Babylon Revisited

Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses alcoholism.

Paris in “Babylon Revisited” is more than just a setting; it is a symbol that encapsulates the theme of transformation and the haunting power of the past. The city, once vibrant and emblematic of Charlie’s extravagant lifestyle, has changed in the wake of the stock market crash, reflecting his personal fall from grace. Fitzgerald uses the city to mirror Charlie’s psyche—a man who once reveled in the abundance that Paris offered, now walking its streets with a sense of loss and alienation.

Charlie’s perception of Paris is poignantly captured when he reflects, “The stillness in the Ritz Bar was strange and portentous. It was not an American bar anymore—he felt polite in it, and not as if he owned it” (Paragraph 9). The Ritz Bar, a symbol of his past indulgences, now stands as a stark reminder of what he has lost and the person he once was. The city, like Charlie Wales, bears the scars of excess and the weight of recovery, embodying the theme of the past’s inescapable influence on the present.

Fitzgerald constructs Paris as a symbol of change, using it to highlight the stark contrast between the city—and Charlie’s life—during the Jazz Age and the sobering reality of the years following the crash. The transformation of Paris mirrors the character’s efforts to reform himself, representing both the hope and the challenge inherent in seeking redemption. Charlie’s interaction with the city shows his attempt to reconcile with a place that now feels foreign, emphasizing The Fragility of Personal Reform.