BOOK REVIEW: ‘Gatsby’s Oxford’ by Christopher A. Snyder

OPINION:

GATSBY’S OXFORD: SCOTT, ZELDA, AND THE JAZZ AGE INVASION OF BRITAIN: 1904-1929

By Christopher A. Snyder

Pegasus Books, $28.95, 368 pages

Those who have read “The Great Gatsby” only once in the ballpark of 10th grade might be forgiven for not realizing the great importance placed in the novel on Oxford. In his history, “Gatsby’s Oxford: Scott, Zelda, and the Jazz Age Invasion of Britain: 1904-1929,” Christopher A. Snyder reminds readers of the many pivotal mentions of Oxford in “The Great Gatsby” and in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s other works.

Gatsby’s status as “an Oxford man” is a crucial tool in his attempts to position himself among the elite: It is not enough to be rich; one must be cultivated as well. For Gatsby to win the heart of Daisy Buchanan, it is necessary for him to become that kind of elite. Oxford, for an American like Gatsby, indicates far more than having an education. Oxford, Mr. Snyder argues, is key to understanding “The Great Gatsby” overall.

“Gatsby’s Oxford” uses as its conceit the idea that were Jay Gatsby a “historical figure,” these are the places, people and ideas he would have encountered. The Fitzgeralds, and many Americans like them, were enraptured with Oxford. But what precisely did Oxford feel like to Americans at the time? What specifically would it have looked like to Jay Gatsby? Writing in a flavor of New Historicism — here meaning (more or less) the idea that we can examine intellectual history through the lens of literature, on a generously long creative leash no less — Mr. Snyder takes us on a journey through the City of Dreaming Spires as Gatsby would have seen it.

Mr. Snyder sketches a variety of faces of the history of Oxford. We see the aesthetes and the athletes. We learn of the participation of women, the enlisting men. We examine the reception of figures such as Oscar Wilde in America, highlighting cultural differences on either side of the pond. Likewise, we see Fitzgerald’s interactions with these elements. Mr. Snyder shows us Fitzgerald’s medievalism in relation to Oxford’s medievalism, his romanticism and Oxford’s romanticism. He traces the influence of the “Oxford Novel” on the author. He shows us the intersection of Fitzgerald and Evelyn Waugh, J.R.R. Tolkein and C.S. Lewis. We examine the relationship between Oxford and Princeton, and the reception and experiences of Rhodes scholars. The list goes on. What emerges is an eclectic scrapbook of the Oxford that would have received Jay Gatsby.

For those looking for historical depth to a great novel, there is much here to intrigue. For example, Mr. Snyder’s sartorial arguments relate details of dress — Gatsby’s colorful shirts — to medievalism, and to the culture of the time: Fitzgerald himself was a wearer of pink suits and a carrier of canes. What kind of contemporary statement did such an outfit make, concerning Fitzgerald’s sexuality? These kinds of ruminations will intrigue those coming to the text more interested in the novel than the city.

Nevertheless, this book has little narrative, and moreover, readers lacking a terminological arsenal equipped to defeat Mr. Snyder’s preface may need to persevere a rough crossing to the first chapter. Even with the helpful terminological guide and indexes, there is a lot to carry here for readers lacking a basic knowledge of Oxford and the literature of this period. The price of this rigor is that Mr. Snyder’s tone does not, one regrets, bring the Oxford of Jay Gatsby to life. Neither do we see a Gatsby rounded out in flesh, blood and insecurities. The link to Gatsby sometimes fades far into the background. It is often the reader’s responsibility to keep Gatsby in mind.

Mr. Snyder’s background is Medieval History and Renaissance Studies. He completed seven years of research at the University of Oxford while teaching and lecturing, after which he wrote 2013’s “The Making of Middle-earth: A New Look Inside the World of J.R.R. Tolkien.” He makes an undeniable case that both the reality of life at Oxford and the fantasy of Oxford had a major impact on the writers whose work intersects with the University. And, to some extent, that the Jazz Age leaked in there as well.

But the central question remains, was Gatsby “an Oxford man?” When so many members of this club spent just as little time at the university, being sent down for a variety of benign and salacious offenses, what does it actually mean to be “an Oxford man?” The general takeaway is that the Oxford of this period is in many ways a mindset. Oxford is the place of dreamers; a romantic wonderland. Fitzgerald, Mr. Snyder claims, knew precisely what “an Oxford man” would mean in the context of this novel. No matter how short the time Gatsby spent in the City of Dreaming Spires, Oxford is where Fitzgerald placed much of his identity. And so despite the brevity of Gatsby’s stay, as was once said of him, “Nevertheless he’s an Oxford man.”

• Tara Wilson Redd is the author of “The Museum of Us” (Wendy Lamb Books, 2018).