The Sun Also Rises

Ernest Hemingway had been an exquisite writer since the early to mid 1900’s. With an upbringing of a hard-working man who had been a journalist in World War 1 and loved to travel. He suffered from many injuries later in his life, but pushed through it. From it all, this created a strong man and writer with extremely meaningful, and well-known pieces. Hemingway fought through extreme obstacles to become what he always desired, a writer; as seen in his struggles of war, women, and mental illness. All of these issues in his life, made him a strong and heartfelt writer, who left an impact of great pieces to be read for centuries to come.

Lady Brett Ashley in The Sun Also Rises has always been regarded as one of Ernest Hemingway’s most hated characters. Both critics and readers have seen her simply as a bitch, and do not view her as a likeable or relatable character in any way. Her alcoholism, her use and abuse of men, and her seeming indifference to Jake Barnes’s love are just a few reasons why Hemingway’s readers have not been able to stand Brett, and do not give her a fair chance. It is clear that Jake is biased in his narration, but no one wants to question his opinions and judgments of Brett; in fact, since the book was

Jake is consciously aware that there is a problem, which is more than can be said about his friends. Perhaps the people that surround Jake are the issue, though. His close friends and the people whom he travels with include Lady Brett Ashley, Robert Cohn, Bill, and Mike. Brett, the target of Jake’s unrequited affections, is likely someone whom he should stop spending time with; however, it seems that he just can’t get away from her. She is a very strong and independent woman who isn’t known to behave in a traditionally feminine way. Jakes does remark that although she is very independent, “She can’t go anywhere alone.” Robert Cohn is a Jewish, wealthy expatriate; but unlike many of his friends, did not spend any time in the war. Cohn also falls head over heels in love with Brett, who soon rejects his affections as well. As a wealthy, Jewish, non war veteran Cohn stands out in the group and his fumbling attempts to court Brett are the source of much mockery and leads to many fights. Bill is also an American veteran who seems to be always drinking. He tends to use humor to try and deal with the emotional scars of war; however, is not immune to the immaturity and cruelty sometimes characterized by Jake and his friends. Finally, Mike is a very heavy drinking Scottish war veteran who is completely bankrupt. He is seen to have a terrible temper, which most often displays while he is drunk. Mike is also not comfortable with the

In Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises, we are taken back to the 1920’s, accompanied by the “Lost Generation.” During this time, prohibition was occurring in America. Hemingway uses alcohol as an obstacle that causes distresses between the main character, Jake and his life. Along with alcohol, promiscuity is prevalent throughout the novel. The heroine of the novel, Brett, displays the theme of promiscuity throughout the novel. She uses her sheer beauty and charming personality to lure men into her lonely life. The themes of alcohol and promiscuity intertwine with the Lost Generation in this classic love saga.

Ernest Hemingway started his career as a writer in a newspaper office in Kansas City at the age of seventeen. Here he learned to get to the heart of a story with direct, simple sentences. After the United States entered the First World War, he joined a volunteer ambulance unit in the Italian army. Here he was wounded near the Italian/Austrian front. Hospitalized, he fell in love with his nurse, who later called off their relationship. After his return to the United States, he became a reporter for Canadian and American newspapers and was soon sent back to Europe to cover such events as the Greek Revolution. During the twenties, Hemingway became a member of the group of expatriate Americans in Paris, which he described in his first important work ‘The Sun Also Rises’ (1926).

A common problem for many people in the world for many ages has been adversity and misfortune. Human beings have never dealt with misfortune in an efficient manner and this has been an universal problem throughout history and in the present day.There are many symptoms of depression and Hemingway details the effects of adversity and one way of dealing with it using literary devices such as tone, imagery, diction, detail and point of view in his novel. The Sun Also Rises.

The way a person reacts to and treats other people plays a great role in his character. Jake Barnes and Lady Brett Ashley’s relationships make their characters more memorable. Jake’s actions give signs of a lack of self confidence. Because of Jake’s would he is handicapped from his old life. This disability probably makes him feel like a failure. Even though war caused his injury he would look back at it saying he had a choice to go to war, or he was not careful enough. Looking at himself this way also takes away from the rude responses that he gets from Brett. Since he believes that everything is his fault and he is the problem he would think that everything Brett says is okay. Even though Jake feels like a failure he still has self respect. He does not have his eye on many women other than Brett,

“But man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated,” Hemingway says. He used his own insecurities, thoughts on masculinity, and life events to compose this novel. In the novel, Jake was injured in the war just as Hemingway had been. Other men have also been changed by the effects of the war.

He is constantly drinking to keep his mind off Brett, the love of his life, but drinking eventually leads him right to her. The reality is Jake is extremely self conscious. This has more to do with his impotence which has stripped him of his perception of manhood and resultantly wounded his confidence. He jokes about his impotency and remarks how “what happened to [him] is supposed to be funny. (pg 15)”

This is Jake 's way of proclaiming his preeminent insecurity regarding his masculinity which sparks conflicts throughout the remainder of the plot. “She cuddled against me and I put my arm around her. She looked up to be kissed. She touched me with one hand and I put her hand away. (Hemingway 23)”. When in the back of the taxi with the prostitute, Georgette, tries to come on to Jake but he quickly pushes her away. Jake was indirectly telling us his wound affects his means and abilities to engage in sexual activities. While in the back of the taxi with Brett, she says “You mustn 't. You Must know. I can’t stand it, that 's all . Oh, darling, please understand. (Hemingway 34)” shortly after she stopped being romantic with him. She  did this because she cannot be with him because of his disability to sexually please her. This compounds Jake insecurity of his musicality and faces  It 's known that Brett does indeed love Jake but can not be with him because his lack of sexual ability, which makes Jake upset at night “This was Brett, that I felt like crying about. (Hemingway 42).  Jake finds himself nearly in tears because the girl he loves obviously loves him back but will not be with him because his impotence leaves him not being able to sexually please her, much like a steer. Another example is when Jake has the interactions with homosexuals. Jake says “I was very angry. Somehow they always made me angry. I know they are

    Towards the end of the novel it becomes increasingly obvious that the war’s effects was more significant than just Jake’s injury. Nearly all the characters included in Ernest Hemingway’s novel, The Sun Also Rises, responds differently in situations than they would if they had not been involved in the war. Brett had been a nurse, and had seen more than any young woman's’ eyes should ever

     Unfortunately, Jake does not undergo a change throughout the book. Jake stays the same uncaring, selfish person from the beginning where Jake said he never thinks about how much he’s wasted his life to Robert Cohn, until the last line where Brett Ashley says, “We could have had such a damned good time together,” and

Jake and Robert Cohn and their relationship is another indicator of the theme of masculine insecurity. Hemingway plays up the tensions of competition and jealousy to demonstrate just how uncertain his male characters are. Cohn seems to sincerely be keen of Jake, and while Jake is normally nice toward him although he does not really seem to reciprocate Cohn’s warmth. Their relationship changes once Jake discovers Cohn’s fling with Brett. After this incident, he is more unfriendly toward him, and more critical of him. A conversation that happens later between Jake and Bill hints at Jake’s jealousy. Bill asks Jake if he was ever in love with Brett and Jake responds with “Off and on for a hell of a long time.” Bill apologizes for being inconsiderate, Jake them claims he no longer cares. Bill is skeptic of this though (128). The competition between Jake and Cohn relationship reaches its first peak, when he finds out about Cohn’s trip with Brett and their sexual affair and by Cohn’s belief that he knows Brett better than Jake does. His hatred for Cohn grows even more throughout the novel with Jake

Ernest Hemingway has said, “The world breaks everyone, and afterwards, some are strong at the broken places.” In The Sun Also Rises he demonstrates this through his characters, and how they react to things as the “lost generation.” Being a part of the lost generation helps him connect to his characters and make their distress and anxieties seem more real. In this way, Hemingway has created a very chaotic environment for these characters. Not only does this make them more relatable, but it opens a window for a Yin and Yang dynamic. Hemingway had to make some sort of relief for his characters, and he did so through water. Ian Crouch writes that ernest Hemingway only writes things for a reason. Everything he writes is deliberate, he didn’t accidentally make the characters lost, or calm when water is present. Everything he does has a purpose. In The Sun Also Rises’ Hemingway uses a feverish mood that causes the main characters to be disorderly, but whenever water is

Star. Hemingway signed up as a volunteer ambulance driver for the Red Cross during WWI. He was accepted in December of 1917, left his job at the paper in April of 1918, and sailed for Europe in May. When Hemingway returned home from Italy in January of 1919 he found Oak Park dull compared to the adventures of war. With a letter of introduction from Sherwood Anderson, Hemingway met some of Paris' prominent writers and artists and forged quick friendships with them during his first few years. Counted among those friends were Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein, Sylvia Beach, James Joyce, Max Eastman, Lincoln Steffens and Wyndahm Lewis, and he was acquainted with the painters Miro and Picasso. Hemingway was inspired to write different works at different times because of the events that occured in his life.