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The Lives of Rich People Bore Me

After reading several short stories by F. Scott Fitzgerald, I have come to the realization that I can only handle so much "woe is me" from the obscenely rich. The first few stories in this collection were amusing. They were, dare I say it, cute. However, after reading pretty much the same sub-context in the next four or five stories, I became rather weary of Fitzgerald's obsessive fascination with crossing the boundary from rich to filthy rich.

I think the problem for me is that I don't care about the characters because they don't resonate with me. With the exception of one short story, there is nothing in them that I can point to and say, even on a very fundamental level, "I get that". The sole exception here was in Bernice Bobs Her Hair and I believe that's because of the gender dynamics he explored. The interactions between the girls could have really happened. The reaction of the boys at the dances and after the climatic haircut seemed plausible.

Another thing Bernice Bobs Her Hair had going for it was the conflict. The conflict in the other short stories has been less than compelling. I just don't care. I'm ready for something with a bit more substance!

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  1. Jeffrey Hite1:15 PM

    I have to agree with you. I think I read the same collection in my short story class a few years back, and that was the only one that really did anything for me.
    It is a bit of a shame because otherwise I like the story telling style, just not so much the subjects.

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