Jake’s Challenge in The Sun Also Rises

Daiker, Donald A. “The Affirmative Conclusion of The Sun Also Rises.” Critical Essays on Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises." Ed. James Nagel. New York: G.K. Hall & Co. 1995. 74-88.

In the act of defending Jake Barnes’ personal growth throughout The Sun Also Rises, Donald Daiker gives helpful insight into this research question. Though many critics believe that Hemingway has created a novel which, in the end, is right back where it started, Daiker explains that this is completely untrue and as a result, Jake is a contrast to the quote from Ecclesiastes. In The Affirmative Conclusion of The Sun Also Rises, Daiker suggests that each character has his or her own “Sun.” “By the end of the story, Jake’s sun has risen, and there is no suggestion that it will set.” (74) Unlike the other characters, Daiker suggests that Jake has defeated his “bull” (Brett) and broken free from his circular path that Ecclesiastes hints at.

The reader can assume that Daiker is referring to “The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and haseth to the place where he arose.” If the reader accepts this point of view it turns the quote from Ecclesiastes into more of a challenge for Jake in which he must break free from the circular theme for the novel which this epigraph also hints at. If the reader keeps this idea in mind, he or she can see the qualities of Jake's growth throughout the story in contrast to the other characters’ mental impotence. In reference to the title, The Sun Also Rises, the reader will expect more from Jake and this may cause the reader to judge Jake more harshly along his journey rather than sympathize with him as the wounded individual that Hemingway seemingly makes Jake out to be otherwise. Daiker’s viewpoint could actually turn Jake into more of a hero protagonist for many reasons. The idea that Jake defeats his “bull” adds a completely different aspect of struggle to the narration which, more often than not, can come off as pathetic to the reader. Jake's emotional distance and inability to enjoy the routine pleasures of the others can give a dismal sense to the narration. Overall, this critical point of view from Daiker could greatly increase the liveliness of the narration for the reader.