In describing the 1926 novel The Sun Also Rises, Jeffrey Meyers, Hemingway biographer says "recognized as Hemingway's greatest work" (Meyers 56). To a great extent, this statement and description of the book is quite accurate. According to many critics, the book is described as the author’s greatest work because it embraces themes that bring out the less spoken about realities of the twenties with regard to gender, status and communication. Hemingway explains how the prewar status and society’s perception of men has been replaced by a whole new status that emphasized a situation where the men were emerging as a threatened gender, with the veterans appearing weakened by the war. Hemingway explains, through the characters how insecurity and failure of communication greatly contributed to the new state of affairs. This is the comprehensive opposing argument, which seeks to explicate the fact that the novel The Sun Also Rises, addresses male insecurity and failure of communication.
When Jake, the protagonist and narrator in the novel meets with georgette over a drink, he gets bored and walks over to meet Brett, another lady in the restaurant. The main reason why he walks away from georgette is the fact that, according to what Hemingway describes, their conversation is superficial. Neither of them is really speaking out of emotions or sincerity. On the contrary, the war veteran and the prostitute speak of common things – things that one could least expect to form the topic of conversation between a man and a woman who are out on a romantic dinner. This incident is among the earliest incidences indicating failure of communication (Djo 1). Jake, a war veteran and expatriate brought out as a man that has lost self confidence due to the fact that an injury from the war left him impotent – a factor that took away all his confidence as a man. This, perhaps, is the main reason why he is not willing to communicate more intimately, especially with women because, with his condition, he cannot relate sexually with women. The only genuine communication in the novel is seen when Jake and his friend Bill go fishing. It is in this place that Bill openly expresses his fondness for Jake – something that he says he could not say in New York lest he was called homosexual. Still this emphasizes the theme of failure of communication because had there been reliable communication, Bill could have said this anywhere.
Failure of communication is as well seen among the bunch friends that are Jakes, Bill, Cohn and Mike. From the way Hemingway describes the drinking sprees, the rest of the men are not comfortable with Cohn’s presence, even so, none of them openly speaks out this fact – at least when they are sober. From the backgrounds of the men, it is clear that the men do not like Cohn’s presence because he is not a war veteran – a fact that makes him stand out as the lone nonveteran (Wayne 2). Secondly, Cohn is a man of Jewish descent and lacks the experience of the First World War. The fact that the rest of the friends do not like his presence is prominently brought out by the fact that he is the target of antagonism from the other men. When Mike is generously drunk, he explicitly tells Cohn that his presence disgusts him. This is a proof that the men’s failure of communication remained tucked in the cover of civility. Additionally, it is clear that most of the men are infatuated with Lady Brett Ashley – the boyish female character in the novel. Surprisingly none of them openly expresses their love or affair openly. This works negatively for the men as she ends up having affairs with most of them. This is yet another major manifestation of the failure of communication.
The theme of male insecurity is, arguably the most significant theme in the novel. Male insecurity in the postwar period is emphasized through all male friends in the novel, especially those in love with Lady Brett Ashley. Apparently, Jake is not comfortable with his state and this is clear in his words “I say. Really, you don’t know how much it means. I have not had much fun since the war” (Hemingway 129). The male insecurity in the post war period is symbolically compared with the activities of the war. In the war, the soldiers were forced to sit down closely together and bombarded by the enemy. Speaking of male insecurity, the enemy in this case is the female gender that is seeking status. This is prominently explained through Brett who is brought as being more masculine than the men in the novel. In describing her looks, Hemingway says “with hair brushed back like a boy’s” (pp.22). this character is arguably the factor at the center of male insecurity because, all men in love with her want to spend time with her and in the end, they grow jealousy of one another – something that occasions fistfights among the men, with Cohn, who apparently was a high school boxing champion, beating Jake and Romero.
Weakened masculinity is at the center of the theme of insecurity. Although Jake, the narrator, does not expressly speak of his weaknesses, it is clear that from the way he describes other men and their reaction he is as well weak in the masculine manner (Shmoop Editorial Team 1). For instance, the male friends speak ill of Cohn’s behavior of following Brett, when it should ideally be the contrary. This brings out an aspect of threatened masculinity in the novel. The fact that the war rendered Jake impotent is quite symbolic. The impotency of Jake in the war is a sign that the war took away the masculinity in the male characters rendering them extremely weak. The male features of Brett, which according to most critics, are behind Romero’s decision to leave her, are a threat to male security. While with georgette and Brett at the restaurant, Jake is angered by some homosexual men. Spark Notes Editors describe this as an ambiguous sign of insecurity and weakened manhood since even Jake is similar to them in the sense that he cannot have sex with women (1).
Hemingway seeks to emphasize the fact that in the 1920s, the perception that men were extremely strong, both physically and emotionally was brought to naught by the sexual freedom that characterized the decade with regard to ladies. Apparently, such sexual freedom, which weakened or downplayed male superiority, is manifested by the character of Brett in the novel. Brett’s sexual freedom is brought out by the fact that she dons male haircuts, drinks heavily and has multiple sexual affairs – characteristics commonly associated with men. As a matter of fact, the themes of failure of communication and male insecurity overweigh the theme of power and male dominance. However, The Quick let Team argues that the character of Romero is an indication that there still exist prewar types of men (2). Even so, the opposing argument is obviously stronger.
Works Cited
Djos, Matts. “The Sun Also Rises: A Wine and Roses Perspective on the Lost Generation”. The Hemingway Review. Web. 21 Dec. 2011.
Hemingway, Ernest. The Sun Also Rises. New York: Scribner, 2003. Print.
Meyers, Jeffrey. Hemingway: A Biography. New York: Da Capo Press, 1999. Print.
Shmoop Editorial Team. "The Sun Also Rises"Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 28 Jun. 2013.
Spark Notes Editors. “SparkNote on The Sun Also Rises.” SparkNotes.com. Spark Notes LLC. 2003. Web. 20 Jun. 2013.
The Quick let Team, ed. "Major Themes In The Sun Also Rises." hyperlink. 11 07 2012. Web. 28 Jun 2013. http://www.hyperink.com/Major-Themes-In-The-Sun-Also-Rises-b191a6
Wayne, Derek. "The Sun Also Rises Themes". GradeSaver, 07 April 2002 Web. 28 June 2013.
