The Diamond As Big As The Ritz by F. Scott Fitzgerald [PDF]

Information: The Diamond As Big As The Ritz

• Author: F. Scott Fitzgerald
• Publication Date: 1922
• Main Characters:
  • John T. Unger: A young man from Hades, Mississippi, who serves as the story's narrator and moral compass. His outsider perspective reveals the horrors behind the Washington family's wealth.
  • Percy Washington: John's school friend and son of the diamond mountain's owner. He casually accepts his family's extreme privilege and the violence required to maintain it.
  • Braddock Washington: Percy's father and patriarch of the family. He controls the diamond mountain with ruthless authority and will destroy anyone who threatens his secret.
  • Kismine Washington: Percy's younger sister, who becomes John's love interest. Despite her charm, she is disturbingly indifferent to her family's cruelty.
  • Jasmine Washington: Percy's older sister, who represents the entitled detachment that comes from growing up with limitless wealth.
• Brief Summary: John T. Unger, a young man from a small Mississippi town, travels east for school and befriends Percy Washington, who invites him to spend the summer at his family's estate in Montana. Upon arrival, John discovers the Washingtons own an entire diamond mountain, making them the wealthiest family in history. The family has kept this secret for generations through extreme measures, including imprisoning anyone who stumbles upon their land. As John falls in love with Percy's sister Kismine, he gradually uncovers the terrifying lengths the family will go to in order to protect their fortune. The story builds to a dramatic climax when the outside world finally closes in on the Washingtons' hidden empire.
• Thematic Analysis: The novella's central theme is the moral corruption that accompanies extreme wealth, a subject Fitzgerald would return to throughout his career. It also explores the illusion of the American Dream, showing how the pursuit of limitless riches leads to isolation, cruelty, and ultimately self-destruction. Religious hypocrisy surfaces when Braddock Washington attempts to bribe God himself, exposing how power distorts even the most fundamental human values.
• Historical Context: Fitzgerald wrote "The Diamond As Big As The Ritz" in 1921 and published it in The Smart Set magazine in June 1922, during the early years of the Roaring Twenties. America was experiencing a post-war economic boom, and conspicuous consumption was becoming a defining feature of the era. The story directly channels Fitzgerald's growing unease with a culture that worshipped money above all else, themes he would perfect three years later in The Great Gatsby.