Sometimes Madness Is Wisdom: Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald: A Marriage

"When Madness is Wisdom" is an excellent account of the marriage of F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald. While other biographical accounts tend to characterize Zelda as a crazed, selfish woman who kept her husband from writing and encouraged his drinking, the author does not indict Zelda. Rather, she shows how the behavior of each Fitzgerald resulted in a marriage that could have had no other outcome than what it did. Zelda was broken largely because she had nothing of her own as far as a career and the knowledge that she willingly allowed Scott to use her diaries and ideas for his work. Scott began drinking heavily at Princeton, prior to meeting Zelda and was depicted as a largely insecure person who would have stayed in his cups anyway. For those who are seeking a biographical account of the Fitzgerald's marriage that is fair to both of them, "Sometimes Madness Is Wisdom" is a great read and encourages further study.

I've read everything I could get my hands on about the Fitzgeralds and did my Master's Thesis on Zelda over twenty years ago. This new biography told me things I didn't know and gave me an even better understanding of Scott and Zelda's lives and talents. Thanks!

If you are at all interested in the Fitzgeralds, this book is a precious gem. It shows far more of Zelda's creativity and outrageousness and less of her madness than Nancy Milford's book (which Scottie Fitzgerald was very upset by). It captures the Jazz Age and shows how Scott really assisted in Zelda's madness by insisting her life was his material and that she couldn't develop a professional reputation of her own as a writer. Nearly every schizophrenic episode Zelda had was preceded by Scott's blocking her attempts at self-expression. It still presents a sympathetic portrait of Scott, however. It's the best book on the two of them that I've ever read, and really brings the period to life. It makes you want to cry afterward for the potential that was wasted with both of them.

The Fitzgeralds have been the subjects of numerous biographies; Zelda by Nancy Milford focused on Mrs. Fitzgerald specifically. Kendall Taylor has written a detailed treatment, based on extensive research, of the Fitzgeralds and their tragic relationship. Ms. Taylor's research was based on interviews with family and acquaintances and examination of their letters and records. She recounts their years as a golden couple in the 1920s where they lived in the U.S. and as expatriates in Paris, with the Hemingways and other writers and artists. The central tragedy was Zelda's descent into madness at the end of the 1920s; for the rest of her life she would be in and out of institutions. Zelda's medical condition and prescribed treatments (including hydrotherapy and shock therapy) are described. Today, perhaps, new medications on the market would have saved Zelda much agony. Zelda Fitzgerald's tragedy was compounded by the fact that it was a genetic condition; her brother and grandson were also afflicted by schizophrenia. Scott Fitzgerald's alcoholism also was highly destructive and undoubedtly caused his premature death. Much is said here about Zelda Fitzgerald's creative nature--she painted and wrote novels and short stories. Her obsession for the ballet helped to bring on her illness. Ms. Taylor emphasizes Mrs. Fitzgerald's creativity in art and literature and describes the ways her husband would stifle it. The author discusses that Zelda was used as an inspiration for her husband and some of her letters and diaries were published verbatim in his novels. Kendall Taylor's book is recommended to those interested in the Fitzgeralds; several new revelations are provided about Zelda Fitzgerald. More is also learned about their often put upon daughter, Scottie Fitzgerald.