Brett Ashley Quotes

In The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway, Lady Brett Ashley is a representative of the New Woman, changing the American landscape. This is shown when she changes from a female to male role, as she pleases. For example, when she takes the place of a male role she demands that people please her such as, when she ordered Jake to “kiss” (Hemingway, 15) her “once more before [they] get there.” (Hemingway, 15) Although changed back to her female role when “she gave [Jake] her hand as she stepped down” (Hemingway, 15) For a man to help a woman out of a car is known as a chivalrous and an expected action, especially in the past, in addition, the man is suppose to initiate the kiss. Brett is a woman who wants to display a secure, stable, satisfied and independent life to the point where readers are not able to

For example, she taunts pure people like Romero, who is probably still a virgin because he does not “mix that stuff” (Hemingway, 90), for Romero, bullfighting always comes first , and there is Jake who is impotent. Although, between the lines, Brett thinks about all “the hell [she] put chaps through...[she is] paying for it all now” (Hemingway, 14). Brett is not necessarily thinking about these men, instead she is punishing herself for all that she has put men through by being involved with people who can not match up with her sexually. Likewise, Hemingway shines light on the relationships that Brett has destroyed between men to punish herself. For instance, after Cohn begun to like Brett, Jake was enraged to where he even said, “to hell with Cohn, (Hemingway, 117) damaging their friendship. Additionally, Brett’s interaction with Jake caused Mike to lose control of himself and become “a bad drunk” (Hemingway, 78) and become “unpleasant after he passed a certain point,” (Hemingway, 78) and throughout the trip, he was constantly passing this