater—Mizener obtained his master's degree from Harvard University before returning to Princeton to receive his doctorate in 1934.
After teaching at Yale University; Wells College in Aurora, New York; and Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, he joined Cornell's faculty in 1951.[1] From then until his retirement in 1975, he was Mellon Foundation Professor of English at Cornell University.[1]
In 1951, Mizener authored the first biography of American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald titled The Far Side of Paradise.[2] In his landmark biography, Mizener became the first scholar to interpret the final pages of Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby in the context of the American Dream.[3] "The last two pages of the book," Mizener wrote in his biography, "make overt Gatsby's embodiment of the American Dream as a whole by identifying his attitude with the awe of the Dutch sailors" when first glimpsing the New World.[3]
Mizener posited the American Dream's enchantment is qualified by Fitzgerald via his emphasis on the dream's unreality,[3] and he argued that Fitzgerald viewed the American Dream as "ridiculous."[4] Following the publication of his 1951 biography, Mizener popularized his interpretation of the novel as a criticism of the American Dream in a series of talks titled "The Great Gatsby and the American Dream."[5]
In 1971, two decades later, Mizener released another biography titled The Saddest Story: A Biography of Ford Madox Ford that received critical acclaim but did not achieve the same commercial success.[2] Among his many other works, he wrote a supplemental Fitzgerald biography titled Scott Fitzgerald And His World.[1] The novel, The Valley of Bones, by Anthony Powell is dedicated to Mizener.[6] On February 15, 1988, Mizener died of congestive heart failure at a nursing home in Bristol, Rhode Island, at the age of 80.[2]
Publications[edit]
Volumes[edit]
- The Far Side of Paradise: A Biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald (Houghton Mifflin, 1951)
- The Saddest Story: A Biography of Ford Madox Ford (Putnam, 1971)
- Scott Fitzgerald And His World (Putnam, 1972)
See also[edit]
- Andrew W. Turnbull, Fitzgerald's second biographer and close friend
- Matthew J. Bruccoli, Fitzgerald biographer and friend of Scottie Fitzgerald
- Nancy Milford, Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald's first biographer
References[edit]
Citations[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Arthur Mizener Papers 2024.
- ^ a b c The New York Times 1988.
- ^ a b c Mizener 1965, p. 193.
- ^ Mizener 1965, p. 170: Fitzgerald's "main point is that the American Dream of rising from newsboy to President is ridiculous".
- ^ The Cornell Daily Sun 1960, p. 1.
- ^ Jay 2013.
Works cited[edit]
- "Alumni Return to Ithaca for Annual Reunion, To Attend Lecture Series, Special Exhibitions". The Cornell Daily Sun. Vol. 76, no. 151 (Friday ed.). Ithaca, New York. June 10, 1960. p. 1. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
- "Arthur Mizener, 80, Critic Who Wrote Work on Fitzgerald". The New York Times (Monday ed.). New York. February 15, 1988. Retrieved June 5, 2024.
- Jay, Mike (Spring 2013). "Who Were the Dedicatees of Powell's Works?" (PDF). The Anthony Powell Society Newsletter. No. 50. Greenford, United Kingdom: Anthony Powell Society. ISSN 1743-0976. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 13, 2021. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- Mizener, Arthur. Arthur Mizener Papers, ID: MSS 0172. Newark, Delaware: University of Delaware Library, Museums and Press, University of Delaware. OCLC 667622443. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- Mizener, Arthur (1965) [1951]. The Far Side of Paradise: A Biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald (2nd ed.). Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton-Mifflin Company. ISBN 978-1-199-45748-6 – via Internet Archive.
External links[edit]
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