No Country For Old Men 'And A Clean, Well-Lighted Place'

905 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: An essay on cormac mccarthy's style

One can argue that the short stories written by Ernest Hemingway and Cormac McCarthy’s novel, No Country For Old Men focus on a similar writing style. Both works contain the idea of plot outcomes with the characters in the sense that they do not give away who the protagonist is in the beginning of the work by the change in perspective. No Country For Old Men can be related to some of Ernest Hemingway's most famous short stories such as “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber” and “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place”. However both writing styles differ from each other in the sense that Hemingway can pack so much in one sentence while McCarthy states one detail at a time.
Hemingway's style and McCarthy’s style both agree in the sense that they do …show more content…

No Country For Old Men , “The Short Happy Life Of Francis Macomber”, and “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” both impact the perspective that the reader has on the character of men. Ernest Hemingway's, “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber” states, “ Even the bravest man is afraid of lions.”(Hemingway,11,). Symbolizing that no matter how brave a man is he still has a fear of something. In relation “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” characterizes the older waiter as the type of person that needs a light for the night. Indicating that even old and wise men have troubles with life. In addition Cormac McCarthy uses this masculinity in No Country For Old Men through the character Bell. “ I was supposed to be a war hero and I lost a whole squad of men. Got decorated for it. They died and I got a medal. I don’t even need to know what you think about that.” (McCarthy,195). McCarthy’s writing style is influenced by the characteristics of masculinity in the manner that he places the character Bell through the concept of feeling regret after war. Most cases men who go to war end up with depression or something upsets them. There is a reason why both Ernest Hemingway and Cormac McCarthy’s works can be studied together and it is because of the similar writing style both authors

Show More
Related

  • A Clean, Well-Lighted Place and The Jilting Of Granny Weatherall

    445 Words  | 1 Pages

    The main focus of A Clean, Well-Lighted Place is on the pain of old age suffered by a man that we meet in a cafe late one night. Hemingway contrasts light and dark to show the difference between this man and the young people around him, and uses his deafness as an image of his separation from the rest of the world.

    Read More

  • Similarities Between The Great Gatsby And Ernest Hemingway

    1365 Words  | 3 Pages

    Imagine. You are sitting in complete silence, even the nearby crickets won't dare to let out even the slightest of croaks. You stare down at your cluttered, dimly lit desk. Your hand grasps your pen, and the other rubs back and forth across your temple in angst. Your eyes pass over each paper, containing each incomplete thought, and your mind floods with memories of your past. Trapped by writer’s block, you are all alone with only your experiences, surroundings, and philosophy aiding you in the fall that is the dark reality of alcoholism and depression. For renowned authors F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, these influences all played a crucial role in identifying their style techniques, as well as determining similarities and differences

    Read More

  • Mrs.Mallards character (The story of an hour)

    2257 Words  | 5 Pages

    Hemingway refuses to romanticize his character. Being “tough” people, such as boxers, bullfighters, gangsters, and soldiers, they are depicted as leading a life more or less without thought. The world is full of such people, and it is unrealistic to put sublime thoughts into their heads.

    Read More

  • Hills like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway

    1361 Words  | 3 Pages

    Meter, M. An Analysis of the Writing Style of Ernest Hemingway. Texas: Texas College of Arts and Industries, 2003.

    Read More

  • Hemingway’s In Our Time (CRH)

    679 Words  | 2 Pages

    His style was described as “an attempt to get at minds and souls and what goes on within.” Also as “oblique, inferential, suggestive rather than overt, explicit, explanatory.” And yet somehow, “Mr. Hemingway can pack a whole character into a phrase, an entire situation into a sentence or two.”

    Read More

  • Short stories

    1144 Words  | 3 Pages

    The short stories “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” and “The Short Happy Life of Francis Mocomber” were both written by world renowned author Ernest Hemingway. The two stories are written completely unrelated to each other; however, both stories have vast similarities in the time and place in which they take place. Hemingway is a writer that is very methodical in his word choices. When reading these two stories a second time the reader finds considerable differences in the writing style the author uses in each story. To demonstrate, three sentences from each story will be compared and contrasted to show the differences in word usage, word connotation, and to find which story is written better. The initial pair of these sentences to be looked at are, “A fourth planed down, to run quick-legged and then waddle slowly toward the others,” from the short story “The Snows of Kilimanjaro,” and “On the far bank of the stream Macomber could see, above the trees, vultures circling and plummeting down,” from the story “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber.” The subsequent couple of sentences are “’You Bitch,’ he said,” from the “Snows of Kilimanjaro” and “’Why not let up on the bitchery just a little, Margot,’ Macomber said, cutting the eland steak and putting some mashed potato, gravy and carrot on the down-turned fork that tined through the piece of meat.” Finally, the third set of sentences are “She shot very well this good, rich bitch, this kindly destroyer of his talent,” from the story “Snows of Kilimanjaro” and “’That was a good shot,’ Wilson said,” from the story, “A Short Happy Life.”

    Read More

  • The Theme Of Loss Of Innocence In Catcher In The Rye

    1446 Words  | 3 Pages

    Miller, D. Quentin. "Cormac McCarthy: Overview." Contemporary Novelists. Ed. Susan Windisch Brown. 6th ed. New York: St. James Press, 1996. N.pag. Literature Resource Center. Web. 12 May 2011.

    Read More

  • An Analysis of Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast

    2123 Words  | 5 Pages

    When a writer picks up their pen and paper, begins one of the most personal and cathartic experiences in their lives, and forms this creation, this seemingly incoherent sets of words and phrases that, read without any critical thinking, any form of analysis or reflexion, can be easily misconstrued as worthless or empty. When one reads an author’s work, in any shape or form, what floats off of the ink of the paper and implants itself in our minds is the author’s personality, their style. Reading any of the greats, many would be able to spot the minute details that separates each author from another; whether it be their use of dialogue, their complex descriptions, their syntax, or their tone. When reading an excerpt of Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast one could easily dissect the work, pick apart each significant moment from Hemingway’s life and analyze it in order to form their own idea of the author’s voice, of his identity. Ernest Hemingway’s writing immediately comes across as rather familiar in one sense. His vocabulary is not all that complicated, his layout is rather straightforward, and it is presented in a simplistic form. While he may meander into seemingly unnecessary detail, his work can be easily read. It is when one looks deeper into the work, examines the techniques Hemingway uses to create this comfortable aura surrounding his body of work, that one begins to lift much more complex thoughts and ideas. Hemingway’s tone is stark, unsympathetic, his details are precise and explored in depth, and he organizes his thoughts with clarity and focus. All of this is presented in A Moveable Feast with expertise every writer dreams to achieve. While Hemingway’s style may seem simplistic on the surface, what lies below is a layered...

    Read More

  • A Conversation Hard to Understand: A Clean, Well-Lighted Place

    721 Words  | 2 Pages

    Every work in literature is open to interpretation, and every person is entitled to their opinion. In a story shorter than 1,500 words, less than that of this paper, Ernest Hemingway’s A Clean, Well-Lighted Place has garnered serious debate and criticism. Written and published in 1933, Hemingway’s story containing a theme about nothing in several contexts has definitely given many critics something to talk about, but not about the usual theme, irony, or symbolism. For the past 55 years, the critics continue to debate the conflicting dialogue between the two main characters, and whether the inconsistency was intended by Hemingway or a mistake by the original typesetter.

    Read More

  • Violence In Cormac Mccarthy's No Country For Old Men

    1608 Words  | 4 Pages

    There is a considerable pull to his works as it “eschews the baroque, elaborate, lengthy sentences characteristic” of other literature (Graham). Thusly McCarthy is compared to other “[modernist] authors…[like] James Joyce… [and] Gertrude Stein.” in this unique sense (Graham). The lack of punctuation allows for scenes to continue on to their desired length while being able to give detail when describing a landscape.

    Read More

  • The Effects of War On Soldiers

    995 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hemingway’s characters exemplify the effects of combat because World War I had a negative impact on them; the veterans lead meaningless lives filled with masculine uncertainty. Jake and his friends (all veterans) wander aimlessly throughout the entire novel. Their only goal seems to be finding an exciting restaurant or club where they will spend their time. Every night consists of drinking and dancing, which serves as a distraction from their very empty lives. The alcohol helps the characters escape from their memories from the war, but in the end, it just causes more commotion and even evokes anger in the characters. Their years at war not only made their lives unfulfilling but also caused the men to have anxiety about their masculinity, especially the narrator Jake, who “gave more than his life” in the war (Hemingway). Jake feels that the war took away his manhood because he is unable to sleep with Brett as a result of an injury. Although he wants to have a relationship with Brett, and spends most of his time trying to pursue her, she rejects him because he cannot have a physical relationship with her. At several points in the novel, Brett and Jake imagine what their lives could have been like together, had he not been injured during the war. Thus, his physical injury gives him emotional distress because he cannot have a relationship with the woman he always wanted. The traditional American perception of...

    Read More

  • The Theme of Love in "The Sun Also Rises"

    660 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hemingway has a very simple and straightforward writing style however his story lacks emotion. He makes the reader figure out the characters’ feelings by using dialogue. “...

    Read More

  • Ernest Hemingway Themes

    1263 Words  | 3 Pages

    As it can clearly be seen, Earnest Hemingway has reflected his life throughout his works. This outlet of expression has proven to be worth the time and effort he had put forward in crafting these stories. It is unfortunate that factors such as human suffering as well as intimate harm were present in Hemingway's life, but it is thanks to those themes that such great works came about. In the short stories "Indian Camp," "The Old Man at the Bridge," and "Hills Like White Elephants," Hemingway has proven that he was indeed the voice of his generation and has crafted a path for future authors and writers to write in a similar manner and style.

    Read More

  • Psychoanalytic and Femisnist Theories in A Farewall to Arms by Ernst Hemingway

    2051 Words  | 5 Pages

    “A Farewell to Arms” written by Ernest Hemingway in 1929 attracted much critical acclaim and theoretical interpretation helping to understand the author’s message to the readers the overall importance of the literary work in the world. The events of the novel took place during the First World War in Italy revolving around Frederic Henry, an American ambulance driver working for the Italian Army and being wounded on the front. Another very important character in the novel was Catherine Barkley, the nurse taking care of Frederic while he was in the hospital in Milan. They soon become involved in a romantic relationship. This paper will focus on the Psychoanalytic and Feminist theories, helping to understand the basic meaning of the novel and characters’ roles in the plot, characterized by the continuous interaction with each other and specific conflicts.

    Read More

  • Nothingness in A Clean Well-Lighted Place by Ernest Hemingway

    1366 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...e old man tries to kill himself: " ‘Last week he tried to commit suicide’, one waiter said" (199). Ironically, the old man is saved by his religious niece for "Fear for his soul" (200). The old man sits "in the shadow the leaves of the tree made against the electric light" (199). The man sitting in the shadow of the tree represents living in the nothingness. He lives inside of the nothingness surrounded by the artificial light, or artificial truth that he has created for himself. The only relief he has is to numb the sting of the emptiness he feels inside with brandy.

    Read More

More about No Country For Old Men 'And A Clean, Well-Lighted Place'

Open Document