Chapters 3 and 7 both contain passages with noticeable departure in style from Hemingway’s typical "journalistic" syntax. Google “stream of consciousness” as a literary technique (even if you know what it is…see what others say about it) and discuss its usage in these two chapters. Are the circumstances similar or different? Discuss why Frederic’s narrative shifts in these scenes and what we perhaps learn about him from these departures.
I think the stream of consciousness in Chapter 3 has more conjunctions in it, and it seems more stream of conscious than the passage in Chapter 7. Chapter 3 is full of long sentences that seem to never end because he's showing how his thoughts are connected, and his thoughts seem to be racing in Chapter 3, so reading that passage is almost frantic because it's all so connected. In Chapter 7, there are more short sentences, so it's like there are many short thoughts, instead of almost this overwhelming sense of urgency seen in Chapter 3. I think this style shows that war is overwhelming, and even when the soldiers are on leave, they are still overwhelmed with thoughts and feelings, so it symbolizes that no matter what, a soldier's thoughts are never complete, and that there are always more thoughts to be had.
ReplyDeleteI think "overwhelmed" is an interesting association to bring to these departures. It can explain why, in these moments, his narrative voice shifts so dramatically. Also, I notice in Ch. 3 (p. 13-4)he's talking to the priest and trying to describe a state of mind (he noticeably repeats word "sometimes") whereas in Ch. 7 (p. 37-8) he's imagining a night with Catherine (repeats "maybe" this time) then relaying a drunken conversation, which is where the short choppy sentences you describe come in. Maybe the urgency in Ch. 3 relates to his desire to explain his "rudeness" to the priest, but in Ch. 7 it's more internalized, therefore not as urgent....
ReplyDeleteI think that Catherine is smarter than she seems, especially when she tells Federic that she knows that he is lying when he says he loves her. I think that Catherine sets boundaries with Federick because she is supposed to be mourning the death of her fiance, it allows the reader to understand why Catherine tries to stop Federic from getting too close to her. Frederic and Catherine are friends at first but their relationship starts to progress into a game in which Frederic lies to Catherine in order to get closer to her, but Catherine knows about the game that Frederic is playing with her, and causes Catherine not to trust Frederic. I think that Frederic will eventually love Catherine.
ReplyDeleteYes, I think that when a person is trying to justify their actions, when they know that what they chose as an alternative is not the better, more moral option, they're a lot more likely to try and throw out all of these possible excuses for their actions when they know deep down that what they did wasn't really what they should've done, if that makes sense? I think his imaginary night with Catherine is representative of exactly what he really wants in a relationship: something physical, with little emotional attachment, and an emphasis on a fast-paced kind of lifestyle for the two of them.
ReplyDeleteThese two chapters are similar in the sense that they both significantly reflect Henry's inner feelings, conflict and character. Chapter 3 portrays Henry's conflict as a soldier, which is his lack of belief in the war due to the fact that he does not believe in its cause and that it collides with his moral standards. The war though, has also weakened Henry's integrity which is shown in Chapter 7 when Henry advises the hernia patient to bump his head so that he may be admitted into the hospital and relieved of duty from the war, when one would rather expect Henry to advise against doing so. Throughout these chapters we get a vivid idea of what is going through his head and what lies in his conscience. Like a chronic headache, the war bothers Henry constantly and is the main source of his affliction.
ReplyDeleteTo me, the similarity in Frederic's stream of consciousness in chapter 3 and 7 is that in both cases he describes unsated desires denied to him by the war. In chapter 3, Frederic frantically tries to explain why he did not go to Abruzzi. To me, what he describes is the disillusion of the war. He never went to Abruzzi because he spent his time drunk in the night seeking a feeling of "unknowing and not caring in the night". The war has driven Frederic to dissolution. In chapter 7, Frederic imagines a night with Catherine and without war, in Milan with good food and warm evenings and walks along the canal and a hotel and love, but alas, the war remains and Frederic's desires are frustrated.
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