Theme Of Love In A Farewell To Arms

In the beginning of their relationship, the couple admits, “‘we’re going to have a strange life’” (Ch. V) but the couple accepts their abnormal relationship and continue to grow closer as the novel develops. Henry shows his affection for Catharine when he thinks, “Catherine was in bed now between two sheets... Maybe she was lying thinking about me.”

Ernest Hemingway’s novel of A Farewell to Arms depicts the harsh veracities of World War 1, based on Hemingway’s personal accounts. His novel, written with simplicity and sensory detail, develops a zealous affair between an injured ambulance driver and his nurse. Hemingway’s illustration of lovers amidst a war allows readers to create their own interpretation of how the story evolves. His writing entails the reader to examine the chaotic circumstances throughout the novel. For example, on page 172, Hemingway writes, “Well, we were in it. Everyone was caught in it and the small rain would not quiet it. ‘Goodnight, Catherine,’ I said out loud. ‘I hope you sleep well. If it’s too uncomfortable, darling, lie on the other side,’ I said. ‘I’ll get you some cold water. In a little while it will be morning and then it won’t be so bad. I’m sorry he makes you so uncomfortable. Try and go to sleep, sweet!’ I was asleep all the time, she said. You’ve been talking in your sleep.” Hemingway collaborates all the lovers’ troubles into a simple understanding. He allows the reader to acknowledge frustration and concern in daily life and plan how to overcome such obstacles. On page 169 he writes, “When we were out past the tanneries onto the main road the troops, the motor trucks, the horse-drawn carts and the guns were in one wide slow-moving column. We moved slowly but steadily in the rain, the radiator cap of our car almost against the tailboard of a truck that was loaded high, the load

When the two first meet, Catherine is still dealing with the death of her fiancé in

Richard Wagamese displays the harmful effects of alcohol abuse, not only physically but mentally too. The protagonist of the novel, “Saul Indian Horse,” finds his happiness in alcohol after he couldn’t find it in hockey anymore. He claims the he “spoke less and drank more” (p.181) and that he was “a caricature everyone sought to avoid” (p.181). After many years of alcohol abuse, Saul had lost everything he had.

Something Catherine cannot get away from is marriage. Catherine’s parents are constantly reminding her of her betrothal to someone she is not

Catherine: Neither one of them can stand the person they’re married to. Why go on living with one another like this?

Whereas Frederic is passionate about the love of his life, even declaring Catherine as his religion, Catherine never truly commits to the idea of marriage, stalwartly defending her independence. Henry views a formal marriage as a necessary action to solidify his relationship with Catherine, although she believes that they are already personally married. Catherine claims that “there’s no way to be married except by church or state” (Hemingway 115). Catherine is unreligious, so her refusal to married by state is justified. However, her refusal to be married by state showcases her true intentions. After Henry continues to pester her with the idea of marriage, her attitude towards him turns hostile, as she accuses Henry of being jealous of her past marriage with another man. This dramatic change displays Catherine’s willingness to challenge obstacles, such as Henry, that are a threat to her autonomy.

The literary world of the 1920’s is often referred to as the “Lost Generation.” This was a time of hopelessness and heartache from the damages of the war which caused carelessness and lack of responsibility. Everyone was affected in some way and often could not handle the situation, usually turning to alcohol to relieve all problems. According to Gertrude Stein, the literary figures of the 1920’s “drank themselves to death”, especially two of the greatest writers of the 20th century, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway. Although both authors use alcohol as a “mask” or an escape to try and fill the void of hopelessness, Hemingway has a stronger emphasis on alcohol than

In this exchange, Christian willingly chooses to drink alcohol. He makes this decision without the influence of anyone else. Addiction may be one contributing factor to this decision, but also the need to neglect and ease the bad news. He realizes the dangerous situation he is in and uses alcohol as a vice. This further proves how alcohol is used to forget and numb the pain of war.

It was at this time that Catherine, who had never felt more isolated, wrote: "I should have loved my new husband, if only he had been willing or able to be in the least lovable. But in the first days of my marriage, I made some cruel reflections about him. I said to myself: If you love this man, you will be the most wretched creature on Earth. Watch your step, so far as affection for this gentleman is concerned, think of yourself, Madame." The young couple settled down, but the marriage was a miserable failure.

Cu describes not having alcohol as feeling “Jealous and depressed” without alcohol. The author gives alcohol this positive connotation in order to emphasize to the contrast of the sorrow in the soldiers and reality.

During this war, alcohol plays a big role in every character's life. Alcohol makes people feel stress free and lighthearted during the difficult time that they are experiencing. It gives each character a distraction so that they don’t have to worry about what bad could happen to them. Alcohol helps them forget all of the tragic things that they have seen during the war. In this story, Hemingway is urging the use of alcohol, because it was a common “therapy” in the past. These days, people don’t know how to control the amount of alcohol they drink. Especially since there are people under the age of 21 enlisted in the army, it would encourage them to also drink and abuse

Although they are only going through the motions of love at this point in the book, their gestures slowly become more and more genuine until they truly love each other. While Frederic is recovering from his wounds in the hospital in Milan, Catherine spends countless nights caring for Frederic. Their affection becomes tangible, and they begin to speak of discarding the world in favor of their love. Catherine says, “I don’t take any interest in anything else any more. I’m so very happy married to you” (Hemingway 154). The reader might note that they are not yet married; they only pretend to be. Although they no longer pretend to be in love, they are still pretending that they are married, an idea that is indicative of a greater problem in Frederic and Catherine’s relationship. Frederic struggles to engage with the world, and he attempts to rectify this by falling deeply in love with Catherine. In his essay titled "Dispelling the Romantic Myth: A Study of a Farewell to Arms,” John Beversluis writes, “Its real subject is not love as such, but one man’s attempt, in the name of love, to escape from the oppressive world in which he finds himself and discover a more tolerable world.” Catherine becomes Frederic’s world, but he will soon find that a lover cannot replace the world.

Ernest Hemingway's WWI classic, A Farewell to Arms is a story of initiation in which the growth of the protagonist, Frederic Henry, is recounted. Frederic is initially a naïve and unreflective boy who cannot grasp the meaning of the war in which he is so dedicated, nor the significance of his lover's predictions about his future. He cannot place himself amidst the turmoil that surrounds him and therefore, is unable to fully justify a world of death and destruction. Ultimately, his distinction between his failed relationship with Catherine Barkley and the devastation of the war allows him to mature and arrive at the resolution that the only thing one can be sure of in the course of life is death

Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms tells the tale of two young, star-crossed lovers in the midst of World War I. A powerful romance and stirring history of the war, this semi autobiographical novel meshes the contrasting worlds of love and war, setting war as the backdrop of love. The novel’s portrayal of love is an issue that has attracted critical debate, prompting many academics to reflect on its existence, form, and role in the plot. Joel Armstrong is one such academic. His literary criticism entitled, “‘A Powerful Beacon’ Love Illuminating Human Attachment in Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms,” asserts that love is the centering principle of the novel, and that the narrative’s world is one in which “love illuminates all of life” (Armstrong 79). As Armstrong asserts, love is the centering principle of A Farewell to Arms because it serves as an anchor for Frederic Henry and Catherine Barkley during the tumultuous events of war, motivates them to go through significant struggles, and works along with loss to lend more meaning to significant events in the plot.