The Lost Artist: Biographical Fiction and the Identity of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald

<p>Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald (1900-1948) is widely regarded as the first flapper of the Roaring 20s and is often recognized for her tumultuous marriage to acclaimed American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. As a female icon whose life was filled with salacious incidences and mental struggles, the image of Zelda continues to be reinterpreted in various movies, television series, and novels. However, very few center on her artistic pursuits of writing, painting, or dancing and how her desires to contribute to the art world were overshadowed and disrupted by her successful husband. Therese Anne Fowler’s <em>Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald </em>(2013), a novel of biographical fiction, revisits the image of Zelda and gives agency to her image as an artist. This thesis explores the intersection of biography and fiction in Fowler’s novel in an attempt to call attention to Zelda’s identity as an artist rather than solely her historical position as wife and mother. Building upon biographies written by Nancy Milford and Sally Cline, this thesis argues for Fowler’s depiction of Zelda, one that is embedded in the New Woman identity of the 1920s. The resulting novel gives autonomy to Zelda and aids in reshaping her image for a modern 21^st century audience.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts

Level thesis:degree_level

Master's Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Graduate Humanities

Year dc:date.available

2018

Author dc:creator

• Fradelizio, Alexandra

Contributors dc:contributor

• Judy Halebsky, PhD
• Thomas Burke, MFA

• Zelda Fitzgerald
• biographical fiction
• New Woman
• Roaring 20s
• female artist
• Lost Generation
• Fiction
• Literature in English, North America
• Nonfiction
• Women's History
• Women's Studies

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholar.dominican.edu/masters-theses/330

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholar.dominican.edu:masters-theses-1329