Here is a short summary of The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway:
The novel is set in the 1920s and follows a group of American and British expatriates living in Paris and Spain. The main characters are Jake Barnes, an American journalist who suffered a war injury that left him impotent, and Lady Brett Ashley, a twice-divorced British woman with whom Jake is in love.
The story opens with Jake and Brett together in Paris, where their relationship is complicated by Jake's inability to have sex. Brett embarks on a string of shallow affairs with other men. The group heads to Pamplona, Spain to attend the running of the bulls. During this trip, Jake and Brett cannot act on their feelings for each other, which causes constant tension.
Other major characters include Robert Cohn, a wealthy American who pursues Brett; Bill Gorton, Jake's easy-going friend; and Mike Campbell, Brett's alcoholic fiancé. The novel depicts the "Lost Generation" struggling with meaning, morality, and masculinity in the wake of World War I.
Key themes include love, sexuality, masculinity, anguish, community, and the aimless expatriatism of the Lost Generation. Hemingway employs simple prose and understated dialog to convey emotional complexity. The novel offers a sobering portrayal of people attempting to find meaning and connection in a post-war world.
Some important questions about the novel:
- How does Jake's war injury shape his thoughts and actions? What does it symbolize?
- How does Hemingway portray love and sexuality throughout the novel?
- What does Brett represent as a "New Woman" in the 1920s?
- How does the expatriatism of the characters influence their behaviors and relationships?
- What role does masculinity play in the attitudes and actions of the male characters?
- How do the Fiesta scenes in Pamplona reflect the larger themes of the novel?
In summary, The Sun Also Rises offers a portrait of the Lost Generation and individuals attempting to make sense of a fragmented post-war world through themes of love, sexuality, masculinity, and anguish. The novel explores the aimlessness of expatriatism in Europe during the 1920s.