A Farewell to Arms Discussion

[Dark Muse]

I do think that in the case of Catherine the aspects of her that tend to get on my nerves are intended to highlight her vulnerability and her insecurity which was probably a product of the time and everything that was going on. Their relationship was born out of the chaos of war, if it had not been for the war they never would have met, and perhaps do not truly have much in common. It is because of the background of the war that draws them to each other. This in itself would make them unsettled and uncertain of themselves and each other.

I think they are in their own way just looking for something in all the madness and death around them, some escape, some affection, human connection, and so they have turned to each other. They do not truly love each other, I do not think for who they are as individual people, but more for what they represent to each other.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

I read about a fifth of it, and had to stop. Almost put me in a coma. I'm not trying to be malicious with that statement, but it was just boring. I found the prose weak and uninteresting, and the dialogue just seemed absurd. I will probably go back and give it another try, and may even give his short stories a read (I find when an author's novels bore me, the short stories are better).

Out of the great early 20th century writers I've read, and if A Farewell to Arms is an indication of the rest of his writing, I really don't see how he is grouped among greats like Fitzgerald and Faullkner.

[Dark Muse]

Out of the great early 20th century writers I've read, and if A Farewell to Arms is an indication of the rest of his writing, I really don't see how he is grouped among greats like Fitzgerald and Faullkner.

Well I guess that just goes to show you. People have very different tastes. I myself found A Light in August to be quite boring, and rather difficult to get through. I was not in the least bit engaged in the story, and did not care for the prose all that much.

But I myself am very much enjoying A Farewell to Arms, and find some of the prose to be quite striking, and I love the way he so vividly captures the 20th century angst. I find they he really brings his stories to life and gives them a very human feel.

[Patrick_Bateman]

I think it's my favourite Hemingway. Just inching ahead of For Whom the Bell Tolls.
It has brief, sporadic periods of monotony but that is forgiven
The ending just killed me

[JuniperWoolf]

I tried to read it when I was a young teen, but I think that I was too stupid at the time. I got bored within five minutes and tossed it aside. I've read more Hemmingway since then and liked it, so I'll probably give it another shot soon.

[Brad Coelho]

With regards to Catherine, the portrayals of women weren't Hemingway's strong suit. Her neurosis, coupled her insecure redundancies made for a not so compelling leading lady. The story wins out in spite of Catherine's eroding fragility because of the uncompromising motif of war, spliced w/ just enough levity from Rinaldi's 'baby love,' the Priest & of course, copious amounts of booze. Count Greffi, the dignified stalwart, came off as more 3 dimensional than Barkley in a few moments at the pool table than she did over the course of the novel.

I guess Hemingway's genius is that in spite of his pompous arrogance & vacuous characterizations of women, the pulse of the story & coldness of the images win you over. There are no winners in war, and the concept of war extracts the soul from men, leaving places w/ road names and numbers, not heros. War produces nothing and destroys all....even Catherine's attempt to 'create' w/ Henry ends up destroying them...he didn't allow the book to end any other way.

[Virgil]

Very well said, Brad. I pretty much agree with everything you say there. I would add that the prose of AFTA is Hemingway at his best. But the other negative to the novel I would add is the ending bathos. It comes off as a simple, "life sucks" conclusion. Contrast that with the ending in The Sun Also Rises, and I think then one can see which is the deeper novel.