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Book Review – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is one of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s most well-known stories and there’s a very good reason for that. Telling the story of a man who ages backwards is an interesting concept. Not least because it begs the question: “just how did a woman give birth to a fully-grown 70-year-old man?” You’ve got to feel sorry for Mrs Button for having to go through that labour. No wonder we don’t hear from her again. If she’s actually alive, she’d be bloody traumatised and in a lot of pain, I imagine. The short story comes out of the idea that growing old sucks, so it’s not fair that it should come at the end of our life. Instead of enjoying retirement and ignoring the inevitable sting of mortality, human beings get older, slower, and more reflective. Why should we be resigned to live as an old person sitting in a chair and remembering our glory days? What would happen if our lifespan was reversed? If we were born fully-formed and regressed back to a state of innocence? If our lives ended with a lack of awareness and no memories? F. Scott Fitzgerald decided it was time to find out.
There are plenty of problems throughout Benjamin Button’s life. Not only does his father have trouble accepting him as his son but he must contend with childish endeavours despite having the mind of a much older man. As he grows up, his body gets younger and things start to become a little easier. He even starts bonding more with his father. Despite a few stumbling blocks, Benjamin goes through all of the traditional defining moments in a man’s life. He goes to school, attends college, and then starts working for his father. Luckily Benjamin still manages to find himself a wife. He happens to bump into the only young woman who was looking for a much older man. Unfortunately, it’s not easy to maintain a marriage when one of you continues to look older and the other appears to get younger.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is one of those great short stories that take an absurd concept and play it straight. Much like Kafka’s Metamorphosis , it requires the reader to suspend a certain amount of disbelief but the payoff ends up being just as good. Throughout the story, Benjamin is considered as something of an oddity but never as anything to be incredibly worried about. If you’re willing to go with the concept, it will tell you a great deal about humanity and the bittersweet reality of ageing. The fact that Benjamin’s story is presented in such a realist manner means that Fitzgerald can play with the normal emotions associated with death. As the novel goes on and Benjamin moves closer to his demise, the story becomes weirdly uplifting. Instead of being full of regrets or feeling scared, Benjamin is a baby with a really small sense of the world.
The story is really well balanced and has a lot to say about society. We see Benajmin rejected by so many people for being an outsider. His father and son believe he is failing to be a real man and his wife accuses him of just being stubborn. And, likewise, Benajmin finds it difficult to connect with his peers as he grows up. As a child, he can’t enjoy childish pursuits. He’s an outsider and is made to feel like he doesn’t belong. There is a great mix of humour and sadness here. There is comedy in the way that Benjamin is so often mistaken for his father’s brother or his son’s nephew. Yet, he is often badly treated by the people who should love him and, as he gets older, he moves further away from his family. There is a scene in which a 10-year-old Benjamin is playing with toys as everyone else welcomes the birth of his grandchild.
It’s a short read but there is a lot to love about The Curious Case of Benjamin Button . It poses a great many questions about age and identity. How does our age affect the way people see us? How does it affect the way we live our lives? Does age really prevent us from doing certain things and should it? By flipping the narrative and presenting Benjamin as being a man with age and experience from birth, Fitzgerald questions the importance of them both. If you haven’t read it or have only experience the film, I would suggest you give it a go.
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And down he forgot as up he grew
Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett chronologically converge at last in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is a splendidly made film based on a profoundly mistaken premise. It tells the story of a man who is old when he is born and an infant when he dies. All those around him, everyone he knows and loves, grow older in the usual way, and he passes them on the way down. As I watched the film, I became consumed by a conviction that this was simply wrong.
Let me paraphrase the oldest story I know: In the beginning, there was nothing, and then God said, “Let there be light.” Everything comes after the beginning, and we all seem to share this awareness of the direction of time’s arrow. There is a famous line by e.e. cummings that might seem to apply to Benjamin Button: and down he forgot as up he grew. But no, it involves the process of forgetting our youth as we grow older.
We begin a movie or novel and assume it will tell a story in chronological time. Flashbacks and flash-forwards, we understand. If it moves backward through a story (Harold Pinter’s “ Betrayal “), its scenes reflect a chronology seen out of order. If a day repeats itself (Harold Ramis’ “ Groundhog Day “), each new day begins with the hero awakening and moving forward. If time is fractured into branching paths (“ Synecdoche, New York “), it is about how we attempt to control our lives. Even time-travel stories always depend on the inexorable direction of time.
Yes, you say, but Benjamin Button’s story is a fantasy. I realize that. It can invent as much as it pleases. But the film’s admirers speak of how deeply they were touched, what meditations it invoked. I felt instead: Life doesn’t work this way. We are an observer of our passage, and so are others. It has been proposed that one reason people marry is because they desire a witness to their lives. How could we perform that act of love if we were aging in opposite directions?
The movie’s premise devalues any relationship, makes futile any friendship or romance, and spits, not into the face of destiny, but backward into the maw of time. It even undermines the charm of compound interest. In the film, Benjamin ( Brad Pitt ) as an older man is enchanted by a younger girl ( Cate Blanchett ). Later in the film, when he is younger and she is older, they make love. This is presumably meant to be the emotional high point. I shuddered. No! No! What are they thinking during sex? What fantasies apply? Does he remember her as a girl? Does she picture the old man she loved?
Pitt will of course be nominated for best actor and may deserve it because of his heroic struggle in the performance. Yes, he had to undergo much makeup, create body language and perform physically to be manipulated by computers. He portrays the Ages of Man with much skill. That goes with the territory. But how did he prepare emotionally ? What exercises would the Method suggest? You can’t go through life waving goodbye. He is born looking like a baby with all the infirmities old age. He grows younger, until he resembles Brad Pitt, and then a younger Brad Pitt, and then — we do not follow him all the way as he recedes into the temporal distance.
The film was directed by David Fincher , no stranger to labyrinths (“ Zodiac ,” “ Fight Club “). The screenplay is by Eric Roth , who wrote “ Forrest Gump ” and reprises the same approach, by having his hero’s condition determine his life experience. To say, however, that Roth “adapted” the original short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald would be putting it mildly. Fitzgerald wrote a comic farce, which Roth has made a forlorn elegy. Roth’s approach makes Benjamin the size of a baby at birth. Fitzgerald sardonically but consistently goes the other way: The child is born as an old man, and grows smaller and shorter until he is finally a bottle-fed baby. Not much is said about Benjamin’s mother, which is a pity, because he is 5-feet-8 at birth, and I wonder how much pushing that required.
I said the film is well-made, and so it is. The actors are the best: Taraji P. Henson , Julia Ormond , Elias Koteas , Tilda Swinton . Given the resources and talent here, quite a movie might have resulted. But it’s so hard to care about this story. There is no lesson to be learned. No catharsis is possible. In Fitzgerald’s version, even Benjamin himself fails to comprehend his fate. He’s born as a man with a waist-length beard who can read the encyclopedia, but in childhood, plays with toys and throws temper tantrums, has to be spanked and then disappears into a wordless reverie. Benjamin rejects these logical consequences because, I suspect, an audience wouldn’t sit still for them.
According to the oddsmakers at MovieCityNews, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is third among the top five favorites for best picture. It may very well win. It expends Oscar-worthy talents on an off-putting gimmick. I can’t imagine many people wanting to see the movie twice. There was another film this year that isn’t in the “top five,” or listed among the front-runners at all, and it’s a profound consideration of the process of living and aging. That’s Charlie Kaufman’s “Synecdoche, New York.” It will be viewed and valued decades from now. You mark my words.
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.
- Elias Koteas as Monsieur Devereux
- Cate Blanchett as Daisy
- Tilda Swinton as Elizabeth Abbott
- Taraji P. Henson as Queenie
- Julia Ormond as Caroline
- Brad Pitt as Benjamin Button
- Jason Flemyng as Thomas Button
Directed by
- David Fincher
Based on a short story by
- F. Scott Fitzgerald
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The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Paperback – January 13, 2009
- Print length 48 pages
- Language English
- Publisher BN Publishing
- Publication date January 13, 2009
- Dimensions 6 x 0.11 x 9 inches
- ISBN-10 1607960710
- ISBN-13 978-1607960713
- Lexile measure 460L
- See all details
Product details
- Publisher : BN Publishing; Reprint edition (January 13, 2009)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 48 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1607960710
- ISBN-13 : 978-1607960713
- Lexile measure : 460L
- Item Weight : 2.72 ounces
- Dimensions : 6 x 0.11 x 9 inches
- #10,042 in TV, Movie & Game Tie-In Fiction
- #63,090 in Short Stories (Books)
- #78,529 in Classic Literature & Fiction
About the authors
Nunzio defilippis.
Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more
Kevin Cornell
Kevin Cornell is an illustrator and author from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Only a few brave souls have spotted him in the wild. Those who have, report he is remarkably polite, and has impeccably groomed fur.
F. Scott Fitzgerald
F. Scott Fitzgerald was born in 1896 in St Paul, Minnesota, and went to Princeton University which he left in 1917 to join the army. Fitzgerald was said to have epitomised the Jazz Age, an age inhabited by a generation he defined as 'grown up to find all Gods dead, all wars fought, all faiths in man shaken'.
In 1920 he married Zelda Sayre. Their destructive relationship and her subsequent mental breakdowns became a major influence on his writing. Among his publications were five novels, This Side of Paradise, The Great Gatsby, The Beautiful and Damned, Tender is the Night and The Love of the Last Tycoon (his last and unfinished work): six volumes of short stories and The Crack-Up, a selection of autobiographical pieces.
Fitzgerald died suddenly in 1940. After his death The New York Times said of him that 'He was better than he knew, for in fact and in the literary sense he invented a "generation" ... he might have interpreted them and even guided them, as in their middle years they saw a different and nobler freedom threatened with destruction.'
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Customers find the book fascinating, wonderful, and a quick read. They describe the story as interesting and different. Readers praise the writing style as clever, simple, and charming. They say the book is thought-provoking and encourages them to analyze the situation. They also appreciate the humor and the quick pace. Opinions are mixed on the emotional content, with some finding it bittersweet and moving, while others say it's sad and depressing.
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Customers find the book fascinating, wonderful, and clever for its time. They describe it as a quick but thought-provoking read. Readers also mention it has an incredible premise and interesting idea.
"...Have our attitudes really progressed? A quick but thought-inspiring read from a master craftsman.Story – four stars..." Read more
"...The art was nice, as was the story written. It was indeed a very interesting idea , but one I’m glad will never happen to an actual person – old at..." Read more
"Very different from what I remember the movie being like, but also very good ! I laughed and cried, and also learned some new words!..." Read more
"Very quick, but extremely thoughtful read. Classic . Love to read this one every couple of years. Great story" Read more
Customers find the story interesting, amazing, and different. They say the author knows the right way to tell a story. Readers also mention the last chapter blows them away.
"I seen the movie first which I enjoyed also. This was a very interesting story and well written. I would recommend." Read more
"Review 4.3 starsThis cleverly crafted short story was inspired by a remark of Mark Twain's that, "Life would be infinitely happier..." Read more
"This is a really great short story . I read the story before I went to see the movie...." Read more
"...It was short and to the point, I read it all in one sitting. I feel for Benjamin though, a misfit from the day he was born until the day he died...." Read more
Customers find the writing style clever, simple, and thoughtful. They also appreciate the quaint language that entices them. Readers mention the book is beautifully illustrated and the author weaves words together in surprising patterns.
"...This was a very interesting story and well written . I would recommend." Read more
"...It's a quick read in a very simple prose ...." Read more
"Very quick, but extremely thoughtful read . Classic. Love to read this one every couple of years. Great story" Read more
"...Other than these, I loved the colour palette of the book. It's beautifully illustrated and painted. I'm glad I bought this book." Read more
Customers find the book thought-provoking, inspiring, and confusing. They say it encourages them to analyze the situation and makes them nod in complete understanding.
"What an original idea! The perfect metaphor for those who feel that were born in a wrong time of human history." Read more
"...The story at once confuses me and makes me nod in complete understanding . Read it! You'll see!" Read more
"This book is awesome. It is thought provoking and has emotional ups and down. I loved this book." Read more
"Nothing like the movie. None of the detail or romance . His father was Button but not a button manufacturer. Brother named Roscoe. And so on." Read more
Customers find the book's read pace fast.
"...It's a quick read in a very simple prose...." Read more
" Very quick , but extremely thoughtful read. Classic. Love to read this one every couple of years. Great story" Read more
"...Fantastic read. Quick , but Great! Very Curious indeed." Read more
"As always, symbolism abounds. I liked the quick pace of this read and how it made me feel...." Read more
Customers find the humor in the book entertaining.
"...He weaves humorous moments alongside poignant ones creating a satirical commentary on society’s response to growing up, ageing, appearances and..." Read more
"I found this story very entertaining because it was so clever for its time. I liked the flow of it from the beginning to the ending." Read more
"This was one of the greatest stories I have read in years. It was entertaining , interesting, and heart breaking...." Read more
"interesting but sad. Unusual, funny and all times pretty unbelievable, but hard to put down. in the end very depressing...." Read more
Customers say the movie version is good. They also mention the movie improves on the premise and is not half bad.
"I loved it read it in a couple hours. The movie version is good as well , however, reading the book seems to transport you to that time and era and..." Read more
"...with its nonsense.Actually all things considered the movie itself was not half bad ." Read more
"...The only good thing about this book is that it inspired a great movie ." Read more
"Brad Pitt starred in an adaption of this story, I think the movie improved on the premise , worth the time to explore it." Read more
Customers have mixed opinions about the emotional content of the book. Some find it bittersweet, moving, and touching, while others say it's sad, depressing, and bizarre.
"...It’s a bittersweet story and in a way a cruel story since Benjamin all under his life is met with contempt and misunderstanding...." Read more
"...It was sweet but so sad ." Read more
"...It was a sad story in my opinion, even when he was happy.The art was nice, as was the story written...." Read more
"...story of Benjamin Button; I find the idea fascinating and the story so sentimental . In the movie, BB is born as an elderly man with a child's mind...." Read more
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Screen Rant
How the curious case of benjamin button compares to the short story.
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David Fincher’s fantasy romance film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is based on a short story by The Great Gatsby author, F. Scott Fitzgerald – and here’s how they compare. Following the mystery thriller Zodiac , David Fincher returned with a very different type of film, with a unique story about life and death: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button , starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett.
The film tells the life of Benjamin Button (Pitt), a man born with a rare aging ailment, where he was born as an old man and aged backwards, thus dying as a baby. Button’s life wasn’t easy, but that didn’t keep him from living some interesting adventures and falling in love. Benjamin met Daisy Fuller (Blanchett), with whom he had a special bond, and ended up falling in love with her. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button offers a different look at life and death from the eyes of a man who is getting younger as years pass.
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The story is not an original one, as it’s based on Fitzgerald’s 1922 short story of the same name, but it did take a lot of creative liberties with it. However, and compared to other book adaptations that made changes that ultimately messed with the core of the story, those made to The Curious Case of Benjamin Button were to expand it a bit further. Here’s how Fincher’s film compares to the short story.
Benjamin Button’s Family
In the film, Benjamin is born to the Button family, who own a company that makes buttons (of course). Given the condition and appearance of newborn Benjamin, and the fact that his mother died during childbirth, his father, Thomas (Jason Flemyng), abandons him on the porch of a nursing home. There he’s found by Queenie (Taraji P. Henson) and Mr. “Tizzy” Weathers ( Mahershala Ali ), and Queenie decides to raise him as her own, telling those at the nursing home that it’s her sister’s baby. Benjamin grows up surrounded by old people, and it’s easy for him to blend in due to his appearance, even though he’s not exactly an old man on the inside.
In the book, however, his family life is very different. His father is the president of Roger Button & Co., Wholesale Hardware, and though he is initially shocked by the appearance of his son, he doesn’t abandon him, but he does insist on ignoring his “condition”, and treating him as a baby. His mother isn’t mentioned in the book, so it’s implied that she died during childbirth.
Benjamin Button’s Wife
One of the biggest changes the film made was the expansion on Benjamin’s love life. In it, he loses his virginity in a brothel, taken there by Captain Mike Clark (Jared Harris), and years later begins an affair with Elizabeth Abbott ( Tilda Swinton ), wife of the British Trade Minister. Benjamin later reunites with Daisy, whom he met when she was seven years old, at the nursing home, where she visited her grandmother. Daisy fails to seduce Benjamin, and they go their separate ways for a few years. After a couple of obstacles in their relationship – including a car accident in Paris that leaves Daisy unable to continue with her career as ballet dancer – and both having other relationships, Benjamin and Daisy reunite once more and start a life together. A few years later, they have a daughter, Caroline, and Benjamin feels he can’t be a proper father due to his reverse aging, and decides to abandon them, though he keeps writing to his daughter.
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Benjamin’s love life in the book is not as exciting as in the film. Benjamin meets Hildegarde Moncrief, daughter of General Moncrief, when they’re in their twenties (and he looks 50). Hildegarde says she prefers older men, and because Benjamin looked much older, she falls for him. They get married not long after and have a son, Roscoe. However, as Benjamin “grows younger”, he loses interest in Hildegarde, who now looks older than him, and enlists in the Spanish-American war as he’s growing bored with his life. Hildegarde later moves to Italy, and Benjamin returns to live with his son.
Benjamin Button’s Life
Although the film follows the idea of the story of a man who ages in reverse, the details on his development, both physical and mental, are completely different. In the film, Benjamin Button was born on November 11, 1918, and was the size of a regular baby but with the appearance and maladies of an old man, such as being almost blind due to cataracts. As such, doctors didn’t believe he was going to live long. But even though he looked like an elderly man, he was pretty much a child inside. He was taught how to speak, read, and walk, going from using a wheelchair to crutches, to eventually being able to stand on his own. As he grew younger, he got stronger and more agile, but as years passed, he was also affected by problems elders go through. Though he looked like a pre-teen, Benjamin was displaying early signs of dementia, which only got worse as he grew. Following the death of her husband, Daisy moved into the nursing home and cared for Benjamin for the rest of his life, even though he didn’t remember her at all.
Benjamin’s development in the book is completely different. He was born in 1860, was the size of an elderly man (which can definitely explain the possible death of his mother) and was capable of speech, having a conversation with his father minutes after they meet. Instead of looking like an old man and acting like a child, like in the film, he was an old man in all levels. He liked spending time with his grandparents rather than with other children, even though his father insisted that he played with kids his age. His father also forced him to play with children’s toys and even sent him to kindergarten, but he kept falling asleep during child activities, which didn’t appeal to him at all (and he was too old to stay awake the whole time). As he grew younger in appearance, he also did mentally, which is why he grew tired of his wife and his life, and decided to go to war and later enrolled at Harvard University (also in part as revenge against Yale for rejecting him when he was 18 but looked 50).
After graduating from Harvard, Benjamin moved in with Roscoe, who didn’t treat him nicely and demanded that he called him “uncle”. Benjamin had his moody teenager phase as he grew younger, and when he became a child, he attended kindergarten with his grandson, and this time he was really interested in all activities. Though sad at first at how Roscoe treated him, Benjamin began to lose memory of his earlier life, and grew attached to his nanny, who looked after him until his last breath. Given that The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a short story, it was only natural that the cinematic adaptation was going to add and change many details, and in the end, the film serves as an expansion of the book in some ways, and in others is a different look at the life of a man who aged in reverse.
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The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
30 pages • 1 hour read
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Summary: “the curious case of benjamin button”.
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is a short story by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940) addressing themes of time, aging, social class, and destiny. Fitzgerald is among the most celebrated American authors of the 20th century. His novels The Great Gatsby and Tender Is the Night , though commercial disappointments in his lifetime, are now considered classics.
Remembered today primarily as a novelist, Fitzgerald was known as a short story writer for magazines by contemporary readers. “Benjamin Button” originally appeared in Collier’s before being collected in Tales of the Jazz Age alongside his well-known story “The Diamond as Big as the Ritz.” Both works belong to the fantasy genre of literature. In “Benjamin Button,” a man is born elderly and ages in reverse until he ends his life as an infant. This conceit frames a bittersweet exploration of the process through which familial and societal roles change beyond one’s control. In 2008, the story was adapted into an Academy Award-winning film that maintained the central concept and themes of Fitzgerald’s tale while altering the historical setting and most of the plot details.
This guide refers to the version of the story that appears in the 2002 Cambridge edition of Tales of the Jazz Age edited by James L. W. West III, which includes Fitzgerald’s annotated Table of Contents in which he provides humorous introductions to each story.
The story begins with a matter-of-fact narrator relating the circumstances of Benjamin Button’s birth. The year is 1860, and Mr. and Mrs. Roger Button , a well-to-do couple in Baltimore, are having their first child. On the way to the hospital to meet his son, Mr. Button encounters a doctor and nurses who seem flustered and won’t give him information about the birth. Now nervous, he is pointed to a crib where he sees “an old man apparently about seventy years of age” with white hair and a long beard (172). The baby and the father are both perplexed, and Mr. Button is angry with the hospital staff who inform him he must take the baby home. The father is preoccupied with concerns about how he’ll be perceived if he leaves with the man wrapped in blankets and decides to buy him clothes.
Despite his son’s aged appearance and height of five feet eight inches, Mr. Button is determined to treat Benjamin like a baby. He feeds him warm milk and gives him a rattle and stuffed animals to play with despite catching Benjamin smoking a cigar. Benjamin doesn’t get along with other children and prefers spending time with his grandfather, whom he resembles. At age five, he enters kindergarten but isn’t interested in the activities.
As the years pass, Benjamin notices “the network of wrinkles on his face becoming less pronounced” and his skin becoming “heathier and firmer” (178). The family realizes that he will not remain an old man forever. Rather, he is growing younger.
At age 18, Benjamin enrolls at Yale College. When he meets the registrar, he is mistaken for his own father. The registrar refuses to believe he is a college freshman and expels him. His removal causes a scene, and as he walks away from campus, other students taunt him. In his humiliation, he vows that one day he will exact revenge by attending rival school Harvard.
When Benjamin is 20 and his father is 50, they appear to be about the same age; the narrator notes they “could have passed for brothers” (181). They attend a dance together where Benjamin sees a beautiful young woman named Hildegarde Moncrief . He is smitten and asks for a dance. Hildegarde believes Benjamin to be 50 years old and, as she claims to prefer older men, Benjamin lets her believe it. When they announce their engagement, members of Baltimore society comment on their apparent age disparity, believing Hildegarde to be marrying a much older man.
Benjamin joins his father’s wholesale hardware business, where he proves to be a great success; he becomes wealthy enough to own the first automobile in Baltimore. As he grows younger, he finds himself “becoming more and more attracted by the gay side of life” (186). Meanwhile, his wife, now a mother of their teenage son, is becoming older and less attractive to him.
In 1898, he joins the army to fight in the Spanish-American War and climbs the ranks to lieutenant colonel. Returning from the war, his aging process increasingly distresses him. The narrator says, “His destiny seemed to him awful, incredible” (187). Hildegarde is upset with him, accusing him of growing younger from a lack of pride. In a reversal of the society gossip at the time of his marriage, people now comment on the age disparity between the energetic young man and his much older wife. More concerned with dancing than working, he hands over his business to his college-aged son Roscoe, whom he now resembles.
In 1910, Benjamin fulfills his promise to enroll at Harvard, where he becomes a football star in his freshman year and defeats Yale. But each season he becomes smaller, and by his senior year, he doesn’t make the football team at all. After graduating, he returns to Baltimore, where his son has become prominent in Baltimore society. Roscoe is embarrassed by his teenage-looking father and insists that Benjamin call him “Uncle” (190).
America enters World War I. Benjamin, who is now 57, wishes that he could enlist. He receives a letter informing him that in honor of his service in the Spanish-American War, he is now being commissioned as a brigadier general. When he reports for duty, a sentry calls him “sonny” and doesn’t believe he’s there to serve. He encounters a colonel who assumes he must have stolen the letter naming him a general and takes him to a headquarters, where Roscoe angrily arrives to bring him home to Baltimore.
In 1920, Roscoe’s first child is born, but the family keeps Benjamin—who now appears to be 10 years old—at a distance. When Roscoe’s son turns five, he becomes Benjamin’s playmate in a reversal of the grandfather-grandchild relationship Benjamin enjoyed with his own grandfather. They enter kindergarten together, and the activities that once bored Benjamin now fascinate him. While his grandchild moves on to first grade, Benjamin remains behind.
After two more years, Benjamin is removed from kindergarten and placed in the care of a nurse he calls Nana. She teaches him words, and he plays toddler games. As he grows younger and younger, his memories drift away. His awareness wanes as he progresses into infancy until, finally, “it was all dark, and his white crib and the dim faces that moved above him, and the warm sweet aroma of the milk, faded out altogether from his mind” (195).
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The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
F. scott fitzgerald.
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Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Introduction
The curious case of benjamin button: plot summary, the curious case of benjamin button: detailed summary & analysis, the curious case of benjamin button: themes, the curious case of benjamin button: quotes, the curious case of benjamin button: characters, the curious case of benjamin button: symbols, the curious case of benjamin button: literary devices, the curious case of benjamin button: theme wheel, brief biography of f. scott fitzgerald.
Historical Context of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Other books related to the curious case of benjamin button.
- Full Title: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- When Published: May 27, 1922
- Literary Period: The Jazz Age; Modernism
- Genre: Short Story
- Setting: Baltimore between 1860 and roughly 1930
- Climax: Benjamin becomes an infant and dies.
- Antagonist: Societal expectations
- Point of View: Third Person
Extra Credit for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Big Screen. In 2008, the screenwriter Eric Roth adapted a loose interpretation of “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” as a feature-length film. The movie starred Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Mahershala Ali, and a number of other well-known actors.
Medical Condition. Although the premise of “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is highly improbable, there is a real medical condition—called progeria—that causes children to age extremely quickly (though not in reverse). Those afflicted with the disease often look elderly as children or teenagers, similar to how Benjamin starts off looking much older than his numerical age.
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The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Is it Based on a True Story or a Book?
The insurmountable essence of human connection and the enduring power of love are highlighted explicitly in ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.’ Director David Fincher enamors viewers with a compelling narrative that warps viewers with a reverent tale of life and death. The movie follows the story of Benjamin Button, a man who ages in reverse. As such, born with the maladies and appearance of an old man at the age of an infant, the movie follows a remarkable tear-jerker journey that leaves many pondering.
Starring Brad Pitt , Cate Blanchett , Taraji P. Henson , Julia Ormond, Tilda Swinton, Jason Flemyng, and Mahershala Ali, it showcases how every friendship and every romantic relationship lies at the mercy of time. As the movie focuses on the temporal discrepancies in Benjamin’s life, viewers are left to wonder whether the story has any life-like inspirations. As the reverie of loss and circle of life is completely undone in the David Fincher directorial, many wonder whether the premise is based on a real-life occurrence or a book. If you are also intrigued and want to find out whether or not ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ is inspired by a real person, look no further. We’ve got all the answers you are looking for.
Inspired by F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Fiction
No, ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ is not based on a true story. The screenplay for the movie has been written by Eric Roth, who reprises the approach he followed in ‘Forrest Gump’ and focuses on the protagonists’ life experiences thoroughly and effortlessly. The movie and screenplay have been adapted from the original short story written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Viewers are also forced to look at the life-like similarities of the movie. From rare medical cases of mandibuloacral dysplasia and progeria , it isn’t uncommon for audiences to wonder whether the story is real.
Despite such similarities, the movie is based on Fitzgerald’s opus. However, even though the movie has been adapted from the short story, it is not a direct representation of Fitzgerald’s approach. As the movie progresses through the woes of a prolonged elegy, one is bound to think that the classical writer’s short story also follows such an approach. However, things lie in utter contradiction as Fitzgerald’s Benjamin is actually born as a 5’8 man at birth.
Even though the book has been the inspiration for the narrative of the movie, it is not a direct lift. One of the significant differences in the characters is their romantic interests. While Daisy’s love for Benjamin doesn’t wear, the short story does not follow the same suit. In Fitzgerald’s version, Benjamin ends up falling for the general’s daughter Hildegarde Moncrief and eventually marries her. However, as she begins to grow old and her beauty withers, Benjamin loses interest and heads off to the war to avoid home. In the book, Hildegarde moves to Italy and doesn’t find a mention again.
On the other hand, the undying devotion that tethers Daisy and Benjamin in David Fincher’s ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ is entirely different. As a tribute to Fitzgerald’s legendary character ‘Daisy’ from ‘The Great Gatsby’, writer Eric Roth captures the same haunting melancholy that prevailed between Gatsby and Daisy.
Benjamin and Daisy’s relationship does not just add a poignant element to the narrative but also signifies the timeless devotion that persists through everything. While the movie is a formulaic tear-jerker, Fitzgerald’s Benjamin is the recipient of a comical tragedy who is bullied at Yale, so he decides to attend Harvard and beat Yale at football by scoring more touchdowns than any other player.
The movie and book do share a number of disparities, but in its essence, the two remain the same. Showcasing the consistent ticking of the clock and the unending chiming of the hours, the premise focuses on the astute heartbreak that follows with love and life. Thus, even though ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ may emulate the presence of life-like characters, it is still based on a fictional short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
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Photos: THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON Rehearsals
The production will star Olivier Award winner John Dagleish as Benjamin Button and Olivier Award nominee Clare Foster as Elowen Keene.
The new West End musical THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, is currently in rehearsals, and will open at the Ambassadors Theatre from Thursday 10 October 2024. See rehearsal photos below! The production will star Olivier Award winner John Dagleish as Benjamin Button and Olivier Award nominee Clare Foster as Elowen Keene. The company is completed by Matthew Burns, Jonathan Charles, Oonagh Cox, Katy Ellis, Anna Fordham, Philippa Hogg, Damien James, Elliot Mackenzie, Ann Marcuson, Jack Quarton and Benedict Salter. An electrifying journey through the timeless tale of a love that defies all odds, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON is an enchantingly beautiful and truly unordinary musical that reminds us to make every second count. The production captured hearts last year with its sold-out Southwark Playhouse run - winning Best Musical Theatre Production at the 2024 Off West End Awards. With a breathtaking soundtrack brought to life by an extraordinary actor-musician ensemble, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s iconic short story is relocated to a fishing village on the north coast of Cornwall by writing team Jethro Compton and Darren Clark. Under the light of a full moon, something most curious occurs… Benjamin Button is born old. Bound to the fate of growing younger each day, Benjamin wants nothing more than to live a little life. But will he ever find a place to belong? Only time and tide will tell… THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON is based on the short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby and The Beautiful and Damned. With Book & Lyrics by Jethro Compton and Music & Lyrics by Darren Clark. It is directed by Jethro Compton who also designs the stage, with co-music supervision, orchestration and arrangements by Mark Aspinall and Darren Clark, choreography by Chi-San Howard, costumes and associate stage design by Anna Kelsey, sound by Luke Swaffield, lighting by Zoe Spurr, musical direction by Mark Aspinall and casting by Ginny Schiller. LATEST NEWSPhoto credit: Marc Brenner Recommended For You |
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The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is one of F. Scott Fitzgerald's most well-known stories and there's a very good reason for that. Telling the story of a man who ages backwards is an interesting concept. ... 2 thoughts on " Book Review - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald " Pingback: Bookish Post - February ...
And down he forgot as up he grew. Drama. 166 minutes ‧ PG-13 ‧ 2008. Roger Ebert. December 23, 2008. 5 min read. Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett chronologically converge at last in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button." "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" is a splendidly made film based on a profoundly mistaken premise.
Full Review of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Other Tales of the Jazz Age Let me be upfront and say that this is more of a short story review than an entire book review. I’ve only read the cover story, which was my reason for purchasing the book in the first place.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Paperback - Deckle Edge, August 14, 2007. From one of the great voices in the history of American literature, a witty and fantastical satire about aging, and the inspiration for the 2008 blockbuster film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. F. Scott Fitzgerald is best known today for his novels, but during ...
Revealing the breadth of F. Scott Fitzgerald's gift for the short story form, this Penguin Classics edition of The Case of Benjamin Button and Six Other Stories spans multiple genres and styles to dazzling effect.Full grown with a long, smoke-coloured beard, requiring the services of a cane and fonder of cigars than warm milk, Benjamin Button is a very curious baby indeed.
Paperback - January 13, 2009. 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' is F. Scott Fitzgerald's fantastical satire about aging. It is the strange and haunting story of Benjamin Button who is born as an old man and ages backwards so that at the end of his life he is a baby. Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more.
May 27, 1922. " The Curious Case of Benjamin Button " is a short story about a man who ages in reverse, from senescence to infancy, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It was first published in Collier's Magazine on May 27, 1922, with the cover and illustrations by James Montgomery Flagg. It was subsequently anthologized in Fitzgerald's 1922 book ...
Given that The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a short story, it was only natural that the cinematic adaptation was going to add and change many details, and in the end, the film serves as an expansion of the book in some ways, and in others is a different look at the life of a man who aged in reverse. Next: The Social Network True Story ...
Summary: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button". "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" is a short story by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940) addressing themes of time, aging, social class, and destiny. Fitzgerald is among the most celebrated American authors of the 20th century. His novels The Great Gatsby and Tender Is the ...
Historical Context of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" takes place in Baltimore in 1860, a year before the outbreak of the American Civil War. Baltimore was full of tension during this period. The state of Maryland was technically part of the Union, but many of its most powerful citizens supported ...
No, 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' is not based on a true story. The screenplay for the movie has been written by Eric Roth, who reprises the approach he followed in 'Forrest Gump' and focuses on the protagonists' life experiences thoroughly and effortlessly. The movie and screenplay have been adapted from the original short ...
Faiz D The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a wonderful, rich film. Brad Pitt gave a stunning performance. Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 08/29/24 Full Review Anthony M One of ...
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a magical, heartfelt, joyful and melancholy film, beautiful to look at and filled with wonder. One would be hard-pressed to walk away from the film and not ...
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a 2008 American romantic fantasy drama film directed by David Fincher.The storyline by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord is loosely based on the 1922 short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald.The film stars Brad Pitt as a man who ages in reverse and Cate Blanchett as the love interest throughout his life. The film also stars Taraji P. Henson, Julia ...
Book: Jethro Compton: Basis "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" by F. Scott ... 2023 Southwark revival; 2024 West End; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a musical with book and lyrics by Jethro Compton, music and lyrics by Darren Clark, and based on the 1922 ... The Reviews Hub and The Upcoming. [7] Its 2023 revival won the 2024 Offies ...
THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON is based on the short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby and The Beautiful and Damned. With Book & Lyrics by Jethro ...