The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

In his introduction to “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” in the annotated Table of Contents to Tales of the Jazz Age, Fitzgerald explains that the story “was inspired by a remark of Mark Twain’s to the effect that it was a pity that the best part of life came at the beginning and the worst part at the end” and that he set out to try the experiment of reversing aging “upon only one man in a perfectly normal world” (7). The tension between one man’s fantastical condition and his otherwise normal world is a source of comedy at first but later reveals poignant contrasts before ending on an emotional note. By blurring fantasy and reality, Fitzgerald insinuates that the normal world of America may be somewhat dreamlike and insubstantial.

Twain was called the father of American literature by Fitzgerald’s contemporary William Faulkner. His work employed humor, satire, and fantasy to provide rich social critiques that still resonate today. The opening setting of “Benjamin Button” is the historical period when Twain published his short fiction and the story contains a mix of fantasy, insight, and sentiment reminiscent of Twain’s writing. Twain was seen at home and internationally as a representative of young America.