Theme

Well, now that I have officially finished one of the worst novels I've ever read, I think I can finally nail down a theme. Morality seems to play a huge part in the story. I think that Brett's problems all stem from her morality, or lack thereof. Had she stayed with one man, none of the conflicts in the story would have arisen, and all the men would have been happy. Instead, she stirred up trouble with every man she met. As a result, her life was far less enjoyable. I think that Jake said it best on page 46 when he suggested that Brett married men she didn't love (does paraphrasing count as a quote?). Because she didn't understand the meaning of love and slept around with everyone, her life was bitter, and, as she says on page 34, she's "paying for it now." It seems as though morality and karma teamed up to bite her.

Ambiguity

The end of the novel is ambiguous. Although Brett says on page 247 that she's "going back to Mike," she and Jake seem to be having a lot of fun together in the last few pages. I can't tell at the end if Jake and Brett are about to "hook up" or if they're just having another one of their flirting episodes. The fact that Brett had Jake travel to Madrid on a whim is really annoying. That part also contributes to the ambiguity. Did she really ask him top come to Madrid because she was in trouble? I don't think she did. I think that she is reconsidering her love for Jake, and she wanted to test his love for her. She truly has come full circle from "Don't touch me" to kissing him in her room.

Again?!

As soon as Jake begins to relax and forget his troubles, Brett has to go and bother him again. Her telegram "Could you come Hotel Montana Madrid am rather in trouble Brett" on page 242 probably made his heart skip a beat, but I'm sure he rolled his eyes at the same time. She just can't let him be. I truly feel sorry for him since he cannot escape her. He wants to love her, but she won't allow it, and she keeps taunting him with it anyway. It's not fair to him, and, as the reader, it's frustrating for me. But he gives in and even signs his response with "love Jake." She's taunting him, but he's the one who keeps falling for it. I feel somewhat bad for him, but they're both contributing to their own problems. Jake's suggestion on page 34 of "stay[ing] away from each other" would have been better for both of them.

Denouement/Resolution

The beginning of chapter 19 is very clearly the beginning of the denouement (that word makes me think of Mrs. Miles). The fiesta and all the excitement which accompanied it are over, and it's time for everyone to leave. Signs are torn down, hotels begin to empty, and Jake, Bill and Mike load up a car and leave. When they get to Bayonne, they begin going their separate ways with a "So long, fella" on page 235, and it feels as though the story is coming to an end. It's almost like when the day becomes night. Everything becomes quiet, and everyone relaxes. Since Brett was the center of the all the conflicts, the conflicts have all been resolved by her running away with Romero. But still everything feels unfinished. She just left and dropped all the conflicts. Nothing really got resolved. It was just dropped.

Motivation

The motivation in the novel is clearly love. That seems to be Brett's reason for existence, or so she thinks, and it surrounds her and many of the men in the book. First, she loves Jake. They have their past, but she's tried to move on. So then there's Mike. She says she loves him, and they plan to get married after she is divorced from her current husband. Then Cohn comes along. Brett and Cohn have a little "fling" in San Sebastian which means nothing to her and everything to him. And then he knocks out half of their "friends" because he wants to be with her. And finally, Romero. On page 220, Jake narrates "...he [Romero] loved Brett. Everything of which he could control the locality he did in front of her all that afternoon." He wanted to show off for her and prove his love/worth to her. All of this begs the question "Does Brett really love anyone?" But I suppose that as long as the men think they're in love, it's all the same to her.

Chaspter 18, But Less Angry

The one cool thing about chapter 18 is that the reader gets a lot of information about Spanish bull-fighting. I really like that all the facts and traditions were mentioned. The Spanish words like "muletas" on page 215 make the reader feel like they have an understanding of what's going on with the bull-fight. Also, the description of Romero's movements really helps the reader envision what's happening in the bull-ring. This also contributes to Romero's characterization. I think in this case it would be direct characterization. Hemingway tells the reader outright that Romero seems determined and focused. He has his eye on the prize, and he's not giving up until he gets what he wants and gives the crowd what they want.

Chapter 18

Okay so this chapter has me really confused. Why did Brett leave with Romero when she's supposed to marry Mike? Did I miss the break-up, or did she just decide to leave? Her relationship issues really bug me a lot. Why can't she just stay with one guy? She doesn't have to be with every man on the face of the earth to be happy, and she doesn't seem to understand that all it's doing is making her life worse. She complains about her life with "British aristocracy" on page 207, but she's just blaming them for her own problems. It really becomes apparent in chapter 18 that she needs to take responsibility for herself. Sure, Romero might love her, but she probably doesn't love him. She might pretend to, but she doesn't. Chapter 18: definitely annoying.

An Idea Within an Idea! *voice of Guiness man* Genius!

In the middle of my last post, I realized that Hemingway used a cliche early in the novel! The cliche is more of a concept than a phrase because Hemingway doesn't say it directly; he hints at it. When Robert Cohn meets/sees Brett, he is immediately interested in her. On page 30, Jake narrates: "Dancing, I looked over Brett's shoulder and saw Cohn, standing at the bar, still watching her." And this after he asked her twice to dance. Creeper! But through Jake's eyes, we see the cliche: love at first sight. I think it still counts as a cliche even though it's a concept rather than a phrase, but I could be wrong. Anyway, the concept of "love at first sight" has been used over and over again throughout literary works and even in real life for years. It's so corny now that people laugh at it, but Hemingway cleverly disguised it so that readers would take the novel seriously.

Foil! But Not the Math Kind...Or the Kitchen Kind.

For hating Cohn so much, I sure do talk about him a lot, but all he's good for is being analyzed. He and Jake are foils, especially when it comes to Brett. Brett and Jake clearly have a past together. All their talk of "Don't you love me?...Isn't there anything we can do about it?" (p. 34) makes that very obvious for the reader. However, Cohn seems to fall in love with Brett immediately upon seeing her, and feels the need to know everything about her. Idiot makes the mistake of asking Jake, and that sets the jealousy ball rolling. As a side note, did Cohn's reaction to Jake's less-than-nice explanation of Brett make anyone else think "Hey! She's a nice lady!"? A Hangover quote is always necessary...lightens the mood. Kind of like "Why so serious?". Who can be serious after that? But seriously, both Jake and Cohn want Brett. They use different methods to show that, though. Jake is thoughtful and careful about the feelings of his and Brett's friends, so he's quiet about his "relationship" with Brett. Cohn, however, brags to everyone about San Sebastian, beats up a bull-fighter, and publicly worries/asks/talks about Brett. Jake's behavior makes Cohn seem incredibly annoying and overbearing while Cohn's actions make Jake seem too shy and soft-spoken.

Delicious Diction, But Only if You're Eating Your Words

Hemingway uses simple diction and sentence structure throughout the entire novel. I think the reason he does so is that he can get his point across easily and appeal to a wider range of readers. Some of his diction REALLY bugs me, though. When he uses "try and..." all through the novel, I have the urge to hit him. And the commas which, to me, seem terribly misplaced are highly annoying, especially for a grammar buff such as myself, but that's grammar, not diction. Anyway, the reader is able to infer that the novel is set in the early to mid 1900s because certain terms are used which have been replaced today. For instance, people don't "get sore" today; they "get pissed." That term has been around for a while, and Hemingway didn't seem to have enough restriction in his diction to avoid using it on purpose. Also, Bill refers on page 77 to a black boy fighting in Vienna as a "nigger." In the early to mid 1900s, that would have been an accepted term referring to African Americans.

Why Didn't I Think of This Before?!

Cohn and Brett are actually really similar! At first, it seemed as though Brett and Cohn weren't very similar at all. Brett liked to party with whomever she pleased, and Cohn was "whipped" and following Frances around like a duckling follows its mother. They really are alike, though! Okay, so both of them had failed marriages. Robert Cohn's wife left him "just as he had made up his mind to leave his wife" (p. 12), and on page 207, we learn that Brett's ex-husband "used to tell her he'd kill her." So that explains part of their messed-up-ness. Additionally, (check out that transition! it's pretty, right?) they've found new significant others with whom they appear to be happy. But at the beginning of the novel, Cohn and Frances fall apart, and towards the end, Brett and Mike begin to fall apart. While they come from similar pasts, they both act very different, but they still have serious issues when it comes to relationships.

Paris to Pamplona

As I stated in a previous blog, it seems like the characters in the novel don't even like Paris. They all talk about how dirty it is and how they get sick of the town itself. However, everything is good in Paris for everybody. They party and sleep around (cough cough...Brett...cough cough), and no one gets in fights or gets "sore" as they say in the book. Their descriptions of Spain make it sound as though the grass is greener there. (I wish that counted as another lit term blog for "cliche"...sad face.) They talk about how beautiful the countryside is when they're on the train, and places are described as "nice" and "very clean" like on page 96. But once they all arrive in Spain, things go downhill fast. Mike gets mad at Brett, everyone now publicly despises Cohn, and no one can stay sober for more than five minutes. I don't understand how a place that seems to be all-around better than Paris in the opinions of the characters can be the center of so much more turmoil.

Brett and Mike

Brett and Mike have a peculiar relationship. Brett sleeps with every man she meets and is in love with Jake and possibly Pedro Romero. A real classy woman, right? Anyway, her attitude toward men doesn't appear to have an adverse effect on Mike at the beginning of the novel. He seems almost oblivious, and I think he truly was oblivious to Brett and Jake's relationship. However, later in the novel, Mike becomes sensitive to Brett's promiscuous habits, and an external conflict develops. On page 210, a drunken Mike makes the distasteful comment "How's your boy friend?...Brett's got a bull-fighter...She had a Jew named Cohn, but he turned out badly." Mike's relationship with Brett appears to be falling apart toward the end of the novel, and Brett's attitude doesn't help anything. She doesn't seem like the type to get married. She'd be cheating like crazy. She can't control herself at all as she says on page 187: "I can't help it. I'm a goner now anyway...I've got to do something I really want to do. I've lost my self-respect."

External Conflicts

Robert Cohn seems to be the focal point of all external conflicts in the novel. I mentioned in a previous post that he had conflicts with Jake and Pedro Romero, but he also has conflicts with Mike and Brett. Cohn's conflicts with Jake and Romero differ from those with Mike and Brett. Jake and Romero had physical conflicts with Cohn. On page 195, Jake says "He [Cohn] hit me and I sat down on the pavement. As I started to get on my feet he hit me twice. I went down backward under a table...," and Cohn beat Romero to a pulp in Romero's hotel room. Cohn's conflicts with Mike and Brett were more emotional. Mike resents Cohn because Cohn pursues Brett relentlessly. Being Brett's fiance, Mike has a tough time dealing with the annoying attitude which Cohn shows him in regard to Brett. Brett's conflict with Cohn focuses on his pursuit of her just like his conflict with Mike. At first, Brett seems flattered by Cohn's interest, but he quickly becomes possessive of her, and she has a difficult time getting him to understand that she's had enough and that their "fling" in San Sebastian meant nothing.

Motif #1: Alcohol

Throughout the entire novel, every character drinks quite a bit of alcohol. The statement the count makes on page 65 is accurate not just for Brett but for everyone: "You're always drinking..." It's a key element in the development of relationships between the characters and the lifestyle of the time period. Wine accompanies every meal as well as the night life. It's also an integral part of Mike's character since he's almost constantly drunk, especially in Spain. By the end of the novel, one would think that every character should be a wine aficionado. It seems almost as though being drunk is acceptable at any time of the day. Hemingway uses this motif to emphasize the party-all-the-time mentality of the post-WWI era. It provides a greater understanding for the reader of the time period and lifestyle of both the author (who was quite the drunkard from what I understand) and the young people living in it.

First Person Point of View

Hemingway authors the novel from the point of view of Jake Barnes. This is made apparent by the use of the pronoun "I" such as on page 43: "In the morning I walked down the Boulevard to the Rue Soufflot for coffee and brioche." In a novel like this, first person seems to me to be the best strategy for conveying the mood of the time period (post WWI) and setting up indirect characterization. Seeing through Jake's eyes allows the reader to relate better to the situations presented in the novel. Jake is directly involved in the occurrences of the story, so he has the authority to speak about it and tell the story. He can be trusted by the reader to present an accurate account of what happened because of his direct involvement. Also, Jake is the reader's best source of information, so his opinions become the reader's opinions. Hemingway can ensure that the reader has the image and opinion of a character that he intends. First person also makes a story more entertaining. The ability to relate to the narrator helps the reader feel closer to the storyline and allows for an easier and more enjoyable read.

Lady Brett Ashley

Firstly, isn't Brett a guy's name? I'm just saying... Okay, so Brett is another one of those characters that really gets on my nerves. Her constant flirting is annoying, and her attitude toward relationships makes no sense to me, specifically her relationship with Jake. In chapter three, as cited in my last post, Brett turns Cohn down to dance with Jake. However, in chapter four, the true nature of Brett and Jake's relationship is revealed, and Brett seems to want to put a great distance between herself and Jake as she demonstrates in the cab on page 33: "...and then she turned away and pressed against the corner of the seat, as far away as she could get." Jake is almost like Brett's kryptonite. A masochistic Brett keeps coming back to him because she feels she has to see Jake, but she still refuses to settle for being in love with him although she freely admits that she is. She's almost bipolar. In one cab ride, she goes from "Don't touch me" (33) to "Kiss me just once more before we get there" (35). If she loves him so much, why can't she just be with him and try to be happy? Flirting and sleeping with every man she meets can't be truly satisfying if she's really experienced love with Jake. To me, it seems that Brett's idea of love is skewed. She appears to be confusing love with any sense of attraction.

At the End of Chapter Three...

Why does no one in the novel actually like Paris? They all talk about how dirty it is and how much they dislike it, so why do they live there? I don't understand that at all. Also, Hemingway introduces Brett who is basically a whore, pardon my French (hahaha...that was punny). She also annoys me, but not as much as Cohn does. She flirts with everyone. She leads Cohn on first and then turns him down for Jake on page 30 when she says "I've promised to dance this with Jacob." And Jake bounces from Georgette to Brett who he clearly has a history with in the same night. Hemingway seems to use the third chapter to emphasize the promiscuity which was not uncommon in the time period among young adults.

And The Sun Is Still Rising...

Ahh, the wonders of summer reading...at the beach. It's not as cool as it sounds. I promise. I figured I ought to focus on a literary term for blog numero dos and try my hand at a different kind of analysis, so here goes nothing. Hemingway chooses to teach the reader about Robert Cohn through indirect characterization. Throughout the entire novel, other characters' thoughts and conversations about Cohn lead the reader to believe that he is an annoyance to his companions. Cohn's interactions with Brett show that he is relentless and oblivious. He clearly is not wanted and refuses to accept that fact which almost makes him seem oblivious to it. He also seems very impulsive, and he has quite the temper. When he hits Jake and attacks Pedro Romero, he immediately apologizes and wants to shake hands like on page 205 when Mike tells Jake "Then Cohn broke down and cried, and wanted to shake hands with the bull-fighter fellow. He wanted to shake hands with Brett too." This leads the reader to believe that he often acts upon his anger without thinking. He seems desperate for affection and acceptance, and both evade him. I can't tell if Hemingway wants the reader to pity Cohn or be annoyed with him. I'm definitely going the annoyed route. He bugs the living daylights out of me, and I don't feel any pity for him. He creates his own problems and then whines about it to everyone when he can't fix/deal with them. And so ends blog two.