Themes in The Sun Also Rises
One theme that I found recurring throughout the novel, The Sun Also Rises by
Ernest Hemingway, was love. Lady Brett Ashley was a beautiful woman who seemed to
be irresistible to the men she became acquainted with. For example Robert Cohn, Bill
Gorton, Pedro Romero, Mike Campbell, and last but not least Jake Barnes. Brett was ex¬
tremely vulnerable to the charm that various men in her life seemed to smother her with.
Brett was not happy with her life or her surroundings and sought escape and refuge in the
arms of these men. All of these men had strong feelings for Brett. The only problem was
that Brett had no feelings for any of those men, except for Jake. The only reason Jake and
Brett were not together was due to a wound Jake received during the war. Jake's wound
made him impotent, incapable of making love. The torture of his wound, though, is that
he can still feel desire.
Jake and Brett could not love each other physically. They could not show each
other how much they truly loved one another. They both desperately want something that
they could not have due to Jake's injury. Neither Jake nor Brett were able to find any
satisfaction or completeness in love. Jake was defined by this wound. He was always
thinking about it, even when he did not seem to be. Whenever Jake was about to go to
bed, and his thoughts loosened, he thought about his wound and Brett. Jake was able to
feel love, but he could not express it or consummate it. Brett herself told Jake not to love
her because she would only deceive him. Love, for Brett, had become a power she con¬
trolled. It changed men but left her unaffected. Jake was tolerant of Brett's behavior be¬
cause he love...
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...s and at the same time fearful for their lives.
The title, The Sun Also Rises, is tied together with nature, earth, fear, courage,
and death. The earth along with nature goes on and does not stop for anything; when the
sun rises it is symbolic of a new beginning or a chance for one to start over. Many things
do occur that deter people from their purpose on earth and that is why each day is a
chance to change or fix something that has gone wrong in our lives. Brett had many
chances to change her ways and start over but for some reason she chose not to. Maybe it
was because no matter what she did, no matter how much trouble she got herself in, Jake
was always there to care for her, love her, and help her. If she was on her own she would
realize all of her mistakes and try to fix them or repent so she can be forgiven and move
on.
understand what was going on. Janie did not feel love for this man or any man
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
Sam and Josh have a friendly relationship. "Sam doesn't order me to do anything. He's my friend. I live on his farm. I do what he says" Josh says. (page 36). “That’s why I don’t put up with anyone’s hard luck story,’ Josh said. ‘I’ve been there. I’ve beaten it. I’ve started putting my life together again. If I can, anyone can.” (Page 307). This was the perfect representation of how Josh connected to Brett about exactly how he has learnt to forget and move on from his past and improve himself, displaying that if Josh could push through a hard time in his life, then so can Brett. That's when Brett realised that he was lucky to have normal parents who were respectable
she must learn how to overcome. She goes from being this person who doesn’t fit in at
out to marry her as soon as possible. When Janie asked about love, she was
move from house to house. She is miserable in all of them, but they are
happiness. The way she lied was different from Jay. She lied to keep the person
had for Janie was more of a lust than a love. He was very protective of
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway is the story of Jake Barnes, a World War I veteran, and his adventures with his friends and the love of his life, Lady Brett Ashley, as they travel on a vacation from France to Spain. On the night of July fifth, the evening prior to when the passage take place, Jake cannot fall asleep, and is mulling over the lost romantic relationship between himself and Brett, whom he had met during the war, and also the bitterness that erupts from Mike, Brett 's fiancee, when he is drunk; this bitterness is especially directed towards Cohn, Jake 's friend and Brett 's previous affair, which gives Jake mixed feelings on the bitterness and its truth overall. The insanity and celerity of the fiesta that takes place after
On the farm, Brett meets the caretaker Sam, who is symbolized not only as a role model but also the cause of Brett's positive change. Sam respects each individual equally and believes everybody deserves a second chance, but Brett, at the beginning does not tolerate anyone, especially people with authority – "they are the enemy, and you never get friendly with the enemy". This demonstrates Brett's attitudes and protest t...
one). In this note, Sam confesses that she is a virgin (she has never done “it”) and is saving herself not for marriage, but for Jake Ryan. Jake finds himself wanting to get to know Sam and wanting a real relationship with someone like her, rather than with someone like Caroline. He knows Caroline doesn’t love him, and he doesn’t love her either. The only real reason they’re together is because he’s the most popular boy at school and she’s the most popular girl. Throughout the movie, Sam is preoccupied with becoming more like Caroline, while the real reason Jake is interested in her is because she
Brett and Daisy both possess relationships that compel them to remain faithful through the power and security they are provided with, yet use love differently to maintain such relationships. Within her relationship with fiancé Mike, Brett uses love in a shallow manner and avoids any strong emotional connection with him. Hemmingway reveals Brett’s impassiveness through the meaningless, empty relationship she has with Mike. To Brett, her relationship with Mike symbolizes her desire to see herself as the rich, successful woman many believe her to be. Her shallow character causes her relationship to contain very little depth and meaning. She feels nothing for Mike, as her only motive to stay with him is the fact that he improves her self-image.
Jake Barnes, as the narrator and supposed hero of the novel, fell in love with Brett some years ago and is still powerfully and uncontrollably in love with her. However, Jake is unfortunately a casualty of the war, having been emasculated in a freak accident. Still adjusting to his impotence at the beginning of the novel, Jake has lost all power and desire to have sex. Because of this, Jake and Brett cannot be lovers and all attempts at a relationship that is sexually fulfilling are simply futile. Brett is a passionate, lustful woman who is driven by the most intimate and loving act two may share, something that Jake just cannot provide her with. Jake's emasculation only puts the two in a grandly ironic situation. Brett is an extremely passionate woman but is denied the first man she feels true love and admiration for. Jake has loved Brett for years and cannot have her because of his inability to have sex. It is obvious that their love is mutual when Jake tries to kiss Brett in their cab ride home: "'You mustn't.
Brett Ashley is, from the start, a careless woman. A lady by marriage only, she has affairs with many men, breaks many hearts, and drinks lots of liquor. She wants to be the center of everyone's attention. She may be physically stunning, but she lacks class and restraint. Like the rest of the novel's main party, she has a taste for living the good life in disregard of the feelings and actions of others. It seems everyone loves or has loved her, including Jake Barnes. So Robert's unfortunate attraction to Brett Ashley has already heightened tensions between the male characters.
Jake suffers from the nagging fear of the loss of his sexual prowess as a result of the wounds suffered during the war. Although this condition is not explicitly mentioned in the story, it is nevertheless implied. This physical dilemma brings psychological consequences so that leaves him insecure about his masculinity. Compounding this feeling is the fact that Brett, the love of his life, refuses to have a relationship with her. Once when there were in a taxi, and he tried to kiss her, Brett's response was, "Don't touch me. Please don't touch me" (33). Although Brett says that she loves him, she really doesn't want to deal with what she perceives as related problems. With other women, like in the case of another character Georgette, Jake can be charming and funny, though he seems to get bored with them quickly. Brett's apparent reservations lead Jake to believe that there could never be a sexual rel...