Once upon a time, there was a family that got very lucky and found a giant, mountain-sized diamond. Because of this, they lived happily ever after. The end.
Does that story seem slightly wrong to you? Though it never explicitly states it, the story implies that money leads to happiness. Though this idea is widely scorned today, in the 1920's, this concept of materialism was very prevalent; basically everyone in America thought that if he/she got rich, he/she would be happy. In Fitzgerald's The Diamond as Big as the Ritz, he mocks this philosophy by creating a family like the one above, except without the happy ending. The Washingtons' ownership of the "large and perfect" (Fitzgerald 86) diamond--Fitzgerald uses rhetoric when describing the diamond in order to emphasize its importance-- results in their belief that they are so much better than everyone else: they invite guests over to their house for their pleasure, and then murder them afterwards. However, this attitude actually shows the Washingtons' sadness, not their happiness; despite their immense wealth, they still lack friends. In fact, their immense wealth has actually desensitized them towards items--you could give them a pink elephant and it would barely amuse them, due to their many other possessions.
In addition, the Washingtons' wealth has made them view only other wealthy people as important. This attitude is replicated in John--he says that the most important thing in Hades was "the earnest worship of and respect for riches" (Fitzgerald 80). This importance also makes them think of themselves as gods; they make their own rules, and expect everyone to obey them, similar to the way in which Moses transcribed the rules God gave him for the Israelites, except Moses's authority came from God, but the Washingtons think their authority comes from their wealth. The attitude the diamond gives the Washingtons shows how misguided the materialistic society of the 1920s was; in the end, money cannot buy one happiness.
Does that story seem slightly wrong to you? Though it never explicitly states it, the story implies that money leads to happiness. Though this idea is widely scorned today, in the 1920's, this concept of materialism was very prevalent; basically everyone in America thought that if he/she got rich, he/she would be happy. In Fitzgerald's The Diamond as Big as the Ritz, he mocks this philosophy by creating a family like the one above, except without the happy ending. The Washingtons' ownership of the "large and perfect" (Fitzgerald 86) diamond--Fitzgerald uses rhetoric when describing the diamond in order to emphasize its importance-- results in their belief that they are so much better than everyone else: they invite guests over to their house for their pleasure, and then murder them afterwards. However, this attitude actually shows the Washingtons' sadness, not their happiness; despite their immense wealth, they still lack friends. In fact, their immense wealth has actually desensitized them towards items--you could give them a pink elephant and it would barely amuse them, due to their many other possessions.
In addition, the Washingtons' wealth has made them view only other wealthy people as important. This attitude is replicated in John--he says that the most important thing in Hades was "the earnest worship of and respect for riches" (Fitzgerald 80). This importance also makes them think of themselves as gods; they make their own rules, and expect everyone to obey them, similar to the way in which Moses transcribed the rules God gave him for the Israelites, except Moses's authority came from God, but the Washingtons think their authority comes from their wealth. The attitude the diamond gives the Washingtons shows how misguided the materialistic society of the 1920s was; in the end, money cannot buy one happiness.
I wish...
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