Whether you read it in junior high or watched the movie with Leonardo DiCaprio, most know the story of The Great Gatsby, and this Thursday, that classic novel turns 100.
Written by Minnesotan F. Scott Fitzgerald, the book depicts New York City in the roaring 20s before the crash of the economy that led to the Great Depression. The novel follows a group of young Americans in varying stages of life who are reveling in the excess of the new Modern Age.
The story has become a classic in literature classes across the country, and in Minnesota celebrations are being planned by the Minnesota History Center as a means to honor one of the state’s favorite sons and the impact he’s had on the North Star State.
Elaine Hopkins, the director of programs and services at the St. Paul Public Library, spoke with WCCO News Radio about the celebrations, which will include a live reading of the entire novel.
Hopkins shared that the Friends of the St. Paul Public Library has worked to be a steward of Fitzgerald’s legacy since 2020. It was then that the planning for the public reading and celebration began.
“When we started this work, focusing on his work and the context now, we already knew
that the Great Gatsby Anniversary was on the horizon,” Hopkins said.
While Fitzgerald wrote about the 1920s and the life and difficulties that young people faced, many have pointed to the similarities that can be found 100 years later in the 2020s.
However, many have pointed out that Fitzgerald would be surprised by the celebration of The Great Gatsby, as NPR highlighted that the novel didn’t start to gain serious success as a contender for the great American classic until years after his death.
“The novel was largely forgotten at the time of his death in Hollywood in 1940 at the age of 44,” the outlet wrote. “Back then, unsold copies of the first edition of Gatsby were still gathering dust in Scribner’s warehouse.”
Now, the novel is considered the best American novel on several lists, including the Times, Radcliffe Publishing, and The American Scholar. According to The Greatest Books, it’s finished in the top 3 on several other lists as well.