Brett's Affect on Jake's Narration

Fulton, Lorie. “Reading Around Jake’s Narration:” Brett Ashley and The Sun Also Rises. Rev. of The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway. Hemingway Review vol. 24 (2004): 61-80.

Fulton begins by telling us that The Sun Also Rises is a novel full of contradiction. This contradiction lies within many aspects of Hemingway’s post-war generation characters such as their constant celebration which never seems to lead to true happiness. Fulton also uses the epigraphs from Stein and Ecclesiastes to describe this contradiction: “The novel begins with a two-part epigraph at odds with itself.”(61) Fulton’s main criticism about the novel is that Jake’s contradiction of himself, “defin[ing] himself as a man even as a war-related genital wound denies him the most basic assertion of manhood,sexual gratification,”(61) skews the reader’s vision of Brett Ashley whom Fulton believes is Hemingway’s “richest female characters.”(61) Fulton goes on to explain that Jake’s view of Brett is the reason for her bad reputation. His convincing narration never leads the reader to think that he may not be completely trustworthy in his judgments.

Lady Ashley plays an important role in The Sun Also Rises, but her over all character is left for the reader to discern, assuming the reader can get around Jakes narration as Fulton has. This may also be an excellent way for the reader to not only learn more about Brett, but also about the eyes through which Brett is seen; Jake’s. Jake’s feelings for Brett are more than contradictory and this leads the reader to feel the same, much as the epigraphs do. Jake’s love for nature and Brett’s apparent dislike of it also seem to resemble the epigraphs when taking this view. Stein’s quote comments on the misled qualities of the generation while Ecclesiastes, Fulton claims, seems only to express the regeneration of the world and nature itself. This contrast between the characters and the epigraphs gives insight into certain parts Jake’s narrative, especially Jake and Brett’s relationship which is one of constant pushing away and pulling back. This idea of looking deeper into Lady Ashley by reading around Jake obviously has a wide range of advantages, but possibly two of the most important are the depth of her character and the motivation which she provides Jake throughout their quests for happiness. These are much more prominent when taking a view such as Fulton’s and I believe it’s important to consider these apparent contradictions in Jake’s narration in order to give all other characters an equal chance.