Sound: “The Young and The Beautiful” by Lana Del Rey
Introduction to “The Young and The Beautiful” and The Great Gatsby:
In 2013, Baz Luhrmann released the cinematic version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. Both movie and literary work take place in the 1920s. The events follow Nick Carraway as he gets swept into the drama, decency, and deceit of New York’s elite. Particularly as he uncovers the hidden love story between his neighbor Jay Gatsby and (married) cousin Daisy Buchannan. It is this love story and the moment of rekindling between the two lovers that Lana Del Rey lends her voice to. Her song, “Young and Beautiful,” was written in collaboration with Luhrmann (Genius). Subsequently, the songs have a number of elements designed to emphasize both the story of the characters and the overarching theme. Thereby, when one analyzes this song in conversation with the original text, one can see how Lana Del Rey and Luhrmann expanded, emphasized, and interpreted Fitzgerald’s original world.
“The Young and The Beautiful” within the story of The Great Gatsby
Unsurprisingly, the most explicit references to The Great Gatsby occur within the lyrics of “The Young and The Beautiful .” Del Rey alludes to specific elements of the novel through her lines “Hot summer nights, mid-July” and “All that faces makes me wanna party” (Genius). Both of these lines refer to the novel’s specific and essential plot elements. Notably, the first line refers to how Daisy and Gatsby met when they were young, and Gatsby was stationed at a nearby base. This quickly leads to a relationship developing between the two. However, Gatsby was shipped off to war, and Daisy’s family engaged her to Tom Buchan. The lyric particularly references how Gatsby and Daisy were reunited in July. Additionally, the second line refers to the extravagant parties Gatsby throws every night. This particularly alludes to the quote that Gatsby “half-expected her to wander into one of his parties, some night” (Fitzgerald pg. 79).
Furthermore, beyond the explicit references to the novel, certain lines reference the story’s theme. The lyrics “Your pretty face and electric soul” and “he makes me shine like diamond” particularly reference the overall theme and the characterizations (Genius). The first line refers to the characterization of Gatsby. Namely, it depicts the thematic idea that Gatsby is more of a concept and mythical figure than a man. This is highlighted in the novel when Nick describes meeting Gatsby only through his “rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it” (Fitzgerald 48). Similarly, the second quote alludes to how Gatsby sees Daisy, and being in a relationship with her, as accomplishing a goal. The novel illustrates this mindset when Gatsby describes Daisy by saying, “her voice is full of money” (Fitzgerald 120). Beyond simply emphasizing these characterizations, these lines also reflect the overall theme. Notably, one of the primary themes within The Great Gatsby is how the American Dream is not truly attainable. However, that impossible goal makes trying to achieve it so beautiful and tragic.
Furthermore, Del Rey also emphasizes the theme of beautiful pain through her pacing of the song. The pacing of events and actions is extremely fast, especially within the film itself. This is particularly highlighted in driving scenes where both dialogues and descriptions of settings are sped up. An example of this can be seen in the movie scene embedded here. However, “The Young and The Beautiful” contrast this by having an extremely slow, nearly operatic pacing. This slows down that particular scene in the film. As a result, this allows Del Rey to encourage her audience to slow down and focus on the love story within the movie. Additionally, the operatic component of the story further emphasizes the tragedy of the story by alluding to older “classical” stories.
“The Young and The Beautiful” in the Modern World:
Within recent years, the literary world has seen an increase the classical rewrites. In these stories, classical stories are rewritten from the perspective of other characteristics, primarily women. This allows the thematic meanings and elements of older, impactful stories to develop a more diversified world perspective. One story that has been subject to rewriting is The Great Gatsby and all the undeveloped women. In tangent with these new perspectives, people’s view of the film has also changed. “The Young and The Beautiful” as an example can be reanalyzed as Daisy’s musing over how she knows that neither Gatsby nor Tom actually loves her. Within this perspective, the song becomes more of a sad plea for a real relationship that is not based on money or appearance. This countering viewpoint changes the specific message of the story; however, it does not change the overall tragedy and dissatisfaction that comes with unattainable goals.
Word Count: 784
Works Cited
- FITZGERALD, F. SCOTT. Great Gatsby. IDB, 2022.
- “Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful.” Genius, https://genius.com/Lana-del-rey-young-and-beautiful-lyrics.
- luvhockey4ever. “The Great Gatsby- Young and Beautiful Scene HD.” YouTube, YouTube, 6 Apr. 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yH7eRHHVGGA.
- movieclips. “The Great Gatsby (2013) – Gatsby’s Wild Ride Scene (3/10) | Movieclips.” YouTube, YouTube, 2 July 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgAf9AuNc6Q.