Precis For The Sun Also Rises

Kate Murphy
AP English
March 30th, 2015
Précis #2: The Sun Also Rises

The Sun Also Rises is a novel by Ernest Hemingway, published in 1926. It is set in Paris, where a group of expatriates, led by Jake Barnes, live lives of revelry, drinking, and writing. His friends include Robert Cohn, a bespectacled, pitiful Jew; Lady Brett Ashley, a British woman he has loved on and off. There is also Bill Gorton, another writer, and Mike Campbell, Brett’s rude and often drunk fiance. These characters travel from Paris to Pamplona on a trip to see the bulls. The novel itself, narrated by Jake, is split into three “books”. Book One is mostly introductory. It takes place in Paris, and begins with a description of Robert Cohn, who has done nothing really

Brett soon arrives at the cafe they are meeting at, and is introduced to Bill. Brett leaves to go bathe and Jake and Bill eat a hearty meal. They later meet up with the clean Brett and Mike, who immediately gets drunk (this is a theme present throughout the novel). Later, the trip is finally planned, with Jake, Bill, Brett, and Mike deciding to meet Cohn in Spain, in Bayonne, where they will then travel to Pamplona for the festivities. Privately, Brett reveals to Jake that she and Cohn were in San Sebastian together, but she found him weak and dull. Then, Jake and Bill go to Spain via the train and are really drunk by the time they get to the station. They eat a large meal and drink even more, and when Jake receives word that Brett and Mike will be staying the night in San Sebastian, he and Cohn fight about how annoying Cohn is towards everyone. It seems that Jake is irritated with his involvement with Brett. Cohn ditches them for the other two and Jake and Bill decide to buy tickets to fish in another city. When they get on the bus, they are surrounded by Spanniards drinking wine and they get drunk again. They stop at an inn, and when they find out that wine is included in the price, they check in. The next morning introduces one of the most beautiful scenes in the novel: Bill and Jake fish on

Each goes their separate ways. Jake returns to France, Bill goes back to New York, and Mike heads to another Spanish city. Jake misses Spain, though, so he returns to San Sebastian and relaxes in his solitude. This peace is broken by news from Brett, who is in Madrid and needs help. When he arrives there, Brett tells him that she left Romero in fear of ruining him. They see the city together, after Jake calms her down, and Brett laments their lack of a romantic relationship. Jake isn’t so sure, and cynically replies, “isn’t it pretty to think so?”, a line which perfectly captures the air of temporariness of life present in this