A Night At The Fair by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Author: F. Scott Fitzgerald | Published: July 21, 1928

A Night At The Fair Synopsis

"A Night at the Fair" is a short story by Francis Scott Fitzgerald. It was published in The Saturday Evening Post on July 21, 1928. Fitzgerald brings up the misery of being 14 again in this short story, the suffering brought by the longing for close relationships with the opposite sex, and the shame of not being mature enough to wear trousers. During the 1920s, wearing trousers was only for boys who had reached the age of 13 to 14; due to that, long pants became symbolic of adulthood amongst young boys.

Basil and Riply are two boys who are at the age of puberty. One day Basil and Riply went to a fair. There are some jealousy and competition that arises between Basil and Riply. Riply ridicules Basil for not being old enough to have long pants and steals all the girls from Basil; because of Riply's actions towards him, Basil decides to go home and is determined to get long pants the next day.

Excerpt from A Night At The Fair Online Book

The two cities were separated only by a thin well-bridged river; their tails curling over the banks met and mingled, and at the juncture, under the jealous eye of each, lay, every fall, the State Fair. Because of this advantageous position and because of the agricultural eminence of the state, the fair was one of the most magnificent in America.

About F. Scott Fitzgerald

F. Scott Fitzgerald was born on September 24th, 1896, in St. Paul, Minnesota; He was an exceptionally talented writer from an early age. He attended Princeton University before enlisting to serve in World War I and moving to New York City, where he wrote his first novel, This Side of Paradise, at 23 years old. After its release, it became a national bestseller and catapulted him into fame almost overnight. Find out more about F. Scott Fitzgerald at sevenov.com.