The novel “The Sun Also Rises” was accepted by the audience from all around the world from the moment it was published till this day. It provides a delicate and somewhat masked picture of the time in which the plot of the novel took place. The inspiration for the main characters in Hemingway’s piece lies in his own life experiences. Although his writing is very simple, it represents a treasury of hidden and concealed observations.
The historical climate in which the plot of the novel takes place is very important for understanding concerns and behavior of the protagonists. It was the time when the World War I was over and there were many American soldiers who participated in the war. It was also the time of prohibition in which many searched for ways and places to consume alcohol freely. Conservative world of men was compromised by women’s Activism. Women became fighters for their rights and defied to conventions. Psychoanalysis struck another heavy blow to tradition and current understanding of gender roles. All these changes along with the economic bloom resulted in confusion in identity and alienation from the country of origin. These events created the “lost generation”, as Hemingway called it, and the term represents the generation of the big war and its existence in the world of lost values after the war.
The political context of the time is also very important and can be detected in this piece. There is a picture of era that is carefree concerning money and economic survival. Since the value of American dollar was high, an individual with salary from the US could do very well in Europe. Money is valued throughout the whole novel which leads the reader to get an impression that money is a replacement for all moral values. Therefore, although living without financial worries, the characters from the novel are not happy. It seems that money serves them as an instrument to overcome their deeper issues, their moral confusion. Unlike in the States, alcohol in Paris is available and Jake, Brett and Mike are enjoying in this benefit of Paris. They drink excessively to the point where they could be characterized as alcoholics. Drinking helps Hemingway’s actors to ease the feeling of aimlessness. It also brings them closer to one another. Jake uses alcohol to forget about his impotency, about his love for Brett and about every other concern in life. Since he cannot satisfy Brett as a man, he knows that she will not stay with him. On the night when Brett goes with Romero, Jake was drunk and later he recalls this event saying:
"I was drunk. I was drunker than I ever remembered having been" (Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises, 227).
It seems like alcohol is the simplest escape from reality, not only for Jake, but for all of them. However, alcohol can’t heal their wounds, their deep dissatisfactions. It only provides a temporary feeling of happiness and leads them to bigger problems. There is an association between characters’ problems with alcohol and Hemingway’s own struggle with depression. Alcoholism and depression are often connected and go together as alcohol provides short-term relief from depression (Carol Gelderman, 1979).
Friendship is another hot issue in the novel which has been frequently analyzed by the critics. This particular interest comes from deceptive and dishonest communication between the protagonists. In some parts reader gets an impression that the relationship between the characters is very deep and strong, but on the other hand, there are sentences indicating that their friendship is not as honest as it seems. First of all, Jake’s morally questionable belief that money can buy friends sends a message that his understanding of relationships with other people is quite superficial. He makes friends in bars by leaving tips thinking that by doing that he will leave a good impression and get company. Jake even states that money is a great instrument for making friends: “If you want people to like you, you have only to spend a little money” 237.
Once again the reader can recognize that the money exchanges the moral values. Jake believes that every relationship is founded on some kind of exchange. However, this kind of trading is responsible for the creation of false bonds among individuals. This message is not explicit anywhere in the novel but it can be detected through dialogs. The communication between characters is not open and sincere. Verbal messages are not in coherence with nonverbal communication. This discrepancy can easily be noticed throughout the whole piece. Hemingway tells readers to pay close attention to hidden, implicit meanings at the very beginning of the novel. When Jake introduces Robert and Frances with readers they seem to fail in the terms of open communication. Everyone seems to enjoy in polite conversation but no one expresses their true concerns. With Frances kicking Jake under the table during his proposition on going to Strasbourg and meeting a girl he knows there, reader becomes aware that Frances dislikes the idea but wants to hide that from Cohn. It seems quite strange that she can’t or won’t say anything about her insecurity in front of a man who she lives with. After this, Cohn is dishonest by saying that he needs to go outside to get newspaper but instead; he wants to talk privately to Jake. (Hemingway “The Sun Also Rises“, 4) There are so many intrigues and machinations with only one goal, to avoid open communication. This dishonesty gains more cruel shape in the relationship between Jake and Cohn. While being friends with Cohn on the surface, Jake hides his jealousy and hatred. This unnecessary pretending requires a lot of effort and energy and it makes, not only Jake, but most of the characters look somewhat desperate.
Hemingway inserts a book called “The Purple Land” in the novel. This book was very important for Cohn but it is clearly stated that the mentioned book shouldn’t be understood as a life guide. It must be questioned and approached in critical manner. By introducing this book, Hemingway injected a metaphor saying that everything in his novel should be read with a grain of salt. This and similar details is what make Hemingway a master of written art. His sentences are very short and concise but colored with profound feelings. His style is choppy and the writing seems like the sentences has been extracted from a diary. (Frank Scafella, 2012, 103)
At this point it is important to mention that during that time the impact of psychoanalysis could be recognized in every field and literature was no exception. Freud claimed that human psyche is like an iceberg where only the tip of the iceberg is visible and that represents the conscious part of personality. The part that is under the water surface is much bigger and unconscious. Experiences, beliefs and thoughts that are disturbing are placed there and we are not aware of them (Freud, 15). Previously mentioned chopping is present in The Sun Also Rises and it represents the manifestation of Freud’s theory in literature. Only a small part of the iceberg is presented to the audience while the other, more meaningful and important part is hidden under the surface. The author only gives a hint of true emotions wrapping them in simple and friendly dialogues. Characters almost never talk about their true and profound emotions. It is always hard to talk about hot issues but don’t even try, instead readers see that the great effort is invested in hiding and avoiding conversation about things that bother them the most. Audience sees a picture of postwar expatriate society placed Paris where everyone is wounded by war in some way but no one talks about it. Every time the war is mentioned they make funny jokes about it trying to ease the anxiety they are experiencing by only hearing that word. According to Freud, it can be defined as a defense mechanism. It represents another way to escape reality and find comfort. Also, it provides one more proof that the characters choose not to be honest not only to the others but to themselves. Hemingway was obviously an expert in observing other people’s behavior and was very introspective. He recognized that strong emotions hinder communication. The greatness of the novel lies in Hemingway’s ability to put all of that in short and clear writing. By hiding the feelings of characters from the audience he gave them strength and depth. There is a beautiful short dialogue between Jake and Brett at the end of the novel that can be used as an example here.
“Oh, Jake,” Brett said, “we could have had such a damned good time together.”“Yes,” I said. “Isn’t it pretty to think so?”
Brett has ended her relationship with Romero and is turning to Jake again dreaming about perfect relationship. However, reader can sense cynicism in Jake’s answer. It becomes obvious that he doesn’t share the same opinion. He realizes that their relationship would have ended the same as all of her previous relationships. This represents only one segment of the novel in which so many is said with only few words.
Masculinity and femininity play an important role in the piece. Since during the war men had to join the army, women had to find ways to survive in order to feed their children. They searched for employment and became independent. This caused confusion in society regarding gender roles (Comley, Scholes, 1994). In the novel Brett is described as a woman who bears certain masculine elements. Her hairstyle, behavior and dominance defy all previous conceptions of the role that a woman should have in society. She is not a typical woman of Victorian age. She prefers going out than being wife at home. Brett plays with men demonstrating her dominance over them. She is restless, eager for change, even if it means to change a partner. This is something that is much more typical for men. She has no problem with revealing and exploring her sexuality. She changes her partners quite frequently which can even be characterized as promiscuous. Brett is obviously not the picture of gentle traditional woman whose role is to provide care for others and have no life of her own. She does not fit into this stereotype. As Wendy Martin pointed out, Brett is a symbol of a woman who is released from traditional bonds and is free to explore her sexuality (Martin 51). She also does not hesitate to dress provocative which was quite boldly during the time. She doesn’t have any girlfriends; instead she only socializes with men. All of these characteristics give her a masculine touch and makes her more of a man than other men in the novel. Montoya, the character who values tradition, was not very fond of her. This represents the difficulties that the traditional society had with understanding these changes. However, it must be mentioned that Spain was not involved in the war so that its habitants experienced this change later than other European countries. It is interesting how Hemingway is playing with gender roles not only with his portray of Brett but also with lost masculinity in Jake. Jake was wounded in the genital area which resulted in sexual dysfunction. He is unable make love with a woman. Hemingway again finds a symbolic way to demonstrate confusion in gender roles. As women became more dominant, men felt as being castrated and deprived of their manhood. As an alternative solution he imposes friendship between men and women. Hemingway tries to equate gender roles of both sexes. It is obvious that the novel cannot be comprehended without the understanding of certain social changes that occurred during the time.
Hemingway’s simple prose attracts readers all around the world. However, once the reader discovers the hidden meaning behind this prose, the novel The Sun Also Rises becomes even more appealing. This is why most of the readers choose to read this novel several times. His sentences are short in order to mask a lot of issues that his characters are fighting with. This style reflects deep emotions that are hard to deal with. It also portrays social, economical and political context of the society where the plot took place. These are the reasons why Hemingway has been and will be in the centre of American literature. Till this day critics analyze this novel and it is not surprising that every new critic discovers something new, something that has not been seen earlier.
References:
Adair, William. "Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises: The Novel As Gossip." Hemingway Review 31.2 (2012): 114-118. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 July 2012.
Comley, Nancy R., and Robert Scholes. Hemingway's Genders. New Haven: Yale UP, 1994:40-43.
Freud, Sigmund. Beyond the pleasure principle. Broadview Press, 2011.
Gelderman, Carol. “Hemingway’s Drinking Fixation”. Lost Generation Journal 6, 1979:12-14.
Herlihy-Mera, Jeffrey. "When Hemingway Hated Paris: Divorce Proceedings, Contemplations Of Suicide, And The Deleted Chapters Of The Sun Also Rises." Studies In The Novel 44.1 (2012): 49-61. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 July 2012.
Hemingway, Ernest. The Sun Also Rises. Vancouver: Fairleigh Dickinson University, 2012. Web.
Scafella, Frank. "The Sun Also Rises: Owen Wister's 'Garbage Pail,' Hemingway's Passage Of The 'Human Soul'." Hemingway Review 6.1 (1986): 101. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 July 2012.
