From Conflict to Identity: Main Issues Explored in US Literary Education - Ievgen Sykalo 2026

How does F. Scott Fitzgerald depict the corrupting influence of wealth in “The Diamond as Big as the Ritz”?

entry

Entry — Contextual Frame

The Diamond as Big as the Ritz: Wealth as a Moral Trap

Core Claim Fitzgerald's "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" (1922) is not merely a fantasy about extreme wealth, but a thought experiment on how absolute financial power corrupts the very definition of reality and morality.

Entry Points

Genre Subversion: Fitzgerald presents a fantastical premise—a diamond mountain—because it allows him to push the consequences of unchecked capitalism beyond realism into a realm where moral decay becomes grotesquely visible (Fitzgerald, 1922).
Post-War Disillusionment: Published in 1922, shortly after WWI, the story reflects a broader cultural anxiety about the moral vacuum left by the war and the subsequent rise of a hedonistic, materialistic society in the early Jazz Age.
American Dream Critique: The Washingtons' estate, a self-contained empire, satirizes the American ideal of self-made success by showing how its ultimate realization can lead to isolation and a perverse redefinition of human value (Fitzgerald, 1922).

If the Washingtons' diamond mountain were merely a metaphor for vast wealth, would the story's critique of their actions carry the same weight?

Fitzgerald's "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" (1922) uses the literalization of extreme wealth in the Washington family's diamond mountain to argue that absolute financial power inevitably redefines human life as a disposable resource.

psyche

Psyche — Character as System

Braddock T. Washington: The Logic of Absolute Possession

Core Claim Is Braddock T. Washington a human character, or does he function as the personification of capital's ultimate logic: the preservation and expansion of wealth at any human cost?

Character System — Braddock T. Washington

Desire To maintain the absolute secrecy and inviolability of his diamond mountain, ensuring his family's perpetual, unchallenged wealth (Fitzgerald, 1922).

Fear Exposure of his wealth to the outside world, which would lead to its seizure or devaluation, thus destroying his family's unique status (Fitzgerald, 1922).

Self-Image A benevolent patriarch and a shrewd, pragmatic businessman who makes necessary, if ruthless, decisions for his family's survival and prosperity.

Contradiction He seeks to protect his family's "paradise" through acts of extreme violence, demonstrating that his love for his family is secondary to his devotion to their wealth.

Function in text To embody the dehumanizing effects of unchecked greed and to serve as the primary antagonist who forces John Unger to confront the true cost of opulence.

Psychological Mechanisms

Rationalized Violence: Washington systematically eliminates anyone who discovers his secret because he has internalized the belief that human lives are expendable when they threaten financial security (Fitzgerald, 1922).
Pathological Secrecy: The entire estate is built on an elaborate system of deception, because maintaining the illusion of normalcy is crucial to preventing external interference.
Inherited Delusion: Braddock's children exhibit a casual acceptance of murder because they have been raised entirely within their father's self-serving ethical framework.

How does Braddock T. Washington's calm, almost businesslike demeanor when discussing murder reveal the story's argument about the psychological impact of extreme wealth?

Braddock T. Washington's systematic elimination of outsiders in "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" (1922) illustrates how inherited, absolute wealth can warp individual psychology into a purely instrumental logic.

craft

Craft — Symbolism and Motif

The Diamond: Allure, Illusion, and Annihilation

Core Claim The titular diamond is not a static symbol of wealth, but a dynamic force that actively shapes the Washingtons' reality, ultimately becoming an agent of their destruction.

Five Stages of the Diamond's Argument

First Appearance: John Unger's initial awe establishing the overwhelming, almost mythical scale of the fortune, immediately blurring the line between reality and fantasy (Fitzgerald, 1922).
Moment of Charge: The revelation that the diamond mountain is the source of the Washingtons' power and their need for extreme secrecy, linking beauty directly to violence.
Multiple Meanings: The diamond represents both ultimate luxury and ultimate imprisonment, forcing the family into isolation to protect it.
Destruction or Loss: The diamond's eventual destruction by external forces, signifying a rejection of the corrupting power it represents.
Final Status: The transformation into a symbol of a lost, morally bankrupt paradise, leaving behind only a crater where immense wealth once stood.

Comparable Examples

The Green Light — The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald, 1925): a distant, unattainable ideal.
The White Whale — Moby Dick (Melville, 1851): an obsessive pursuit that consumes the pursuer.
The Yellow Wallpaper — "The Yellow Wallpaper" (Gilman, 1892): a domestic object that becomes a symbol of confinement.

If this symbol were removed — would decoration disappear, or argument?

Fitzgerald's use of the diamond mountain as a literalized symbol in "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" (1922) traces the trajectory of unchecked material desire from alluring fantasy to a self-consuming force.

world

World — Historical Coordinates

The Gilded Age's Shadow: Wealth and Isolation in Post-WWI America

Core Claim "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" (1922) critiques the enduring legacy of Gilded Age wealth accumulation, exposing how extreme fortunes created isolated moral universes.

Historical Coordinates 1922: Published in The Smart Set, firming the story in the early Jazz Age. This period was marked by immense economic growth after World War I, but also by deep anxieties about materialism and the consequences of unprecedented wealth concentration.

Historical Analysis

Industrial Barons' Legacy: The Washington family's empire mirrors the real-life industrial magnates of the late 19th century who operated outside conventional ethical boundaries due to their de facto sovereignty.
Post-War Hedonism: The casual extravagance of the Washington children reflects the broader societal shift towards hedonism among the wealthy youth of the Jazz Age.
Fear of Redistribution: Braddock Washington's extreme measures to hide his wealth speak to the era's fears of government intervention and progressive movements gaining traction.

How does the story's setting in a remote Montana mountain range amplify Fitzgerald's critique of the isolation of extreme wealth in the 1920s?

Fitzgerald's "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" (1922) uses the Washington family's isolated empire to argue that unchecked accumulation of wealth inevitably creates a private moral order.

essay

Essay — Thesis Crafting

Beyond "Wealth is Corrupting": Sharpening Your Argument

Core Claim The most common analytical pitfall is stating the obvious theme ("wealth corrupts") without explaining how Fitzgerald demonstrates this through specific narrative mechanics.

Three Levels of Thesis

Descriptive (weak): Fitzgerald's "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" shows how the Washington family is corrupted by their immense wealth.
Analytical (stronger): In "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz," Fitzgerald uses the Washington family's casual acceptance of murder to illustrate how their absolute wealth has distorted their moral compass.
Counterintuitive (strongest): By presenting the diamond mountain as a literal, physical manifestation of boundless fortune, Fitzgerald argues that the scale of wealth transforms morality into a purely instrumental logic of self-preservation.
The fatal mistake: Writing about "themes" without connecting them to specific textual choices (e.g., failing to explain how the story makes its argument).

Can someone reasonably argue that the Washington family's actions are justifiable given the unique circumstances? If not, your thesis might be a statement of fact, not an argument.

Fitzgerald's "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" (1922) employs the fantastical premise of a diamond mountain to demonstrate that the pursuit of unassailable wealth inevitably redefines human value as a disposable commodity.

now

Now — 2026 Structural Parallel

The Diamond's Echo: Algorithmic Secrecy and Elite Enclaves

Core Claim Fitzgerald's depiction of the Washingtons' isolated, self-regulating empire of wealth (1922) structurally parallels how contemporary tech entities operate through opacity and control over information.

2026 Structural Parallel The Washington family's elaborate system of secrecy and elimination of "outsiders" structurally matches the content moderation classifiers of major tech platforms, where internal logic is hidden from public view, allowing for unchecked power.

Actualization

Eternal Pattern: A pattern for those with immense power to create self-contained systems where external scrutiny is viewed as a threat to privilege (Fitzgerald, 1922).
Technology as New Scenery: Washingtons' physical isolation finds a parallel in digital "walled gardens" and exclusive online communities that curate information and exclude dissenting voices.
Where the Past Sees More Clearly: Fitzgerald's focus on the moral cost of isolation offers a clearer warning than many contemporary analyses, foregrounding the dehumanizing effects of absolute control.
The Forecast That Came True: The portrayal of an elite erasing inconvenient truths foreshadows modern "deplatforming," where individuals are removed from public discourse to protect a private interest.

How does the Washingtons' physical isolation illuminate the mechanisms by which powerful tech companies maintain autonomy in 2026?

Fitzgerald's "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" (1922) anticipates the structural logic of modern content moderation and elite digital enclaves by depicting how absolute power necessitates self-regulating systems that eliminate external threats.

Written by

S.Y.A.

Literature educator and essay writing specialist. Over 20 years of experience creating educational content for students and teachers.