And We're Taking the Coda

Throughout the entire book, I think I fell in love (notin love, love, but just, you know) with Jake. He is a character that a lot of people can relate to. And this was definitely, definitely my favorite part of reading this book, which is why I saved it for last.
I think it is really important for an author to have relatable characters. It's just too hard to read a book if you have no idea what's going on.
All the things that I thought had nothing to do with the overall theme actually helped develop a really great story. If he hadn't of added the side stuff, I wouldn't have known Jake the way I do now.

I loved Jake's take on being Catholic and prayer. I'm pretty sure the majority of people pray the same way he does. I couldn't help but laugh at this: "...so I prayed that I would make a lot of money, and then I started to think how I would make it, and thinking of making money reminded me of the count, and I started wondering about where he was, and regretting I hadn't seen him since that night in Montmarte, and about something funny Brett told me about him...I was such a rotten Catholic" (page 103).
No one really admits that they pray like this. It's rather embarrassing. So when Hemingway points out this human flaw, it draws people to like the character.

Good job, Hemingway.

Isn't Pretty To Think So?

Brett claims she is going to go marry Mike now; he is her type of man. Of course, Romero didn't work out. She couldn't be her spunky self with him.
But why does she call Jake to rescue her? It's frustrating. I just knew that this book wouldn't have a happy ending.
But, I think Hemingway ended it appropriately. Remember that movie, My Best Friend's Wedding? The ENTIRE time we all wanted Julia Roberts to get the man, but in the end Cameron Diaz does. The little girl, Disney princess side of you is really disappointed and all, but the realistic side of you knows it was for the best.
Even though Brett and Jake will never officially be together, they will always share something "special". (I don't want to sound too corny). Both Jake and Brett seem pretty content with what they have and who am I to want more?

As frustrating as it is, I'm glad Hemingway didn't stoop to the cliche ending. It gives the novel a little edge.

Buoyant to Madrid

After Mike and Bill leave in Book III, the mood is so relaxed! Jake is just having a good time. This is all true especially back in France. You can tell that he just belongs there. "It is the simplest country to live in" (page 237). Then he goes to Spain by himself, and everything continues to be pretty relaxed. Swimming, reading, drinking, just taking it easy. Jake was happy.

"COULD YOU COME HOTEL MONTANA MADRID AM RATHER IN TROUBLE BRETT" (page 242). Tense, tense, tense. It was like an immediate change from perfect to "oh no!". Jake loves Brett, so he was obviously worried, but I know that Brett is probably overly-dramatic, so it wasn't going to be a big deal. So I wasn't tense, but Jake definitely was. I love that Jake knows how ridiculous he is being. (Cohn was also ridiculous, but he wasn't aware of it). "Send a girl off with one man. Introduce her to another to go off with him. Now go and bring her back. And sign the wire with love" (page 243).

Eat Some Soup

"The three of us sat at the table, and it seemed as though about six people were missing" (page 228).

I am running out of book to post about, so I am going to try to make something of this quote. I made a list of all the characters we've met so far: Jacob[x].Cohn[].Georgette[].Count[].Brett[].Bill[x].Mike[x].Romero[].Edna.[]. If you count the empty boxes, there are six people not at that table. Maybe I'm taking it too literal.
Also, I can't help but thinking this could be a sort of foreshadowing. Will everyone come back? Actually.. I can't imagine this book ending like a perfect fairytale. The tone of this line isn't really hopeful; it's more like..someone sighing. Hemingway is probably warning us that everyone we've come to know (or just briefly meet) played no real role and they aren't coming back. Jacob will still be lost in the end, just as he was in the beginning.

I'm No Aficionado

I've read all the way through Book II and I really don't get the whole bullfighting thing. I really don't like reading those scenes, because I'm a bad visualizer and that's practically all you can do during them.
The one posted on here is actually about Hemingway (It actually takes an excerpt from The Sun Also Rises and sorta explains it, kinda). The second one is just a link explaining the process. It's pretty boring, probably what you'd expect.

So now I have an idea of what's going on, I can try to make something of it. From my mini research on youtube, I now know that Hemingway was actually a big fan of bullfighting. Maybe he really was an aficionado and maybe he really knew Montoya). He wanted to write this novel to, I guess, beat out Fitzgerald, who just wrote The Great Gatsby (At least that's what the lady in the video said). I'm thinking that he set his novel in Spain, so he could write about something he loved.
I'm kind of embarrassed, because I don't really think I know what the lesson is. I guess it could be what I posted in that other post. And if I was right, then this is how bullfighting could relate:
Give a little, take a little and stop once you have it. It's the same way you fight a bull."He had to get so close that the bull saw his body, and would start for it, and then shift the bull's charge to the flannel and finish out the pass in the classic manner" (page 221). When Romero fights, he has to risk his life for a tiny bit in order to get what he wants (which is to be able to kill the bull). I guess you could also say he is "paying" through taking a chance?

Sometimes things only make sense late at night.

Gentleman Ashley

After Mike tells us what happened between Cohn,Romero, and Brett, he gives us a new insight on his her past.
At this point, we are all probably thinking the same thing: Settle down, Brett! Don't be mean. But now we see that her current husband (soon to be ex-husband) was a real jerk! "...he used to tell her he'd kill her. Always slept with a loaded revolver. Brett used to take the shells out when he'd gone to sleep" (page 207). What a sad, scary life. I think that would also give me a distorted view on love. If that is her experience of settling down in marriage, then I don't blame her for jumping from man to man. I'm sorry for those who suffer from it, but we all face that in our lives-Brett did too. "She hasn't had an absolutely happy life, Brett. Damned shame, too. She enjoys things so" (page 207).
Why did she marry "Gentleman Ashley" in the first place? My guess-she wanted to be the traditional wife on the those times. Settle down and get married-have kids. Deep down inside, however, she was always this spunky, out-of-the-box woman who didn't like to be suppressed. So now she is breaking free and will never turn back to that lifestyle.

Go Brett! (Sorta. She should probably give another guy a chance. Preferably Jake)

What A Night

I have found my last mandatory lit term. "Why [Cohn] went in and found Brett and the bull-fighter chap in the bull-fighter's room, and then he massacred the poor, bloody bull-fighter" (page 205). Hyperbole, for sure. Robert and Romero did have a fight, but no one died. I think he exaggerates so much, because he knows (from personal experience) that Cohn is awfully strong. And most likely, because he doesn't like Robert. He wants to make him look worse than what he really is. (Also, he is drunk and it probably sounded funnier that way. He is always drunk.) So again, we see this crazy side of Robert come out. He has absolutely no self-control.
Brett has no self-control.
And Mike doesn't really love Brett; he just hates Cohn. I mean, don't you think if he did he wouldn't have let Robert beat up Romero? He would have done it himself, out of anger. The only man he gets mad at for hanging around Brett is Robert.
I guess the difference is that Brett wants to be with Romero and she really doesn't want to be around Cohn. Still, I think most guys who are in love don't want their to share. Brett's not going to settle down and no one is going to get her for the romantic "happily ever after" (cliche) ending.
Robert: Go back to Frances.
Jake: Move to America and start dating around.
Mike: Go home and get a job! Sober up!
Bill: Just continue to go with the flow.
Romero: Keep dreaming and don't get too hopeful.

"Oh, yes," I said. "I'm all right".

I'm in the middle of a chapter, and I usually don't blog until the end, but I feel like I just hit an important moment with Cohn.
Everyone has been giving him such a hard time about following Brett around. He knows everyone hates him now. Even Brett admitted it: "'My God! I'm so sick of him!...I hate him too,...' she shivered". (page 186). (This was a conversation she had with Jake, but we all know Cohn was listening in.
And now I'm going to go all the way back to page one. "He cared nothing for boxing, in fact he disliked it, but he learned it painfully and thoroughly to counteract the feeling of inferiority and shyness he had felt on being treated as a Jew at Princeton" (page 1). Robert was taught to hit when he felt inferior. He doesn't like it, but I think it is instinct. Now everybody is ganging up on him, he was bound to hurt someone. (I think Jake ought to have known that, I mean, he told me.) So I guess my conclusion on Robert is that he was never trying to make anyone annoyed or upset. His motivation are his feelings and I don't think he thinks about others or consequences. I knew from the beginning he was naive. He probably felt he loved Brett so much, and he tells us now that they even used to live together in San Sebastian. They broke up (I'm guessing), she moved on, and he didn't. But he follows his feeling nonetheless. He should get over it, but that's not the way he works.

They Aren't Bananas

When Romero was first introduced, I didn't think he was going to play a very big role. I thought he would be like Georgette or Harris-there for a part of a chapter, but no more than that. I mean, I'm sure they have a role, but I haven't figured it out yet. However, I think I've figured out why Hemingway wrote Romeo in.
He relates well with everybody. (Besides Mike, who is just a mean drunk) He is a true aficionado, "nothing conceited or braggartly about him" (page 178).
First, Romero helps further my point about Bill. He conforms to fit in, I think. He doesn't like Cohn, because Jake doesn't like Cohn. And now, during the conversation with Romero, he wants to fit in again. "Tell him I think writing is lousy" (page 179). I mean, he's talking to a bullfighter! A writer may seem pretty lousy when compared to something so.. crazy tough. I'm not saying I don't like Bill; I think he is actually one of the more normal characters. All I'm saying is that he isn't there to add more to the plot, he is there to bring out the characteristics of others. (I could give more examples, but I must move on).

And if there wasn't enough tension in Brett's love mess, I think Romero can top it off. What the heck, Brett? Stop leading everyone on. Romero is nice and all, but she only loves him because of his green pants. Before Romero, all the men in Brett's life fell in love with her prior to the story's beginning. But now we see how it happens! I want to like her so bad, but she is irresponsible and kind of mean.
I think she is the one who never "paid" Jake. Not the other way around.

What A Lot of Bilge I Could Think Up at Night.

Jake is going crazy with his philosophy. And I'm going crazy trying to understand it. I feel like this passage may be the key to understanding the theme of this book. (I won't type out the entire passage, but it's on page 152-153 from "Women made..." to "...i went to sleep". ) I'm not very good at reading into things, but I am going to try to figure this out without any help.

In the first paragraph, Jake finally admits for real that he loves Brett: "...you had to be in love with a woman to have a basis of friendship I had been having Brett for a friend" (page 152). This is no surprise, but it's nice to have it official. Even though he had her as a friend, he wasn't really paying for it. And according to Jake everything that is enjoyed in life must be paid for in some fashion; "the bill always came" (page 152). So now the bill is here, and it's rotten. Michael. Michael is getting the girl. I still don't really understand how he didn't pay or what he didn't give in return or even what Brett gave to him, but I know he is regretting it now. But later on he tells us how we pay for thing: learning, experiencing, taking chances, or, the obvious, money. So anything in good in life we have to pay for. I'm taking a wild guess here in saying that Jake never actually took a chance with Brett. He loved her, but they were only friends. She could only wait so long. He never paid.

The lesson is simple (and stated) "Enjoying living was learning to get your money's worth an knowing when you had it" (page 152).
When experiencing good things in life, there is going to be a cost- don't give to little and don't give too much. Be aware and appreciate the things life is offering.

This entire passage is a great example of a stream of consciousness. Jake's inner workings are quite chaotic. And, again, we get to know Jake better through his offbeat thought tangents (aka indirect characterization).

Woah. Is this book getting interesting..?

This whole love triangle/mess has brought a lot of tension to the story, and it's finally starting to cause drama!

Everyone knows Brett can get any man she wants. She's fun, unique, and I'm quite certain, attractive. Even the women at the wine-shop they passed noticed as "they [stared] at Brett" (page 142). It isn't surprising that a lot of men are chasing after her. And I guess you could say that Michael has won the race and it is natural for him to want her for himself-who really wants to share? Monogamy, people. Please.
So the group has just come to sit around the cafe and have a drink (maybe that's the metaphor of this book. Everyone is always drinking!) after watching the bulls. All the tension that has built up is about to be released through one silly simile. Robert is like a steer- "'Is Robert Cohn going to follow Brett around like a steer all the time?"' (page 146). Mike is so frustrated with Cohn for following his fiance/girlfriend (who really knows) around. He is basically feeling the same way Bill and Jake did when they left Robert to go fishing a week ago. I think Robert needs to back off. He knows exactly what he is doing and Brett clearly doesn't like his attention. I don't blame Brett for all this chaos; I think everyone should lay off and let her decide she who she wants to be with. ( ALthough, she does tend to toy with everyone's emotions. Man, I hate Brett. She is sorta like Bella.)

Chicken or the Egg?

I love when I get allusions without having to look them up, because, honestly, I won't look it up if I don't get it.

"'Gentlemen,' he said, and unwrapped a drumstick from a piece of newspaper. 'I reverse the order. For Bryan's sake. As a tribute to the Great Commoner. First the chicken, the egg'" (page 126).

This is an allusion to William Jennings Bryan, who was an American politician during this time and died in 1925. He was famous for many things, but in this particular case I think they are talking about the Scopes Trial. Bryan was a fundamentalist, so he didn't believe in evolution. John Scopes, on the other hand, was caught teaching evolution in schools. Bryan fought against Scopes and wanted him persecuted.
Bill and Jake are going to eat the chicken first, then the egg, because that's how Bryan would have wanted it.
I don't really know if this really pertains to the plot or theme. I'm really having a hard time making a connection. They are just having lunch, so the mood is very lighthearted. I mean, Bill is there and Robert is out of the picture, so of course the mood isn't serious. Also, I think they are a little drunk.


P.S. I had some help from my history notes from school last year.

Road To Hell Paved With Unbought Stuffed Dogs.

I've decided that Bill is a flat character, who really doesn't change much of the story line. He is pretty laid back, unless Robert is around. Finding Robert annoying is Bill's only purpose. Jake has to have someone to relate to. If he was on the trip with just Robert, waiting for Brett and Michael-he would blow up. Because Bill was there, they were able to leave Robert behind and move on together, without having to listen to Cohn's "superiority".

Additionally, I think Bill adds to the dialogue. Like I said in my "Statement", Hemingway adds a lot of nonsense to the book. A lot of that comes form Bill. My favorite: "A horse cab passed us. Bill looked at it. 'See that horse-cab? Going to have that horse-cab stuffed for you for Christmas.' " (page 79). It's so random and adds nothing to the story line (which I really haven't figured out yet).

So, Bill's purpose is to: 1) dislike Robert and 2) take away the serious tone of the story

Jealously

"I was blind, unforgivingly jealous of what had happened to [Robert]" (page 105).

Everything about Brett is becoming a little bit clearer as I read through the book. Robert had one date with Brett, and fell head over heels for her. I don't think Brett sees Robert the same way he does her. Clearly though, most men who meet Brett feel the same way. Now Jacob, I think, had a past with Brett, but not a romantic past. I mean, I think they've been.. well, they've done it. I'm pretty sure. (Because of the whole kissing scene in the taxi a while back). Brett and Jake's relationship has never been exactly what Jake has wanted... they have never been serious. And because Robert had an actual date with Brett, he rubs it in Jake's face. This makes Jacob extremely jealous and passive aggressive (torturing Cohn with the telegram).
But in reality (I hate that phrase), I think Robert is only into Brett for her looks and spontaneity-he just wants to live a little, and Jake is actually interested in Brett's personality. He loves her. Robert knows that and he is being a real jerk.

Statement

This isn't a post. Just a statement with a quote.

"That has nothing to do with the story" (page 102). Are you kidding me? If he said that after every line in the book that had nothing to do with the story, then the book would be four times as long, just filled with "that has nothing to do with the story". I mean sometimes I enjoy the random thoughts Jacob has, but why does he address his pointless side-words now?

And You Knew Where The Sea Was.

"You couldn't see the sea. It was too far away. You could see only hills and more hills, and you knew where the sea was" (page 98).

As I was reading, everything seemed to be prose prose prose (and rather boring). Then I got to this line and it screamed poetry to me. I liked it, so I highlighted it. And as I continued reading, my mind was racing trying to think of a way to post about it. So here it goes:

This quote is an analogy to life (in this case, Jake's life). The sea is where we want to be by the end of our life. I don't think it's heaven or anything, just the point that we all are working towards. Whether it's retirement, having a family, marrying the person of your dreams, or even just graduating from school, everyone has some sort of goal. We can't physically see "the sea", because there are too many obstacles, or hills, in the way. However, we can all imagine it-we know where it is. Every obstacle we face and defeat, our goal gets clearer. We think about it, dream about and work for it everyday. I think in Jake's case, he wants to end up with the girl. (probably Brett). I don't really think he wants his writing job to be the center of his life for his entire existence. I think in this little adventure he is currently enduring, he will face hills, but through it, he will find what he is looking for.

Through His Everything.

Indirect Characterization. Anyone who has read this book knows which character is developed indirectly-Jake.
Every new character we meet is in a scene involving Jacob, so we see how people interact with him. The author also reveals Jake's character to us through his own thoughts and feeling-his narration.

Through Cohn:We see Jake's somewhat boring personality. He is uninspired by anything except for work. Take this conversation:
" 'Would you like to go to South America, Jake?' [Robert] asked."
"No."
"Why Not?"
"I don't know. I never wanted to go. Too expensive. You can see all the South Americans you want in Paris anyway" (page 17).
I mean seriously, how boring is that? But because Robert wants to stray away from his mundane life, Jacob's bland personality shines through.

Through Brett: Now we get to see Jake's sentimental side. "The street was dark again and I kissed her. Our lips were tight together ..." (page 33). After Brett is introduced, Jacob becomes an entirely different character. His tone completely changes when he is with Brett and he isn't just the cynical character we knew him to be.

The same thing happens through Frances. Because she confided in him about her problems with Robert, we know that he must scream "I'M A SENSITIVE GUY; COME TALK TO ME!". Even though it might make him really uncomfortable, it's just his aura. Now I know he really is a nice guy.

Finally, we can also learn a lot about Jacob's personality through his own thoughts.
"It is very important to discover graceful exits like that in the newspaper business..." (page 19). Cohn is really pessimistic about everything (except towards women); his work is his excuse out of almost everything fun. Even though he does tend to party ( a lot) he never seems to really enjoy himself. "I have to work in the morning,' I said. 'I'm too far behind you now to catch up and be any fun" (page 41).

The Secret to Success

I'm one chapter into Book II and so far I think we've lost Cohn, maybe. So everything I said before about him being the protagonist is probably wrong.

But now we have Bill Gorton, the taxidermist. (which is a really creepy conversation they had and I hope it had no meaning)
"Never be daunted. Secret of my success. Never been daunted in public" (page 79).
BOLOGNA! Every other sentence of this book someone is drinking. At first I thought it meant to never get scared in public-don't let anything frighten you. Then I read it again and clearly they are talking about drinking too much.
I agree, being intoxicated probably hinders success, but Jake and Bill are equals in their business and Jake parties every night, so it seems. No one drives in Paris, so who cares? The characters in this book are so disillusioned! In their previous conversation, Bill can't recall anything that happened in Vienna until he was prompted by Jake. Why wouldn't he remember unless he was drunk? His little "secret to success" just goes to show how everyone in this novel is talking to talk- there is no real point. I'm pretty mad right now and I hope Book II will begin to establish some sort of theme. (Chapter One doesn't hold much hope.)

This post is mainly to point out that there is no "explication" to be done. I can't figure it out and I'm extremely frustrated.

Frances: No Holding Back

In my eleven years of education, I have learned a thing or two. One being that authors always have a meaning for everything written within their book (well, we'll say that for the sake of English classes.) Readers (or mostly students) must find the explication of the given passage.
When Frances lets loose on Robert while Jake is listening, it isn't to characterize Frances, but it is designed to emphasize the mid-life crisis that Robert is experiencing. Cohn believed he was in love (am I sensing a metaphor here?) with Frances, just like he did with his ex-wife. But now he wants to know what else is out there in the world. What hasn't he experienced yet? But Frances knows what's out there and she knows she is just too old to get any of it. So she NEEDS Cohn; he is the only thing she has left. Frances knows Robert the best, and she is infuriated with his want of a new life. She goes off on him because she wants him to believe that she is what's best for him (even though the whole scene is for her own good). But through her anger we see how easily molded Cohn was. How his little reality check is actually him breaking out of his shell and out of the control of these women.
This scene sheds new light on Conh's character.
I'm rambling, and I need to make a point.
I guess what I am saying is that this scene makes me feel bad for Robert. I understand why he wants to explore the world now, it isn't because he thinks he is going to die soon. It's because he needs to his other options. His whole life he took whatever came first.
I'm sorry that Frances took what came last, but it isn't Robert's fault. He should be able to leave and find what he is looking for.


P.S. I think that having a sporadic entry is okay, because Hemingway isn't being very organized either!

Lady Ashley aka Brett

At this point in the game I cannot seem to figure out Brett! To be honest, the first scene she was in I thought she was a man. What I've concluded so far is her view on love. Jacob reads Brett through her eyes: "Her eyes had different depths, sometimes they seemed perfectly flat. Now you could see all the way into them" (page 34). As they talked about their mysterious past and how they should forget about it, Jake saw all the way into her eyes. But later on when he mentioned love, her eyes went flat.I don't know what this means, but I have a guess or two.
Fear. Her married life ruined the concept of love for her. Now that she is in the middle of her divorce, she is back to living the city-life of partying. She can be with all the men she wants-Jake, the count, and this so-called fiance of her's (which sorta contradicts my point). Or maybe she IS actually in love with Jake, but she doesn't want to admit her true feelings. Even though she is always telling him how much she loves him, it's still "...rotten. There isn't any use [her] telling [him] how much [she] loves him" (page 62), because she is too crazy for him. Her eyes became flat, because she doesn't want him seeing any more into what she really wants. Brett wants Jacob to believe she is going to marry Michael, and maybe she will, but not because of love. I think I am still missing a part of their history together, which will solve this mystery.

Oh yeah, there is also Cohn in the picture. But I'm not completely convinced that Brett even knows he exists or if that relationship has anything to do with the plot.

The Sun Also Rises First Two Characters.. Will they cover my leftovers?

Okay, so a foil is defined as a character who acts as contrast to another character.
I know I shouldn't admit this, but the only characters that I know of so far (besides the many women of Cohn) are Jake and Robert. Hemingway characterizes Jacob through his own thoughts and Robert through Jacob's narration and dialogue. They are best friends, but completley opposite of each other. Because Jacob views everything so practically, his personality turns cynical. And then there is Cohn, who is in the process of some fantasy reality check: "Do you know that in about thirty-five years more we'll be dead?"..."Well, I want to go to South America" (page 19). Robert's parents left him a large sum of money, so he really doesn't have to work for much, whereas Jake is busy working so he will be able to eventually enjoy life. I love how split their personalities are and how they interact with each other. I'm going to take a wild guess here, but I think that maybe Cohn is the protagonist and Jacob is the foil who constantly tries to bring Cohn back to reality, but in the end, is actually sucked into Cohn's world and learns a thing or two from it.

My favorite Jacob quote (so far): "I have a rotten habit of picturing the bedroom scenes of my friends" (page 21). Jake's personality shines through this quote. He is so cynical about life- living it versus experiencing it. on the contrary, Robert is dying to experience life-he knows that so far he hasn't done anything with his life, but maybe he takes it too far.