The Lost Generation

I have a deep fascination with the lost generation. Two of my favorite books from high school are written by lost generation authors; The Sun Also Rises, by Hemmingway and The Great Gatsby, by Fitzgerald. I find it enthralling that there was an entire generation which was so adversely affected by World War I. This generation possessed such great potential yet WWI left a whole in the generation causing them to lose hope, to lose their drive, and to lose themselves. This sentiment was captured by Fitzgerald in the closing lines of The Great Gatsby, “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter — tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther.... And one fine morning — So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” This demonstrates the potential of the lost generation, how they tried to reach for the green light but could not obtain it. But it also demonstrates their confidence that they will once again, “run faster” and “stretch out (their) arms further .”