Again, here's a space to explore your own topics, pose questions, or debate issues--this is officially a prompt-free zone. As I say to my kids as I drop them off at the park, "Be free!" (Just kidding--I do stay to watch them.)
This is the place to state what's been on your mind as you've been reading the novel, make some connections to themes or issues in Their Eyes Were Watching God, explore ideas for your essay, and make other brilliant and astute obsevations. If this is your first time reading Hemingway, what are your impressions? Will you read more of his novels? What is unique about his style? Why do you think he's reached iconic status within American literature? In other words, what's the big deal about Hemingway?
This is my first time reading Hemingway and so far I am enjoying it. A connection can be made between Hemingway and Hurston in that both are very descriptive when it comes to describing the setting and characters. The first chapter of "A Farewell to Arms" is very short, but it is loaded with information that helps to immerse the reader into the novel. I think that it is interesting in that both Hurston and Hemmingway talk about trees in the first few chapters and use trees to "paint the scene.".
ReplyDeleteThroughout the first Book, I stopped and got a feeling of Déjà Vu so to speak. Then I came to realize that Hemingway’s Farewell to Arms is written a lot alike Stephen Crane’s Red Badge of Courage! Both of the main characters face the hardships of being in a war; plus I remember towards the end of Crane’s novel that the main character (also named Henry) possessed a stoic like attitude towards his responsibilities and Hemmingway’s Henry is also very nonchalant about many of his situations also. I feel that his popularity has derived from the use of culture in the many societies mentioned such as using Italian language and terms. Since Hemingway is an author of great renown, I just might consider reading another one of his novels.
ReplyDeleteI also noticed this Louie! Once I realized both characters were named Henry I thought about what book it was like and it finally came to me. The wars were similar and the problems encountered too. I on the other hand did not enjoy the book as much. I wouldn't consider reading another one of Hemmingway's novels.
DeleteLou! Towards the end of the novel I thought of Red Badge Of Courage and how the characters name was also Henry. I began to think of how the novels were similar. I wasn't able to make a connection as good as yours though!
DeleteI never would have put that together Louie, but you're right. I enjoyed "A Farewell to Arms" so much more than "Red Badge of Courage" though. Hemingway held my attention with his style of writing more than Stephen Crane did.
DeleteI listened to this on NPR, and Hemingway's grandson exposed 39 different alternative endings his beloved grandfather had written. Here is the link:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.npr.org/2012/07/22/156991302/new-edition-includes-39-different-farewells-to-arms
spoiler alert, of course
This is my first time reading any of Hemingway's works, and I must say, it is definitely a refresher to the long, dull plot of Hurston's "Their Eyes were watching God". What is also very refreshing is the language; Hemingway uses quick, plain English to describe the settings, while not spouting off pages of poppycock imagery in obscure, abstract English- nor does he write AAVE (African American Vernacular English)- something that thoroughly annoyed me in Hurston's book. However, the most entertaining aspect of "A Farwell to Arms" is definitely the romance; the scenes of affection between Miss Barkley and Henry are honestly, well, adorable.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jimmy, I thought "A Farewell To Arms" was better than "Their Eyes Were Watching God", But it was still a pretty good book. I thought the dialogue in Hurston's book was annoying to read as well, but helped. The way everyone spoke will be one of the things that helps me remember the book and make it stand out. Most of the dialogue in "A Farewell to Arms" bored me. When Henry talks to Catherine is what really kept my attention. During book three I found myself waiting for the war part of the book to be over so it could go back to his and Catherine's lives again.
DeleteI disagree with James. This my first time reading books by Hemingway and Hurston, but when I compare the two, I liked Hurston much more. While Hemingway does use plain and easy English, for me it just seems to make it more confusing to understand what he is trying to say. I even liked the African American Language in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” because it showed more about the characters and their background and culture. It was also just fun to read. Also many conversations in “A Farewell to Arms” were meant to show how the characters were responding to the war and trying to get away from it but because of that the conversations ended up just being small talk.
DeleteThat's true Yatri. Could you imagine trying to understand the culture in Eyes without the dialect? It would just be strange to read with those characters talking in plain English instead of dialect. I myself got into it and could even picture the facial expressions and body language of the characters speaking.
DeleteAs I continue to read "A Farewell to Arms", I noticed that there is a significant amount of dialoge, much more than what was in "Their Eyes Were Watching God." Even though there is less dialoge, there is just as much description. On thing that really caught my eye was when I finished chapter 26 (XXVI), in the last sentence of the chapter Henry states that he is "deadly sleepy." It then occured to me that Hemingway always leaves the reader with an ending thought, like in chapter 25 Hemingway tells the reader in the last sentence that the major went into his office, or in chapter 24 Hemingway's last sentence is about how crowded the train always is. I feel like these ending thoughts prepare the reader for the next chapter and even set the mood for it.
ReplyDeleteI thought the same thing! I really liked how he threw in cliff-hangers at the end of each chapter. It helped the book go along faster. I'm a fan of any sort of mystery and when he adds that vague sentence at the end it makes me go nuts. I HAVE to figure out whats next. This is what I loved most about Hemingway. He is very good at engaging the reader.
DeleteWhen I first started this book, I found it interesting. It was a really good book until Henry and Catherine escaped to Switzerland. Then I found that it was getting harder and harder to read because it became so dull. I found the ending to be a bit dry with it all being about them staying in the cabin or taking a walk and then after the trip to the hospital, Henry's uncaring and numb-to-the-world personality. All in all, I found it to be an alright book.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Joey Joly I thought the book was completely boring until Henry and Catherine escaped to Switzerland. I felt like once they escaped things got more interesting. Henry and Catherine ran into the police and had to lie in order to stay in Switzerland. They finally started to settle down and talked about having their baby and when they would have their wedding. The only other parts I found interesting was when Henry was injured and when he was reunited in the hospital with Catherine.
DeleteI agree with Natalya I thought most of the book was boring in the beginning. I thought it didn't really start picking up until Henry got injured and Catherine was transferred to see him. From then on I thought the book was a little more interesting with Henry escaping from being arrested, and starting a new life with Catherine in Switzerland. Once I read the ending though I was deeply disappointed because it ended on such a depressing note. I didn't like it because Henry and Catherine were doing so well together and were truly in love so I thought it was very bitter sweet.
DeleteI agree with both Abbey and Natalya the novel was extremely boring until Henry and Catherine were reunited. Although I'm not one for a sappy love story, that was when the story became a page turner for me. As time went on the novel became more exciting and had many other twists and turns than I had expected. I was also extremely upset with the ending, Hemingway had me thinking that everything was going to turn out for the two. When truthfully it was going to end like every other cliche love story.
DeleteI disagree with all three of you. I actually found the book interesting like Joey did and then just boring at the end. It almost seems like the book drags on the romance until the end when Catherine and the baby died. I don't really like romance stories so I guess thats why I don't like the ending either.
DeleteI agree with Jake and Joey. I felt like the book started to slow down the farther along Henry and Catherine's relationship developed. I am not one for romance stories so I would rather read about the war.
DeleteI thought the book was pretty good. It had good descriptive imagery throughout the novel. Some chapters were better than others. I liked the short, to the point sentences that Hemingway used, and I liked the balance between war and personal parts.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Jack Nachtrab that Hemingway used good descriptive imagery. However, at times it seemed to be overkill. Maybe it's because I like books and stories to get to the point, but I often found his descriptive imagery to bore me to the point where I would zone out.
DeleteI agree with Jack. The book had a lot of descriptive imagery to help paint a picture of what is going on. There were some chapters that had more interesting events going on than others which made it harder to get through the book.
DeleteI agree with Natalya, Hemingway's style of trying to really set the mood with tons of imagery and lots of descriptions left me lost in the story. The whole time in my head I could not decide what to think of the setting. Henry described it as such a beautiful place, but then again how can war be anything but horrific? Most of the time I found myself extremely bored with the plot, and I wondered many times if the story line was going anywhere at all. Truthfully the book left me with more questions than answers and bored out of my mind.
DeleteI agree with Jack. I did not like the fact that Hemingway had to use so much description to get the point across, but in some chapters he balanced it out with less descriptions and more diaglouge. I found myself skimming through some parts in order to get to the dialouge.
DeleteI agree with Jack as well. I prefer Hemmingway's style of description with run-on sentences over Hurston's lack of description. I feel like I had a solid mental picture in my mind of the scenery/setting.
DeleteIt looks like I will be the first to say that I did not like this book at all. Henry is fighting in the war and is in love with Catherine. In the middle of the book I had no idea where the story was going. Towards the end I started to think that the book would get better because Henry and Catherine were going to start a family. When she finally has her baby they realize that they will not have that family. On top of the devastation I felt from them not having the baby a couple pages later Catherine dies. I found this to be overly depressing. Maybe it is because I would prefer a happy ending, but I just did not like this book. This is the first book by Hemingway that I have read, but I wonder if he was a depressed person. Was there anyone else who did not like this book?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Natalya. I did not enjoy the book either. When Henry and Catherine were finally becoming happy, it was starting to excite me. Then everything started to be so negative and harsh. It felt like everyone was dying. Also, the description sometimes was too much. I like a good description to give me an image but it was a little too much at times where is started to become dreary, causing me to lose interest.
DeleteI agree with Natalya, aswell. Only book five actually carried any weight with me, the others made it an effort to keep reading most the time. I prefer books that have action in them, and A Farewell to Arms had hardly any in it at all, which as a main factor in my dislike. The description was great, but I wish the characters would interact with the description rather than sitting inside and gazing out a window, talking about how awful the war is.
DeleteI agree with Natalya. I just don't like war stories or love stories and when they are combined, lord have mercy. I was really enjoying how they were happy together and they were going to have a baby. It was awesome! But then the baby dies and so does Catherine? I usually hate happy endings but these people deserved a happy ending. They were perfect for each other and it just made me mad that both the baby and Catherine dies and the guy is going to be depressed for the rest of his life.
DeleteI agree with Natalya as well. The story was just getting exciting when Henry and Catherine escaped to Switzerland to start their family. Everything is perfectly fine and the two of them were happy and in love. I just don't see why Hemmingway felt the need to rip all the happiness and lovey dovey stuff to shreds. I guess Henry was destined to end in tragedy, but what did Catherine do wrong? Did she have to die so Henry's life could be miserable? I don't understand what was going thorugh Hemmingway's head. This book was too drawn out, rarely exciting, and very, very, very depressing.
DeleteI agree with what Adam said. Book five was the only thing that I could actually not have to force myself to read. I feel there is a lot more involvement in action books and so it was hard to keep my attention with all of the sitting around. The description definitely added depth but Hemmingway never did anything with it. I felt there was a lot of useless information being said that wasn't going to be used. I also agree with everybody else's responses here about how it was depressing. I would not prefer to read another Hemmingway book. Ever.
DeleteHate is a strong word, so while I did not like the book, I did not hate it either. I found the symbolism and inner meaning of the novel were really hard to understand, especially at the beginning of the novel. On many occasions I had to read the same paragraph three times to understand what Hemingway was trying to convey in the passage and still could not understand. I also like happy endings and this book seemed almost incomplete because it seems like there is still so much left to happen. At certain parts, though, I liked that Hemingway can say a great deal by forcing the readers to read in between the lines and come up with their own conclusions.
DeleteI agree with Natalya. I did not enjoy the book at all. I could not figure out the main plot- wheter it was of war or love. I would not read Hemingway again and this is why. There was a lot of descriptions that were useless and had nothing to do with the plot, characters, or setting. The beginning of the book was dull, and I thought that it had a tragic middle and ending. This made me lose interest and I felt bad because when everything was going right for Henry, something bad happens to ruin it. I felt Hemingway kind of made the book to be sad and depressing and I personally do not enjoy those kind of books.
DeleteHemmingway is much more interesting because he describes the couples relationship with more detail which makes it cute and adorable. I wouldn't say Hurston was boring, in fact I loved her book way better than Hemmingways but Hurston did make everything confusing with her chose of dialogue. Hemmingway, to me, is boring and dull. The way he started his book was boring, it did not catch my attention.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sarilyn, that Hemingway described the relationship better than Hurston. Hurston made things confusing by making it feel like Jody Starks and Janie Crawford were in love in the beginning of their relationship only to find out they were not. Hemingway made it clear that Henry and Catherine were in love and he never changed that. I do also agree that Hemingway was a little boring. His book was slow paced and it was hard to tell where things were going. The last couple chapters I found to be interesting, but depressing in the end.
DeleteAlthough I agree with Sarilyn that Hurston's book was confusing, I disagree with the fact that she said that Hemmingway's book was boring. I thought it kind of had a ring of maturity to it, and I quite enjoyed it! I mean I understand how it could be interpreted as boring and dull, but to me it was interesting, kind of like a geode, ugly on the surface but interesting and pretty on the inside!
DeleteThe first thing I realized about "A Farewell to Arms" was the language in which Hemingway wrote the book. This of course was just plain english, and was quite enjoyable at first compared to the slang of "Their Eyes Were Watching God". The second thing I realized very soon after was the detail in which he described the scenery. His description was helpful in painting a picture, but was a little overkill. Hemingway's style is interesting because, unlike others, he doesn't tend to ramble on. He gets right to the point using short, sticatto like sentences. I like his structuring in this way because it makes for an easy read.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion the authors used different writing techniques in order to create the correct image for what life was like in the different areas. Hurtson used purposely misspelled words to show how people like Janie talked back then. However, Hemingway did not have to use a special tone because the way people talked in Europe is the way that we talk. Also, I feel like Hemingway used tons of conversations to explain what was going on instead of just telling it. When he did have to tell the reader things he could afford to be to the point because most things were already explained in the conversations.
DeleteI agree with Emily. I enjoyed the fact that in "A Farewell to Arms" Hemingway used plain English. It was a lot easier to read than the dialect of "Their Eyes Were Watching God". I found it easy to understand this novel, and other than the fact that it became boring and dull at some points, it was a fast read. I also liked how descriptive Hemingway's writing style is. Although he went a little overboard sometimes, I like that I can picture what is going on in my head.
DeleteIn "A farewell to Arms", I understood the dialect better because it is terminology and the language that we use. In "Their Eyes Were Watching God", I became lost a few times and I could not connect as much, because of the differece of dialect and speech.
DeleteI agree with all of you. Madelyn makes a good point, in "Their Eyes Were Watching God," the dialect was so confusing at times that I found it hard to really get into the story. I enjoyed "A Farewell to Arms" so much more than "Their Eyes Were Watching God" just because of the writing style.
DeleteTheir Eyes Were Watching God and A Farewell to Arms made a great connection when it came to themes. When you compare the two, it is easy to see that in both novels, the protagonist both go through a pattern of love and loss but in the end, emerge stronger than previously because of it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Olivia, although I found both novels dull, the themes were clearly portrayed throughout the story. Janie who starts the story seeming extremely childish, ends up growing to be a strong woman. She moves through the troubles of living with jerks, and finally finds someone who she enjoys being with. Henry at the beginning of the novel comes off as a humdrum kind of person, he goes through life with out a care in the world and most of all just wants to have a drink and end the war. As time goes on he begins to emerge as a caring person once he finds someone who makes him happy. Both characters in the end are stronger than before and have learned by the help of others to stand on their own.
DeleteI agree with Olivia in that there was a good connection with themes. The theme I believe is growing up. Henry is really a boring person at the novel who did not really care about much but himself. He learns to grow up while experiencing true love and he eventually cares for more than one person. Janie is much to playful at the beginning of the novel, but eventually learns to grow up while experiencing the hardships of bullies and mean people.
DeleteIn a Farewell to Arms the reader gets to see a side of the war different than one of a solider or of someone that is at home watching the war. The reader gets the view of someone is in the war but not directly fighting in the war. It is interesting to get someone else's persepective on the war. To see how someone like Henry is affected. How Henry's life is turned around by one explosion. The war changes Henry's life not only because of the bloodshed that he sees but also because he meets Catherine and falls in love only to lose it. A Farewell to Arms gives an unique look into war.
ReplyDeleteI agree, it is such a rare look into the war. World War I was such an awful war, I mean it was supposed to end all wars, obviously that didn't happen, but it was an important war none the less. It was very interesting to see and read about Henry's opinion. To learn about what other people in the war thought about it.
DeleteI also agree. I thought reading about Henry's experiences throughout the book was intriguing. To think about the war through an ambulance driver's point of view was really fascinating. When I think of war my mind doesn't go to the people who drove the ambulances, but the of the soldiers on the front line. I liked that the attention is brought to characters or people who usually aren't focused on.
DeleteI just wanted to ask everyone about their essays. How long are your essays? I believe I am writing way too much and I just want to know that mine won't be the longest one.
ReplyDeleteMine is only 3-3.5 pages long right now. I think the paper said 3-5 pages?
DeleteAfter finishing the novel, I believe it is possible than Henry has Antisocial Personality Disorder, otherwise known as sociopathy. The primary attribute is a "callous unconcern for the feelings of others". Henry shows this after failing to feel any remorse for brutaling murdering two sergents in chapter 29. He also fails to feel any sadness towards the death of his newborn child (possibly even feeling a sense of joy) and the death of Catherine.
ReplyDeleteAlthough this is only speculation, it seems that Henry either is a sociopath or at least has some mental health problems (also evidenced by the fact that he risks his life in order to get cheese for his pasta).
That's so true Jimmy, and I think that Henry could have been in denial about the death of his child and Catherine. Maybe he was going through the 7 phases of grief and happened to be stuck in shock, causing him to feel no emotions.
DeleteI started to like the book more as it progressed. In the beginning it was very dull and boring and difficult to pay attention to. But as it went on I found it to be easier to comprehend and actually a little interest in regards to what was happening. I found the ending to be disappointing with Catherine dying and Henry still showing close to no emotion. I definitely liked the book more than expected, especially as it progressed opposed to the boring beginning.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sam, The beginning was barely keeping my attention, but as it went on i couldn't put it down! I ended up reading the last 120 pages in a day. After reading Their Eyes Were Watching God, I felt Catherine's death was a little predictable, But for some reason I thought Henry's emotionless reaction was unexpected but needed.
DeleteWhile reading the parts where Catherine and Henry talk, I felt that Catherine did a lot more talking than Henry in a majority of the book. As it went on I noticed less of this. I don't know if I was the only one to notice this. Just looking back in the book, Catherine spoke more than Henry. Maybe he was nervous?
ReplyDeleteI agree, John! I noticed that as well, I thought I was the only one! Thank goodness, I though I was going crazy! I didn't really like that though, because I cared more about Henry than Catherine in the beginning. I didn't feel like he was nervous, I felt like he just let her talk more because he just wanted to step up their relationship and he was just trying to play his cards right. As it went on she let him talk more and he was cool with it.
DeleteWhen I first started to read this novel, I noticed it was very descriptive, but also hard to follow at the same time. This book was a lot easier to read than, “Their Eyes were Watching God,” but this book had more things to process and understand. I don’t think I will read another novel by Hemingway because for me the book didn’t get good until the end. I want a book that will keep me hooked all the way through the book. Hemingway’s style of writing is very different from Hurston’s.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Emily. My impression of Hemingway was that he liked to use too much description to get a point across. This made the book very dull and I had to force myself to read at most points. It is only easier to read in the fact that you could understand the dialouge better. I will not read another Hemingway novel, because it bored me. I also wanted it to keep me hooked throughout the whole thing, but it did not.
DeleteThough "A Farewell to Arms" was a lot easier to read than "Their Eyes were Wathing God", I'm not one for sappy, hopeless romantic love stories. I enjoyed the first novel much more than I did the second. I loved the fun adventures of Hurston's characters while Hemmingway's characters never failed to bore me. From the beginnning I never grasped the meaning of what the book was supposed to be about. The war? Someone being injured and stuck in a hopsital? A hopeless love story about sneaking around with your attractive nurse and getting her pregnant? All to find out the book ends with some guy in depression from his terrible experiences through love and war. I honestly do not know what the big deal about Hemmingway is and I personally liked Hurston's style of writing better.
ReplyDeleteI agree Alex. I wondered the same things. I might sound like captain obvious but some themes that stood out to me were that war is not as glorious and honorable as it seems and nothing—not even the love between Catherine and Henry—lasts forever. Also it seems like throughout the book all of the characters are trying to find a way to numb the pain that they are going through. The officers in the war drink alcohol at every chance they can get and the conversations sound like they are sitting inside talking about the weather while there is a war being fought outside. The characters all seem to be trying to find some relief from the loss and pain they are suffering from the war.
ReplyDeleteAt fisrt I thought Hemmingway's style of writing was annoying. Putting ''and'' three times in a sentence overided my grammar nazi senses. I'm not trying to be mean but it was incredably annoying. The book overall though was very good. Better than ''Their Eyes Were Watching God''. I like this blog as well, It doesn't seem like a school assignment. The joke that the teacher made were funnny and made me feel like she really cared even though I don't know her. That she put effort into making funny jokes for us to enjoy. I'm looking forward to Honors English 11
ReplyDeleteWhen I first started reading "A Farewell to Arms" I did not like it one bit. I didn't like how Hemmingway kept using the word "and" and had a lot of run-on sentences. From the beginning I couldn't tell what the book was really about. However, as the book went on I started to get more interested with the forbidden love. I feel like I grasped Hurston's writing style more than Hemmingway. In my opinion I liked "Their Eyes were Watching God" much more than "A Farewell to Arms."
ReplyDeleteWhen I started reading "A Farewell to Arms" I didn't like it at all. I thought it was so boring and I had a hard time reading it. He used "and" and had so many run on's it was hard for me to read. But as the book progressed I started to like it more and more and by the end I actually realized that the book wasn't all that bad. I liked Hurston's writing style a whole lot more than Hemmingway. But I did like "Their Eyes were Watching God" a bunch more because it hooked me from the beginning.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading both "A Farewell to Arms" and "Their Eyes Were Watching God", I noticed several similarities. Both novels were about love and loss. They showed that nothing can truly last forever. Although the books had very similar themes, the writing styles and plot were completely different. If I had to choose which novel I liked better I would choose "Their Eyes Were Watching God". I found this novel to be more interesting and eventful. Also, I did not like the ending of "A Farewell to Arms". I felt the ending was abrupt and left so many things unsaid. Although, "Their Eyes Were Watching God" was harder to read than "A Farewell to Arms", I would still prefer to read Hurston over Hemingway.
ReplyDeleteI would have to agree with Jessica! I also liked "Their Eyes Were Watching God" better than "A Farewell to Arms". I believe that Hurston knew how to keep the audiences attention with using the right amount of descriptive details and dialect. Even though "A Farewell to Arms" was easier to read than "Their Eyes Were Watching God", I think Hurston kept me drawn in to the book. I did not like how Hemingway ended the book with such a sad ending. I wish it he would of went on to say more about Henry's life after everything that has happened to him.
DeleteI found "A Farewell to Arms" to be boring at times but overall, I just thought it was OK. I loved Catherine and was very disappointed that she died at the end of the novel. I thought it was unnecessary for Hemingway to kill her off when she should have had a happy ending with Henry. This book actually kept me interested throughout the entire story, but I was really let down at the end. I do not think I will be reading any Ernest Hemingway novels soon.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, Chrissy... It was a boring read with a rather depressing ending. It reflects Hemingway's depression that he suffered with in real life, as well as his suicide later in life. I really don't think I want to read more Hemingway either... Not an enjoyable read, in my own opinion.
DeleteI believe that you are totally right. This "novel" can hardly be called a story; there was no plot, no real antagonist, no character development, and a protagonist that acts like an alien without any knowledge of human behavior (which might be a real possibility, considering how odd Hemingway actually was). I agree with you that this novel is a reflection upon who Hemingway is, and this gives me the impression that Hemingway was either the grandfather of this guy (http://knowyourmeme.com/photos/240262-ancient-aliens) or a deeply depressed LSD user with a critical need of psychological counseling.
DeleteMy impression of Hemmingway's writing style is that it constantly is varying. During Book Two, the main focus is love, and his writing is much more intricate than Book Three, where the writing just states the facts, and doesn't provide an opinion on certain events, like when Henry shoots the engineer. It doesn't give the reader reliable moral ground from which they can judge the scene. I don't think I will read anymore of his novels because when he described things, I found it quite hard to follow. He is an excellent author though, and I liked this book a little bit better than the other one because it was easier to understand and you didn't have to think as much to figure out what the characters were saying when they spoke to one another.
ReplyDeleteWhile writing my essay, I realized that there is a lot more foreshadowing in the novel than you would at first realize. Knowing what happens later while going through quotes really brought the book together a lot more than it did before, although it does not change my initial thoughts much. It still felt too choppy, almost as if I was reading the thoughts of a five year-old. The only interesting part was the end, which was too little too late.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Adam. I was totally shocked when the baby didn't make it and let alone Catherine! I did not see it coming whatsoever. I was disappointed with this books ending. It had a great story line to begin with and then it just went completely downhill at the end.
DeleteIt is doubtless to say that Hemingway has a very original writing style. He rarely names his characters and likes to keep his auxiliary characters simple and stereotypical. On the other hand though, Hemingway is extremely descriptive when it comes to setting. Hemingway makes sure to account for every detail so that the reader has a perfect, concise picture of the scene. In my opinion, Hemingway’s’ style does not change throughout the piece. The literal aspect that changes is the mood. Hemingway continues to write in his same to-the-point manner throughout the novel, but from book to book his mood alters. In book one the mood is serious and inquiring, and then in book two the mood is pleasant and peaceful. However, by book three Hemingway takes a turn to the dark and dreary. By the end of the story though, Hemingway returns to his original mood. Overall, I enjoyed the storyline and themes/morals/motifs of the book but I did not like the writing style. I prefer more characterization and less illustration of the setting because I like to have some room to add my own imagination to it. I will most likely not read another one of his books but it was an interesting experience reading “A Farewell to Arms” and I am glad that I read it.
ReplyDeleteThis novel was the worst excuse for a love story I have ever come across in any type of media, period. The "love scenes" between the two were nothing but empty babble and an interrogation by Catherine over how much Henry loves her and whether he thinks she is a "grand" wife. Henry's behavior with her is akin to that of an emotionless cyborg that is programmed to love its master- his "master" being Catherine. Every scene followed the same pattern, with Catherine's annoying interrogation, Henry's complete lack of any human emotion, and sudden ending with the two having sex. But what irked me most about this romance was Catherine; she had the mental and emotional maturity of a twelve-year-old girl with self-esteem problems. She was a unbelievable mess of emotions that constantly needed reassurance from Henry of her worth in life; at times I wondered if she even knew a war was going on. This utterly ridiculous romance make me truly believe Hemingway put zero creative effort into writing this novel.
ReplyDeleteThis was the first Hemingway novel I have ever read, and I did not like it at all. The novel was well written throughout book one, but as I kept reading book two it just kept losing me. Past Henry's injury there is a lot of empty dialogue that seems to have no meaning what so ever and is just sitting there as a page filler. The romance between Henry and Catherine was especially boring to me, and I feel as if the whole thing was just a fake romance and Henry just thought he was in love with Catherine. Catherine was always rambling on and asking Henry if he loved her or saying that she was going to be a perfect girl. Both Henry and Catherine just seemed like brick walls loving each other. The book started to get a bit better once it hit book four, but everything seemed a lot more predictable at this point. I felt like I was just reading a version of one of my moms soap operas with how the book ended. The ending of it seemed to just be overly dramatic, and should have at least let the baby live. That's at least my opinion on it, and everyone is entitled to their own.
ReplyDeleteI whole-heartedly agree. Book seemed reasonably entertaining and well-written, with the playful flirting between Henry and Catherine giving me the impression that "Farewell to Arms" would be a satisfying romance novel; however, things fell apart after book two. Catherine revealed herself to have about as much character depth as Snooki, being nothing more than dead weight with a slave-like devotion to Henry. The "romance" this book portrays is unrealistic and unhealthy, with Hemingway treating woman like useless creatures that are subservient to their husbands.
DeleteI was very confused throughout the entire book. The novel was too random I thought. The whole love story behind it was not that great either. The love scenes weren't even love. it was the two characters just carrying on a conversation about their relationship. Henry or Frederic or whatever his name was and Catherine were like two elementry kids who had a crush on one another, they knew they liked eachother and told one another but did nothing about it.
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ReplyDeleteI believe this is my first time reading Hemingway. I really like his use of description and detail. I’m not crazy about war novels but this one was not terrible. What made the book appealing was the love story between Henry and Catherine. I also am drawn towards depressing and sad books too. As much as I was disappointed in the ending, I still really liked this book. If Hemingway wrote another love story like this one then I will definitely read it. He reached iconic status with American literature because he included World War 1 in this book.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading "Their Eyes Were Watching God" , I noticed with each chapter in Janie's life, a new side of her was pulled through. Not that she just changed but just hidden sides of her were brought to the spotlight. I also noticed this with Henry in "A Farewell To Arms". As Henry moves on through the war and with Catherine. He is encouraged to find his hidden sides. With both characters their new sides join their everyday life and become that full rounded character you will find in most stories.
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