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The Sun Also Rises

Ernest Hemingway

Start date: May 1, 2010

Finish date: June 1, 2010

Discussion: The Sun Also Rises

Discussion leader: Brad

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The Sun Also Rises

* First Impressions *no spoilers*
By Brad · 6 posts · 98 views

last updated Sep 10, 2013 09:44PM

Jake Barnes *spoilers*
By Brad · 21 posts · 408 views

last updated Jun 10, 2018 01:35PM

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What Members Thought

Apr 28, 2009 Daniel Villines rated it really liked it

This is my fourth time reading The Sun Also Rises, and my familiarity with its details allowed my mind to sort of slip between the lines.

This time through, I could see the main character, Jake Barnes, as the symbol for a 'lost generation' of men that served as soldiers during WWI. In truth, he’s a symbol for any soldier of any war that has served and been deeply affected by combat. I was able to see the pain of Jake’s injury, which is hidden just below the surface of everything that he shows to This is my fourth time reading The Sun Also Rises, and my familiarity with its details allowed my mind to sort of slip between the lines.

This time through, I could see the main character, Jake Barnes, as the symbol for a 'lost generation' of men that served as soldiers during WWI. In truth, he’s a symbol for any soldier of any war that has served and been deeply affected by combat. I was able to see the pain of Jake’s injury, which is hidden just below the surface of everything that he shows to the world. It all seemed very analogous to the psychological stress of combat that plagues so many of our veterans even though we never see it. Jake moves through life with his silent handicap and in doing so constantly fights a battle between who he wanted to be and who he has become.

Along these same lines, I saw Lady Ashley, Brett, as symbolic of the benefits brought about by the sacrifices made by Jake and the veterans of WWI. She is taking the new, war-free Europe by storm and abandoning all the old traditions. She loves Jake but does not offer any sort of commitment to him or gratitude. Her grasps for the moment eliminate any sort of retrospective perspective. She is carefree and symbolizes the spirit of the Roaring 20s.

The very end of the novel suggests the incompatibility between Jake and Brett. In doing so, it also suggests the incompatibility between the carefree times of the 1920s and the solemn nature of the former soldiers that survived the war and brought those times into being.

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This is my third reading of The Sun Also Rises with each reading being about ten years apart. In looking back, I find that I latched on to a different element of Hemingway’s story each time.

In my 30's I loved the stoic code-hero character represented by Jake Barnes. Chaos happens all around Jake. His friends are a personal embarrassment who are all bad drunks. He is a respected aficionado of bullfighting in its native land and yet his fellow Spanish comrades of the sport hold his friends in contempt. And the girl that he loves dismisses him out of hand. Yet, he keeps his cool and never behaves badly. He acts out the meaning of grace under pressure.

In my 40's I loved the rustic travel elements of the novel. Hemingway brought to life the simple pleasures of sitting in a cafe in Paris. Where drinks with friends, under an awning overlooking a street, could be a complete slice of life all on its own. The old-world Spanish setting of Pamplona is made real complete with the hot sun, but also tempered with the contrasting coolness of both shade and breeze. And he assures us that staying in a modest but well-cared for hotel can evoke the feeling of being at home in a place that is far from home.

Now in my 50's I found the relationships to be my focus. An entire mix of hopelessness, jealousy, raw attraction, and desperation all plague these characters. The men in the novel all take a turn at dancing with the idealized and deeply flawed Brett Ashley. And one by one, their individualized dreams of relationship perfection are all shown to land far from reality. There is one man, however, that ultimately comes to see a life with Brett Ashley for what it would truly be. For him, the sun also rises.

The complexity of this novel combined with its brevity shows how hard Hemingway worked to produce his literary diamond; where all the fluff is cut away leaving a book that feels inviting to the imagination. As it is, it seems slightly too long for being so short of a book. As such, I wonder what I’ll find next in it while reading it in my 60's. ...more

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Apr 02, 2011 Carles Fabrego-Vinyeta rated it it was ok · review of another edition

El llibre explica com una grup de joves periodistes i escriptors viatgen de Paris a Pamplona per viure els San Fermins. Es nota que Hemingway coneixia bé la ciutat y la festa perquè la novel.la transmet molt agradablement la ciutat, l' ambient, la multitud desenfrenada, les borratxeres, els encierros i molt especialment les corrides de toros a la plaça, de les quals era un apassionat i gran coneixedor. Hemingway fa avançar la novel.la sobretot a través del diàleg. És a través del diàleg que cone ...more

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Nov 09, 2010 Gregory Conway rated it really liked it

Shelves: ml-top-100

I started reading this book hoping to despise it. I've always been a devout F. Scott Fitzgerald fan and this is how I learned of their rivalry. I've been trying to make a philosophical argument by examining the other side, and examining Hemingway.

Not only was I wrong, I loved the book but my whole argument is wrong. I'm questioning which side of the border I fall on. Hemingway was a way with super long sentences that go on and on and on and on with conjunctions, commas, and other ideas; though w ...more

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Feb 26, 2017 Meghan L rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: owned

As fascinated as I am with Hemingway, this one was dull. It's amazing to me that this was his first big hit. Knowing so much of the background of what was happening while he was writing this, though, gave it an extra layer to be interested in. I did a good bit of Googling to figure out who each character was based on. I really have to wonder about the people he spent his time with, because the characters based on these people were total jerks.
It also warmed my heart to be reading a book dedicate ...more

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Jun 09, 2009 Jeff rated it it was amazing

My earliest favorite book. It's since been eclipsed by others but it's still special to me. ...more

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Apr 20, 2011 Ke rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: modern-library-novels, 1001-books-you-must-read

Interesting lifestyle. It made me wonder if the current wave of Europeans and Americans moving to Asia are the counterpart for the lost generation. Where are their masterpieces?

The language was simple, yet beautiful. I love how Hemingway translated the French and the Spanish dialogue.

It felt too short though. And the beaded glasses were a bit overwrought. Maybe some readers will find this novel anti-Semitic, but maybe I don't know enough to talk about it. ...more

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Apr 18, 2011 Aaron rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

This is one of the greatest works of fiction ever written and I did not realize just how wonderful a novel it was until I read it the second, maybe even the third time. Hemingway was an amazing writer. I don't feel that I can do it justice by trying to give a critique of it. If you read it and didn't like it, read it again. ...more

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