A Farewell to Arms Essay: Changing Perspective of Religion

Why do you think Henry actually goes to the Memorial Avenue? What does it tell us about his personality?

The amount of blood shed, and the amount of soldiers that were fleeing was not a confidence booster for him. The soldier next to Henry dropped his riffle and ran before Henry did. This was ultimately the decision maker. After witnessing this, Henry didn't even need to think twice about fleeing. As Henry is running, he begins to rationalize the decision in which he made. Thinking that maybe he had made the right decision. He completely forgot all the lessons his regiment had instilled in him and his fellow comrades. He abandons all the honor and loyalty he has for his Union, and runs for

    Religion played a significant role in Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms. The attitudes that the character had towards the war and life were closely associated with their views on religion. Due to extreme circumstances of war, moral standards were obscure for the characters. Almost everything related to the war violated the normal code of morality, which led many to feel disenchanted. Those who viewed the war as senseless had no faith in God or religion. For the character of Fredrick Henry it was clear that his faith in God was a subject of conflict. Henry was a character that understood religion, but did not love God. His love for Catherine was the most religious feeling that he

Throughout the entire speech, he creates emotion that affects the audience. He created emotion throughout the speech by using other rhetorical strategies, such as repetition, imagery, rhetorical questions, and allusions. By using repetition, he made the audience feel some guilt. In the repetition “Let us not, I beseech you, sir, deceive ourselves” creates the guilt-feeling towards the audience, because if Henry were right about Great Britain, then the audience would be in fault for not going to war with Great Britain. By using imagery, the images of an “insidious smile”, “delusive phantoms of hope”, and slavery and chains, creates an unpleasant image to the mind making the audience feel angry, empty, and fearful. Henry uses many rhetorical questions. The use of the rhetorical questions is a question that can only be answered with one right answer. This is because the question being asked is the truth. Sometimes the truth can be hard to hear and accept. As Henry asks these questions, “But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction?” he evokes fear towards the audience and perhaps anger. He also uses biblical allusions in the speech. He does this to create some credibility but also to provoke some trust from the audience. When Henry mentions God or the biblical allusion it comforted or delighted the audience to know that God is a role in his speech. Although Henry uses repetition, imagery, rhetorical questions, and allusions, he incorporated emotion to those three other rhetorical strategies used.

Henry was a normal boy and did all of the normal things young boys do: making noise, being busy and active, nosing around in the refrigerator, and asking questions - all part and parcel of being a normal child. But he was brought up to believe he wasn't a "model boy." His parents were constantly interrupted by him - his mother while she was reading and grading papers, and his father so much so that he spent most of his time in his office on campus, joining them only at mealtimes. His father wished to remain "blissfully unaware."

First, one should focus on the language and Henry's ethos. The soldiers are burdened with the thought of a

    There are two major themes in A Farewell to Arms that Hemingway clearly conveys: war and love. The war theme is obvious because the book is set during the World War. The theme of love is less obvious, it begins faintly because of the uncertainty between Frederick Henry and Catherine Barkley. Neither desire love or commitment to anyone, but act upon their desires of passion. As the story progresses, so does their love. The strength of their love is enforced by various understandings and agreements. Love is the theme that closes the book, leaving a final allusion of what their love is about.

After the Vietnam War, Henry was crazy and unstable. For instance, when Henry was watching television and he bit through his lip with blood pouring everywhere (977). The blood was getting on his bread every time he took a bite, but because of his lost ability to think straight Henry doesn’t even flinch as blood pours everywhere. Also, at the end of the story Henry snaps on his brother Lyman. He punches Lyman, which leads to a fight ended by the laughing of Henry (980). During the fight with Lyman, the extent of Henry’s mental changed, to turn on a family member and physically strike him. Henry illustrates how crazy he is when he jumps in to the river all of the sudden to “cool off”(981). This action by Henry ends his craziness and his life.

Henry fought among the other soldiers in the first battle. But come the second battle he had fled. Reasons could be the battle and death of friends and fellow soldiers were too much for him. Another reason could be he thought of the speech his mother made before he left for the battle. He thought he might not see her again. The last reason could be he might have thought about if he died he wouldn't be able to have a wife or kids someday. Those could be the reasons why he fled the second

Throughout the play Henry is described as a “true lover of the holy church” (I.i.23), and “the mirror of all Christian kings” (II.Cho.6). He is played up as the ideal and seamless Christian king. Then during the battle of Agincourt, King Henry tells his army that it is up to “Gods will” (IV.iii.23), which shows that he had great faith in God. This is an incredible demonstration of confidence and trust in God and it stresses his honorable Christian qualities. Another example of him being a Christian king is in scene two when Henry says “God quit you in His mercy” which I took as you got God’s mercy and the person receiving it was lucky to have God’s mercy on their side during the event happening.

First, Henry did not flee during the first war out of patriotism for his country. He knew what he was leaving at home and knew he was going to be a part of a major part in history. Uniform on, gun in his hand he wants to come home just like all his brothers beside him and knows the only way out is to fight your best and hardest and win. He wanted women to lust after him and did not want to wreck that dream of coming home, so he pushed through despite how hard it was.

The speech utilizes an analogy to create a parallel between the situation the American colonists had at that time been facing and the circumstance found in Bible. Henry uses a notable and well-known scene from the Gospels – the betrayal of Jesus – to illustrate his point. The analogy is made with the line “Suffer not yourselves to be betrayed with a kiss.” Although

He described that he couldn’t escape even if he wanted to. Through this analogy, the reader can see that Henry is reducing the soldiers to unthinking, unfeeling machines, performing their duty without taking into account the threat of injury or death. As he looks around at the faces of the rest of the soldiers in his regiment, he notices their focused commitment to the firing of their rifles. He wonders if he is the only one faced with questions of morality. While the regiment began to advance, Henry was shocked to receive a packet of letters from Wilson, who feared he would die in battle. After the battle, he is glad that he made it through the first day. He begins to lose the romantic vision of war by seeing the realities, but he starts lying to himself about who is really is.

He also gives God the credit for various accomplishments. The fact that Henry gives God the honor of winning the war shows that he is not selfish or conceited, and that he recognizes a spiritual force behind his actions.

            Henry showed his loyalty to the individuals and small groups in his life, and near the end of the novel he showed grace under pressure.  He is loyal to people similar to the group of ambulance