# IX explained — Short Fiction

> Chapter companion for Short Fiction by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

## What happens

In the early morning after May Day, the Childs' restaurant on Fifty-ninth Street is filled with a lively crowd from the Gamma Psi dance. Gus Rose, still dazed from the riot and the death of Carrol Key, sits inconspicuously. He observes a drunken Gordon Sterrett with a woman named Jewel, who are confronted by Philip Dean and Peter Himmel. After a tense exchange, Jewel leads Gordon away. Dean and Peter cause a commotion, are ejected, and the dawn breaks spectacularly over Columbus Circle.

## Themes in this chapter

### Social Class and Inequality

The contrast between the 'drab, mouse-like' figures like Gus Rose and the 'butterflies' of the wealthy party crowd highlights class divisions.

### Ambition and Disillusionment

Gordon Sterrett's drunken state and the chaotic revelry suggest disillusionment beneath the surface of glamour.

## Character check-ins

### Gus Rose

Sober but dazed, he sits in Childs' restaurant after the riot, mourning Carrol Key and observing the scene.

### Gordon Sterrett

Drunk and disheveled, he is confronted by Philip Dean and later led away by Jewel.

### Philip Dean

Promenades through the restaurant, taunts Gordon, and is later ejected after a scuffle.

### Peter Himmel

Owlish and oratorical, he joins Dean in causing a disturbance and is thrown out.

## Key lines

> Childs’, Fifty-ninth Street,” at eight o’clock of any morning differs from its sisters by less than the width of their marble tables or the degree of polish on the frying-pans.

The Childs' restaurant on Fifty-ninth Street at eight in the morning is nearly identical to any other Childs' location.

_Sets the scene by emphasizing the restaurant's uniformity during regular hours._

> He had seen the body of Carrol Key put in an ambulance and driven off, and then he had started up town with two or three soldiers.

Gus Rose witnessed Carrol Key's body being taken away and then headed uptown with some soldiers.

_Explains Gus Rose's presence and his lingering memory of the riot._

> The great plate-glass front had turned to a deep blue, the color of a Maxfield Parrish moonlight—a blue that seemed to press close upon the pane as if to crowd its way into the restaurant.

The large window became a deep blue, reminiscent of a Maxfield Parrish painting, as dawn arrived.

_Describes the dramatic and beautiful transition from night to dawn._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_16_se/chapters/ix
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- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_16_se/chapters