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Image analysis of Henry in A Farewell to Arms

2016-01-04王学娟

青春岁月 2015年23期
关键词:语文学铁汉试论

Abstract:A Farewell to Arms is one of Hemingways representative works describing the lost generation. The novel describes Henrys unhappy life and his character. On the basis of domestic and overseas studies about compliments, this thesis firstly makes a tentative research on Henrys attitude towards war that is after the experience in the First World War, Henry changes his enthusiasm and ambition at the beginning to disappointment and hesitation to the war, and at last he gives up arms. And then, the thesis makes a research on Henrys attitude towards love. Henry does not fall in love with Catherine at first,but later, he realizes the desperation of the war and treats love as antidote. And during the process of living with Catherine, Henry finds that he falls in love with her and he sees the essence of love at the same time. At last, the thesis makes a research on Henrys understanding of life when facing unhappiness and setbacks.

Key words:war; love; misfortune; tough man

I. Introduction

Ernest Miller Hemingway is honored as a spiritual monument of the United States of American A Farewell to Arms is one of his famous works, and reflects the crisis of western traditional spirit ruined by the First World War. Firstly, there are many researches about antiwar theme. A kind of study produced by Liu Bin (2006) claims that the author wishes the world will be a peaceful one and nobody is going to be hurt. Secondly, it comes to the characterization. Ni Fang (2002) claims that Hemingway always describes vivid characters of “code heroes” in his works. And all these heroes are courageous and strong. All his heroes dare fight with evil and are not afraid of death. And in this thesis, the author will introduce and analysis Henrys image, and his attitude to war.

II. Henrys Change from World War I

The chapter illustrates how much Henry has changed from the beginning of the novel. At last, Henry realizes that he is tired of the war and decides to stay away from the mess.

(1)Enthusiasm and Ambition of Henry at the Beginning

The hero in the novel A Farewell to Arms, Frederic Henry is an American young person who studies architecture in Italy before the Word War I. And at that time, many politicians incite the words like democracy, glory to attract the ardent but innocent young people. Most are involved into the Great War. Acutely, many young soldiers do not understand the nature of the war. The war leaders are corrupt and incapable. Like the author describes in the novel: “There were small grey motor-cars that passed going very fast; usually there was an officer on the seat with the driver and more officers in the back seat.” And at first, Henry does not hate the war and he shows no weariness before he is wounded. But the later things make him change that.

(2)Hesitation and Disappointment of Henry in the Middle Period

In the war, the reader can see that Henry is wounded heavily. Before soldiers are wounded, they are distributing food. Later Henry sees his soldiers being killed . This is the first time for Henry to witness the ruthless scene; He is at present a real participant and a victim of the terrible war.

(3)Determination and Courage of Henry at the End

The world war is cruel and terrible for people. What they can do is just waiting and doing nothing, and this makes people sad and despair. Henry once tells his soldiers that they cannot go home to escape the war, for if they leave the front and nobody will protect the country. But at last, he makes determination to escape from the war and has courage to seek for his hope in life. Henry thinks that his responsibility has been finished. And then Catherine and Henry leave the place and live in a small hotel which gives them a kind of feelings as if they are in their own home. While someone tells them that they cannot stay there for a long time, Henry and Catherine leave there and decide to go to the neutral country Switzerland. After hardships, they finally get there. They even make a good plan for the future.

III. Henrys Attitude to Love

As to Henry, love is just like a game in the beginning. However, as time goes by, Henry changes his attitude to love, and he becomes to believe that love do exist in his life. And at last, he even understands the meaning of love.

(1)Love Being Like a Game

At the first part of the novel, the author describes the embryonic stage of love between Henry and Catherine for the readers. At the beginning of the novel, Catherine falls in love with Henry when they meet for the first time. Henry needs Catherine to companion him. He is not like Catherine who takes part in the war for her dead husband who once participates war. In addition, soldiers life of luxury and dissipation in the war misleads Henry, which seems to tell him the war is just a game. At the same time, the simple jobs in the war make him out of feelings of existing in the world. And for him, affection is a kind of additional goods, so he does not mind at all.

(2)Love as a Kind of Antidote

However, after his experience of the cruel war, Henrys view of love has gradually changed. After he is hurt in his leg in the front line of the war, Henry is sent to a hospital . It happens that Catherine is appointed to that hospital to serve. During the period of treatment in Milan, Catherine and Henry accompany. And Henry begins to have a kind of affection for Catherine. And Catherine does her best to take care of him, she is actively and frequently on night duty, which is the best evidence of Catherines love to him. But, to Henry, he has the feeling of pain and fright from the death of his comrades in arms, he starts to love her, he still considers Catherine as a kind of antidote to eliminate fright.

(3)Love Becoming All in Henrys Life

With the development of the plot, Henry changes attitude to love .He leaves pregnant Catherine and returns to the battlefield. But all experiences lead him to choose leaving. In the process of his withdrawal from Italy, Henry is caught and nearly killed. All this helps his making determination to escape war life and putting down his responsibility for the war. And then, he comes to realize that only the company of love can make war away from him completely. After Henrys narrow escape from death at the hands of Italian officers, he determines to seek for Catherine and his child, he knows they are his home, and both of them make him feel safe. He goes to the place where Catherine stays, and then he takes her to a safe country.

IV. Henrys Spirit when Facing Misfortune and Setbacks

Henry seeks the value of love, he overcomes decadence and strives for adverse condition, and at last, he renews his life outlook.

(1)Henrys Spirit under the Pressure

Although it is a tragedy for Henry both in the war and in love, he does not lose his hope in life. No matter what kind of unhappiness or setbacks he meets, he always keeps a kind of spirit under the pressure. Henry is calm even when dangerous things and unhappiness is always around him. Some people think that Henry is a “Hemingway hero” or “code hero” because Henry never yields to the desperate fate and always keep calm under the terrible pressure. He has many good qualities, such as, bravery, unselfishness, confidence, and responsibility and so on.

(2)Henrys Impatience after Losing His Love and Child

After leaving the war, Henry and Catherine plan to live in a safe place In fact, they do have, but the time is so short for them to enjoy. After he knows the baby is dead, he seems sad, and looks out of the window, it is raining. But to his sadness, Catherine dies because of massive hemorrhage. Henry is going to collapse. The death of his baby and Catherine gives Henry a critical lesson in his journey. The tragedy of fate tells Henry that unhappiness and destruction is not produced by the terrible war; they also belong to the nature of life itself. Facing the cruel knowledge, Henry becomes stronger and mature in his later life.

V. Conclusion

The thesis analyses Henrys image in A Farewell to Arms from the multi-perspective and it talks about Henrys change from the world war, The novel also tells the reader Henrys attitude to love. The novel describes Henrys spirit when he faces misfortune and setbacks. Under the pressure, he is always calm. At the same time, he has many merits. Finally, he becomes more mature than before at the cost of losing his arms and love. Of course, the thesis analyses Henrys image from a different aspect from others. Although the analysis of the novel is not so complete or perfect, yet it expects to give the readers a glimpse of Hemingway and his characters.

【Bibliography】

[1] Donaldson, Scott. New Essays on A Farewell to Arms[M]. Peking University Press, 2007.

[2] Hemingway, Ernest. A Farewell to Arms[M]. London: A Division of the Collins Publishing Group, 1977.

[3] 丁 文. 走出逆境重塑自我——试论《永别了,武器》中主人公亨利精神信念的变化[J]. 厦门大学学报(哲学版), 1998(04).

[4] 钟伟轩. 迷惘的铁汉——《永别了,武器》中亨利形象分析[J]. 时代文学(上), 2010(05).

[5] 顾莉莉. 《永别了,武器》是海明威反战情绪的体现[J]. 语文学刊, 2008(06).

【作者简介】

王学娟(1989—),女,汉族,河北大城人,天津外国语大学硕士研究生,主要研究方向:翻译理论与实践。

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