Disillusionment in Hemingway´s The Sun Also Rises

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Recommended: Ernest Hemingway's writing style

Disillusionment does not merely occur in only novels; every single individual to walk the Earth will experience mental displeasure at some point within their lives. Nevertheless, many choose to let unfortunate events circle within their souls and become encrypted into their memory. Once this happens, the role of aimlessness takes its course, adverse fate reigns, and the feeling of disenchantment dwells in the mind. Hemingway’s novel, The Sun Also Rises, grasps this very subject in a subliminal way; one must accurately analyze Hemingway’s somber tone and sparse writing style in order to find the hidden symbolism and themes captured within this literary work. His protagonist, Jake Barnes, has certainly experienced prodigious pain, but according to Hemingway, he must heal himself fully in order for the pain he endured to be worth it whatsoever. Through its contrasting concepts and facade of leading a fulfilled life, The Sun Also Rises suggests that indeed, life is a rigorous battle, and in order to understand the world in a much more reflective way, one must deceive themselves and trust their transcendent illusions; nonetheless, as Hemingway presents in his novel, one must also be subject to a despondent realization of their misapprehensions; one must learn from this pain, and heal in order to survive. Any alert reader knows that Hemingway wishes to portray Jake as a model human being as opposed to the other characters within the novel. Jake’s mentality is the idealistic example Hemingway uses to demonstrate to the reader the importance of healing rather than aimless wander. World War I was a time of emotional, physiological and physical agony for thousands; for Jake Barnes, it was an experience which left him stifled in a compilati...

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...n, it is apparent to say that Hemingway has a distinct writing style, where he is simplistically brilliant in the way he portrays reality in minimal details. The main conflicts throughout the novel are between traditional and liberal views, strength taken for weakness, the powerful drive of sex, as well as individuals fixating their despondency on aimless interests in pursuit of happiness. It is vital to find a true path through realization of ones own self, in order to gain strength as an individual. One must learn to view life realistically and relish it for what it is, rather than what it cannot be. When euphoric illusions shatter, realization is necessary in order to move on; pain must first be felt and accepted before the healing process can begin. The course of redemption is essential in the final cycle of acceptance, in order to experience emotional rebirth.

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