A Clean Well-Lighted Place By Ernest Hemingway

World War I has ended and a new generation has risen. Among them lived renowned writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, T.S. Eliot, and Ernest Hemingway. They were branded by their writing because of their cynical views that spouted from their experiences in the war (“The Lost Generation”). They had grown up to witness pointless deaths and lost faith in traditional values. These views led the group to be called the “Lost Generation” which was coined by Stein but first written by Hemingway. Focusing on Ernest Hemingway, he had written “A Clean Well-Lighted Place” to portray the views of the lost generation by expressing himself through the three men of the story.

In “A Clean Well-Lighted Place,” a café is being occupied in the evening

The old man stays up late every night at the café and the young waiter complains, "He's lonely. I'm not lonely. I have a wife waiting in bed for me" (Hemingway 7). The older waiter proceeds to defend the old man stating the similarities between them. He also likes to stay late in the café “With all those who do not want to go to bed. With all those who need a light for the need” (Hemingway 9). The older waiter heads home and Hemingway states, “… with daylight, he would go to sleep. After all, he said to himself, it is probably only insomnia” (Hemingway 11). These lines establish the old waiter’s growing sense of loneliness. Hemingway is exhibiting that the waiter tries to avoid loneliness by dwelling in well-lit places since darkness represents loneliness. The young waiter, though, is rushing to get home because of his family whereas the older men face that they have no one to go to. The older waiter recognizes that soon he, too, will be like old man, waiting for the end. He even says, “Hail nothing full of nothing, nothing is with thee” showing that he has lost faith in everything (Hemingway 10). This undoubtedly depicts “… the lack of purpose or drive resulting from the horrific disillusionment felt by those who grew up and lived through the war…” (O’Connor). As established by the three men, as time passes one will grow to be more

The old man sitting alone at the café had attempted suicide (Hemingway 7). In 1928, 5 years before the story was first published, Hemingway’s father, Clarence Hemingway, had committed suicide (Clarence Edmonds Hemingway). The old man’s reasoning was never established in fact, his despair was cast aside because of his wealth (Hemingway 5). Clarence’s reasoning is considered to be because he was “Suffering from diabetes and concerned about his financial future” (Clarence Edmonds Hemingway). The lost generation is said to have become “… focused on material wealth…” which establishes why Hemingway would have added that the old man had no reason to kill himself (O’Connor). Furthermore, Hemingway also chooses to commit suicide. In an autopsy, Hemingway was diagnosed with “… bipolar disorder, alcohol dependence, traumatic brain injury, and probable borderline and narcissistic personality traits” (Martin). He had exhibited his need for alcohol though the old man. In the story, it is said that "He's drunk every night” (Hemingway 7). The old man is utilized to show connections between “A Clean Well-Lighted Place” and Ernest Hemingway’s