I'm not sure what to make of The Sun Also Rises. Obviously Hemingway is a distinguished writer and has many fans, but I do not think I can count myself to be one. To me, this book has been very Perks of Being A Wallflower for adults, which makes their aimlessness even more sad. I understand that Hemingway was probably trying to make a point about the effects of war on a generation of people, but I'm not sure if the effect this work has on people is still rooted in relevance, or simply the fact that this is a "must read". I don't want this blog post to be a "I hate Hemingway" fest, so I suppose I should move on.
I don't know if I could even say that I disliked this book, it just did not resonate with me, as a reader. I think my biggest issue had to do with the lack of feeling. While I respect the idea of not telling the reader what to think and feel, I also think that feelings are what makes literature great to me. I do applaud the intrigue that is created when the characters aren't viewed internally. It makes every one a mystery and every action a symbol. This being said, I'm not sure if that was Hemingway's intention. I feel like this creation of his was made to mirror the characters. I suppose he couldn't really create this evocative and grandiose tale around people who really don't know where they're going and really don't care. Does anyone else want to defend Hemingway? I really do want to like him, I'm just bleh.
I can understand feeling "bleh" about Hemingway. I like Hemingway in certain aspects such as the mystery of his characters thoughts, but i also dislike his writing style. It just seems a bit cut and dry to me. Maybe if I read some other books of his and had a bigger scope of his writing, I bet I would like him even more.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I really do feel compelled to like him but I'm just not sure what all the fuss is about. That being said, I'm sure during his time this work was a big WHOA to all his readers.Poor Hemingway.
ReplyDeleteI understand your feelings completely. I want to like this book and to an extent I do and Hemingway as an author but something just keeps holding me back from saying "yes! I love this novel!" and I can't pinpoint exactly what it is that is keeping me from that excitement :/
ReplyDeleteMaybe for you (and Brittany C and Shelbi, too) it's a book that will never really do it for you. Or maybe give it some time and read it again? That has happened to me so many times. I'll read a book, say, "I don't know about this one..." and then come back to it and see it in another way. (The opposite can happen, too!)
ReplyDeleteI would really push back against the idea, though, that Hemingway holds back on feelings/emotions. They are there--I think our read-aloud exercises in class are making that clear.