In the book This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald, although the character development of the main protagonist, Amory Blaine, is completely controlled by Fitzgerald's life, Amory goes through many changes throughout the story and they arise from the people Amory associates with and Amory's interactions with other characters are in relation to the way Fitzgerald interacted and responded to others. Amory's character seems to fluctuate throughout the novel, the more types of people she meets the more ideas she gets and she begins to see life differently or the same way multiple times. The novel itself appears to be a story about the development of Amory Blaine, which is also Fitzgerald's life up until the time he wrote the book; so it stands to reason that Fitzgerald may have mirrored his life in Amory's. However, Amory's overall development as a character comes through interaction with other characters, just as Fitzgerald grew through the influence of other people. Fitzgerald's love life is very similar to Amory's and it is through these relationships that Amory finds most of her conflicts. There are significant people in Amory's life who influence his actions, and there are influential people in Fitzgerald's life who have impacted his life. Fitzgerald's desire to be with Zelda Sayer is significant in his writing, so it makes sense that the character representing Zelda, Rosalind, has control over Amory's character. Fitzgerald's desire to live the American dream is illustrated through Amory, and it is this social quest that shapes Amory's character at the beginning of the novel. Amory and Fitzgerald are products of their social environment and sometimes change with different social environments in ... middle of paper ...... ald 194); that is, Amory and Fitzgerald's love ambition is hindered by their lack of ambition for the easy and successful life they would need for the person they love to be with them. Fitzgerald shows his current state of lacking a love life due to Amory's romantic relationship with Eleanor, which seemed perfect due to their common interest such as literature, failing with the late summer and early autumn capitalizing Amory's end to romantic desire. Fitzgerald shows Amory's reluctance to forget Rosalind in this last attempt to love Eleanor. All the failed relationships characterize Amory as an innocent young romantic, too self-centered, too false to himself, and too narrow-minded about a certain person to get the love he needs. Works Cited Fitzgerald, Francis. This side of heaven. New York City: Scribner, 1920. Print.