The Beautiful and Damned

by

F. Scott Fitzgerald

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Dorothy Raycroft Character Analysis

The woman with whom Anthony has an affair while he is away training for the army. Much like his interest in Gloria, his initial obsession with Dorothy dissipates once they are involved with one another. She begins threatening suicide to keep his attention. The climax of the novel ends with Dorothy showing up at Anthony’s New York apartment. He attempts to attack her with a chair but passes out. When he comes to, she is gone.
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Dorothy Raycroft Character Timeline in The Beautiful and Damned

The timeline below shows where the character Dorothy Raycroft appears in The Beautiful and Damned. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 7
Wealth and Waste Theme Icon
Dreams and Reality Theme Icon
The girl in lilac turns out to be named Dorothy Raycroft. Anthony embarks on an affair with her not because he finds her more captivating... (full context)
Wealth and Waste Theme Icon
Dreams and Reality Theme Icon
Beauty and Self-Sabotage Theme Icon
Dorothy Raycroft is nineteen. She graduated high school in the lowest quarter of her class two... (full context)
Dreams and Reality Theme Icon
...South for a number of reasons, but mostly it is because of his attraction to Dorothy. He spends nearly every night with her. He likes that unlike Gloria, who is his... (full context)
Wealth and Waste Theme Icon
Dreams and Reality Theme Icon
As spring passes into summer, Anthony continues enjoying his days with Dorothy while other men fare far worse at the camp. The Sicilian who Anthony initially sat... (full context)
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In mid-July, Anthony must tell Dorothy that the camp is being relocated to Mississippi and that he is leaving. She breaks... (full context)
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Meanwhile, Anthony has been keeping Dorothy in a boarding house in town. In the midst of his letter writing, he eagerly... (full context)
Immaturity and Wisdom Theme Icon
...to New York for the trial in November, along with a tear-stained, incoherent letter from Dorothy. At noon, he is sent to the hospital with influenza. He recovers just in time... (full context)
Chapter 8
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...must return to Mississippi to be officially discharged. Anthony is relieved not to run into Dorothy there. He can think only of Gloria now. He is unmoved by the captain’s emotional... (full context)
Chapter 9
Wealth and Waste Theme Icon
Dreams and Reality Theme Icon
Immaturity and Wisdom Theme Icon
Beauty and Self-Sabotage Theme Icon
...forty. Just as he resolves that things will be different if they win the lawsuit, Dorothy shows up at the door of the apartment. (full context)
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Dorothy tells Anthony that she tracked him down through a newspaper story about the lawsuit. She... (full context)